Restore can't see the backup

[cacchip]

Also if possible grab a win7 dvd. Anyone will do the trick - boot up and select repair and there will be an option to restore from an image. You cannot do an image restore from an active system

[- bill]

The Seagate Acronis version is limited and is intended as a tool to allow you to move your existing disk installation to a new Seagate drive. I'm not sure, but I think it won't work unless you have a Seagate drive installed.

Jerry

Seagate 'Disc Wizard' (by Acronis) is sufficiently unlimited that I've never encountered a need to use anything else for imaging. Its User Guide makes this clear, though Seagate Technical Support is not enthusiastic about bothering with user questions (which may be where the perception that it was 'intended' to be used only to allow you to move a system to a new disk came from).

Until the newest version (13, which doesn't strike me as a step forward in multiple respects) Disc Wizard, while nominally usable only on a system with a Seagate drive present (though a USB-connected drive qualifies), could still be used on any system via a 'technical override' option (Google for it in case it's considered an unacceptable work-around to be described here). I'm still using version 11.0.0.8326 and loving it.

[bethel95]

Sorry for responding so late--I had just started a new job when this thread started, so I'm just now catching up.

I had made a full image backup a month ago and put the files on a separate hard drive, E:

1. What version of Windows are you using?
2. What app did you use to make the image backup?
3. Does your system have the small "system" (aka "system restore") partition on it (separate from the boot partition, aka "C:")?

I have the full prior image, in its WindowsDiskImage folder, on my L: drive (a separate internal hard disk). Windows Explorer sees both the drive and the image. The problem is that Restore doesn't see it.

My guess is that you're referring to System Restore, which is not the same system utility as System Recovery. If so (and if my memory serves--it's been a while since I fooled around with System Restore), System Restore works only with "shadow copies" (images) of protected partitions that it has saved. It knows nothing about images created by other backup apps, even Windows Backup. Since your HDD was trashed, all images saved by System Restore were permanently lost--they won't even be part of any backup image (which would have been redundant, so that makes sense).

You'll need to have the backup app that originally created the image to restore that image, and that app can't be running from the drive to which you're restoring the image (unlike System Restore, which can sort of do just that--the difference is technical, not practical). If that app were Windows Backup, then you'd need either (a) a Windows Recovery Disk (which you apparently didn't make or can't find) or (b) the System Partition (which contains the Recovery Console utility) on the original HDD (assuming that we're dealing with Win7 and if that partition was created during the original installation and wasn't trashed when the HDD crashed). [Someone else said that you could also access the Recover utility by booting from a Win7 install disk--I can't vouch for that, though it could be true.]

If (b) is true and you did use Windows Backup to create the image, then you should be able (in theory) to boot into the Windows Recovery Console and access that image to restore your C: (boot) partition (someone else already gave you a link to the instructions on how to do that, but didn't mention that the System Partition must exist for that method to work). At that point, I'd say "good luck," as I've never used the Recovery Console in Win7 and didn't put a System Partition on my HDD.

I'm pessimistic about all of the above in your case, however, given the name of the folder that you say your image backup resides in. Win7's Windows Backup (which I use) creates a folder named WindowsImageBackup; since that's not what you're seeing, I'm guessing that you're either booting XP or else you used some other (unknown) third-party app to create the image.

If this reaches you after you've already solved or given up on your problem, by all means do make a Windows Recovery Disk (CD or DVD) right now!

Many problems have been reported with people trying to backup Windows 7, with Windows 7.

I would agree with DrWho's five rules (which I practice), regardless of what backup app is used. Whether this last statement is germane to the problem at hand is another issue. Whether anyone else ever has problems (as many or more?) with 3rd-party backup software (free or paid) is yet another.

I've yet to see a backup system that casual Windows users can consistently figure out how set up reliably (without some expert assistance)--not even for data files, let alone system images. Windows 8 is supposed to address at least the data backup problem--we'll see.

[DocWatson]

You asked in an earlier post if anyone knew of a data recovery service if recovering the backup could not be done. Before going that route, if you have the hardware skills, you should try pulling the drive out of the machine and slave it to a working system. Your data is still on that drive, even if you can't get to it by booting to Windows and you can now see the slaved drive and transfer all your data without risk of corrupting it with recovery attempts.

If that's not for you, take a look here for instructions on how to use the Windows 7 Image program to restore an image.

HTH.

[krsmav]

I tried every suggested method, without success. I ended up getting a new computer and moving the original C: drive to it. Then I used the paid version of MiniTool Power Data Recovery (the free version is limited to 1 Gb) to get back the lost files from the original C: drive. They were mostly intact, even though the drive had been written to a fair amount, because there were lots of duplicates.

Power Data Recovery sorted the files into types (.doc, .xls, etc.), but it couldn't recover the names, creating them as file1.doc .. file[xxxx].doc. I purged the duplicates with Nirsoft's Search My Files had am slowly viewing them and saving the ones I conceivably need. I'm nearly done with the .doc files and will go next to the .txt files., while my wife is working on the GIFs, which are mostly hers. It's forcing us to purge the duplicates, rename things in a consistent way and reorganize rationally, a necessary process and probably what needed to be done sooner or later.

A major PITA. I'm now making a daily image backup with Macrium Reflect, starting it at the end of the day. Once bitten, twice shy.

Thanks to everyone who helped.

[Lirica4534]

Nowadays, there are many data recovery programs that are designed to help the user retrieve his inaccessible data online. You may select one to take a chance.

In my personal experiences, Recuva, TestDisk and iCare Data Recovery Free, etc, are efficient and free data recovery tools. You may give them a shot.

Tips: After experiencing this trouble, do not forget to back up all your important data on at least two different drive or locations.

[krsmav]

Lyrica4534 -

Many thanks. Recuva didn't do much, but the paid version of Power Data Recovery got (almost) everything back.

Believe me I'm backing up religiously. The paid version of Macrium Reflect backs up incrementally as I work, and I create a new complete image once a week on a separate drive.