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Gumby
Fishnologist


Registered: 06/13/01
Posts: 26,656
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Want to reformat, need backup advice.
#8706096 - 07/31/08 04:46 AM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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I last reformatted my computer about hm... 3 or 4 years ago. I avoid reformatting because it's such a hassle. But I was thinking I probably make it more of a hassle than it should be, hence this post.
Lately the OS (XP Pro) and some other software have been displaying some really weird behavior with no apparent cause or fix. Sooo, it's definitely time for a reformat.
Here comes the questions:
What do you guys usually do when you reformat?
What do you backup, and how? (I have 500GB external HD, so space isn't an issue)
Do you clean install all programs again?
How often do you reformat?
Are there huge advantages to reformatting somewhat frequently?
How long does it typically take to get back up and running? Last time I did it, it took me DAYS to get my computer back to how I liked it.
I could probably Google the answers to most of my questions, but I like hearing how people do things differently and seeing the ensuing debate over what works best.
Thanks in advance for the help.
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Seuss
Error: divide byzero



Registered: 04/27/01
Posts: 23,480
Loc: Caribbean
Last seen: 3 months, 8 days
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Re: Want to reformat, need backup advice. [Re: Gumby]
#8706112 - 07/31/08 04:51 AM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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> I last reformatted my computer about hm... 3 or 4 years ago.
You are nearing the end of life on your hard drive... I would install a new hard drive into the computer and install onto it. Once you get everything back up and running, add your original hard drive as a spare (secondary drive), with all of your data still intact.
I replace drives when they reach five years, if they last that long.
-------------------- Just another spore in the wind.
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Gumby
Fishnologist


Registered: 06/13/01
Posts: 26,656
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Re: Want to reformat, need backup advice. [Re: Seuss]
#8706345 - 07/31/08 07:52 AM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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Oh, I've had the drive since 03. Hrm. Guess I should get a new drive.
Unrelated, but kinda cool... My parents bought our first family computer in 1995. It's processor is a blazing 100Mhz, had 32MB Fastpage RAM (upgraded to 64MB), and a 2.1GB HD (added a 13GB a few years later). The OS sits on the 2.1GB drive and the computer is still alive and kicking. Never even had to replace a fan. The computer is never shut down either.
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JT



Registered: 02/28/07
Posts: 7,027
Loc: athens
Last seen: 4 years, 10 months
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Re: Want to reformat, need backup advice. [Re: Gumby]
#8706482 - 07/31/08 09:01 AM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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I just reformatted my mom's laptop over the weekend . It was my second time and it went much smoother than I thought.
I'll give you a quick layout of how it went:
1. Night before, transferred her key files and downloads to my external hard drive. This took about an hour, but since I copied them all at once I was able to let it run while I slept.
2. Booted the laptop with the XP disk in the morning. Loading files takes a few minutes, but if you use the option to "Quick Reformat" deleting and creating a new partition doesn't take long at all. (5 minutes)
3. Installed a fresh copy of XP. (35 minutes install, plus 15 minutes to get it set up after)
4. Installed service pack 2+3 (30 minutes)
5. Installed office, wireless card, and other programs (40 minutes)
6. Copied the files from my external hard drive while I ran some errands (1 hours)
All together, the whole process took me about 3 hours on Saturday. You could cut this in half depending on how much stuff you want to bring over and the speed of your hard drives.
I would highly recommend reformatting every couple of years. It easily doubled the speed of her laptop.
As long as you plan out the time accordingly, it's not much of a hassle.
Don't worry about losing profiles and settings on certain programs - you can probably find the location of those files on google and bring them with you as well.
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delta9
Active Ingredient


Registered: 10/28/04
Posts: 5,390
Loc: California
Last seen: 13 years, 6 months
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Re: Want to reformat, need backup advice. [Re: Gumby]
#8707139 - 07/31/08 12:34 PM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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I like *n?x based OSes, especially my favorite (debian) because it makes a reinstall or move to a new box extremely easy. First, I typically rsync my home directory to a backup drive, which is one easy command and ensures all my files make it over. Next, I make a list of all my installed programs (dpkg -L, also copy my sources.list)... then on the target, all I have to do is install the basic OS, then I can rsync my home directory into the target, copy the sources and installs and install the programs all at once. Usually takes a few hours...
For windows, I do a similar thing, in that I will load the windows computer with a live CD (such as knoppix) and I will backup My Documents and Desktop using rsync. I keep on CDs and in drives all the install files I've used to install with; however, many of them will be out of date. At any rate, I install Windows which will take about an hour (much less on fast systems), then copy my files, and install from the installers I have (or get new ones if need be). This takes me usually a day or so if there are a lot of programs I have to download, otherwise it will be just a couple more hours than for the linux.
-------------------- delta9
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timmeh_87
Scientist


Registered: 07/14/06
Posts: 157
Loc: Canada
Last seen: 13 years, 11 months
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Re: Want to reformat, need backup advice. [Re: delta9]
#8717783 - 08/02/08 07:57 PM (15 years, 9 months ago) |
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Sorry for not reading the thread, but I wanted to quickly throw in my two cents.
What I have started doing is just installing a new windows "beside" the old one. That is, I would install it into a directory called something like "windows2". When it is finished installing, your computer will ask you which windows you want to boot - the old one or the new one.
In this way, you can leisurely move all your settings and stuff over, and eventually delete the old windows when you need the space again. No backing up required.
The advantage here is that you can do this in an hour and be using your new OS right away, and you can still go back to the old one if you need to use some program thats not installed on the new one yet. (or it turns out the new one cant be activated and will stop working in 30 days)
I have even successfully done this with viruses in the old OS, by doing a removal as soon as the new OS booted for the first time.
Oh, and I usually reformat twice a year or so. Never until I "have to" but I run a pretty tight ship so I have to a lot. I do it so often that I just keep all my drivers in a folder on the hard drive, and I have a mental list of "Free software I need to put back on" which I can get through in about 60 minutes.
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