Imaging to an ISO?

Terrypin · 20 Aug 2016

I'm continuing to learn about imaging, a topic I've previously neglected. In addition to a couple of images I've made using the Win 10 facility (strangely accessed via File History?) I've just made another with a program called DataNumen Disk Image:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...magingProg.jpg
https://www.datanumen.com/disk-image/

This no-brainer (the kind of tool I like!) makes images in ISO format. The Win 10 images I made were about 110 GB in size (roughly the capacity I've used on the SSD C: drive) but the DataNumen ISO is reported as 257 GB. The SSD is '256 GB' so am I right that the ISO has to be the same size, empty space and all?

Is that the key downside of this utility?

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

dalchina · 20 Aug 2016

Hi, I can't speak for that particular program- disk images are usually compressed, and most programs support different compression levels. So a base image may be about half the size of the source data, as a very rough guide.

Subsequent updates will be faster and smaller:
differential images are directly related to the base image, being the changes from the base image.
incremental images are typically smaller than differential images, relying on all incremental images subsequent to the base image and reflecting the change since the previous incremental image, assuming there is one.

Expect there to be a boot medium provided- which you need e.g. if your PC is unbootable.

Macrium Reflect (free/commercial) is often recommended here; Veeam Endpoint has been mentioned (free/commercial); others use Aomei or Easeus Todo Backup, some the rather bulky (my opinion!) Acronis TI, and there's O&O Disk Image and Paragon.

I've found some bugs or issues with Aomei in particular cases.

Terrypin · 20 Aug 2016

Thanks. I installed Macrium Free a month ago but daunted by its complex UI on first impression, so have not yet tried to make an image with it. That's why I found DataNumen's simplicity attractive.

Anyone else used it? Or any program that makes an ISO image, as I'm curioius about that size issue.

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK (originally Erdington, Birmingham)

dalchina · 20 Aug 2016

You may find Veeam Endpoint easier than Macrium. Aomei's relatively easy, but unhelpful error messages even for simple cases e.g. when the existing backup can't be found. (E.g. different drive letter) + some peculiarities in less common cases.

It sounds like your ISO is the complete SSD. Normally imaging software only images used clusters, so with compression, that's a smaller image and excludes non-unused clusters (but some offer options for 'forensic imaging' so you get an exact copy, creating a larger image).

PiKo · 21 Aug 2016

I assume that you have your data also written on the C partition? Otherwise i do not understand the high 110 Gb volume on the C.

Terrypin · 21 Aug 2016

dalchina said:

You may find Veeam Endpoint easier than Macrium. Aomei's relatively easy, but unhelpful error messages even for simple cases e.g. when the existing backup can't be found. (E.g. different drive letter) + some peculiarities in less common cases.

It sounds like your ISO is the complete SSD. Normally imaging software only images used clusters, so with compression, that's a smaller image and excludes non-unused clusters (but some offer options for 'forensic imaging' so you get an exact copy, creating a larger image).

Thanks, that explains it. As shown in the feature list seen at my second URL, DataNumen does indeed boast forensic capabilities.

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

cereberus · 21 Aug 2016

Terrypin said:

Thanks. I installed Macrium Free a month ago but daunted by its complex UI on first impression, so have not yet tried to make an image with it. That's why I found DataNumen's simplicity attractive.

Anyone else used it? Or any program that makes an ISO image, as I'm curioius about that size issue.

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK (originally Erdington, Birmingham)

MRF has loads of guides on web/youtube.

It really is easy to use.

PS. Is the Yenton still there.

Terrypin · 21 Aug 2016

PiKo said:

I assume that you have your data also written on the C partition? Otherwise i do not understand the high 110 Gb volume on the C.

Yes. Here's what C: looks like in TreeSize:

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

Terrypin · 21 Aug 2016

cereberus said:

MRF has loads of guides on web/youtube.

It really is easy to use.

PS. Is the Yenton still there.

Thanks, I'll persist!

The Yenton? Apparently yes. But I guess the last time I'd have seen it was 50 years ago, probably as a kid on the Outer Circle # 11 bus :)

P.S. I'm puzzled why my post is shown with 'Local time 02:21'. My local time (BST, an hour ahead of GMT/UTC) is 09:21. Does that 'local' refer to west coast USA?

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Terry, East Grinstead, UK

PiKo · 21 Aug 2016

I see that you have a D drive of 4 TB on which all data files are residing.
And on the C drive only Windows, programme files and settings etc. are residing.
In my case the volume of these files on the C drive is approx. 35 Gb and not 110 Gb.
What makes the difference? I suppose that in your backup settings you keep backups or file histories of your C drive on the C drive.
Ask yourself whether that has any sense or added value if for instance you make monthly a Macrium image.
What Macrium Reflect concerns: make first a recovery disk; and forget all Windows imaging.