Is it possible to clone a hard disk to keep Rollback snapshots using RAW COPY?

[awong]

I like to know if it is possible to use RAW COPY, or SECTOR-BY-SECTOR COPY, to truly clone a hard disk (as part of upgrading the hard disk to another of a larger capacity) so to keep the Rollback Rx snapshots.

I am aware that "normal" cloning will only copy the current snapshot, since this is the snapshot that the OS and the backup program "normally" sees.

However, some advanced disk cloners (such as Paragon Partition Manager) can boot to its own OS and then perform a RAW COPY to clone the disk. In this case, since the cloning is completely agnostic of the original OS or file system, Rollback Rx snapshots and any hidden data stored by Rollback Rx should be cloned successfully.

Is this true? If so, can I then re-expand the partition to use the "new" space in the new hard disk (for example, using Disk Management with Windows to "reclaim" space).

[HDS-Jacob]

Hi awong,

Welcome to the Horizon DataSys Forum. You can visit support at http://support.horizondatasys.com with your question and let's see if we can get an answer here as well.

Best,
Jacob

[carfal]

Awong, the method you describe "RAW COPY, or SECTOR-BY-SECTOR COPY" using Paragon Partition Manager to boot to its own OS will successfully "truly clone a hard disk so as to keep the Rollback Rx snapshots".

However when restoring the image it must be restored to the same HD or to a HD of EQUAL value. I believe that you can restore the image to a larger HD so long as you DONT expand or modify the partition image created while Rollback is still installed. In fact any partition manipulation is a NO NO while Rollback is installed. The only way to expand the partition after restoring to a larger drive is to uninstall Rollback (therefore losing all of your snapshots), expanding the partition and then reinstalling Rollback again.

[G Henry]

To me, the true question is not one of "RESTORING the image", but: WILL ROLLBACK RX run if the clone is substituted for the original?

I regularly clone my disk to an "identical" disk (i.e. same brand, same type, same capacity) to protect against a disk crash. Will I be able to exchange the disks in my Lenovo-Notebook? Will ROLLBACK run? Will any of my former saves be available? Will I have to re-install ROLLBACK, and if so, can I use the same identification key as on the original disk?

G Henry

[HDS-Jacob]

Greetings G Henry and welcome to the Horizon DataSys forum. For reference, feel free to contact support at http://support.horizondatasys.com and let's see if we can get an answer for you here as well.

Best,
Jacob

[awong]

carfal,

Your answer is most helpful. Have you had any personal experience in doing what you detailed in your reply? Have you tried to clone to an identical drive or drive of a higher capacity (but not expand partition table). Will Rollback Rx recognized that the drive is "somehow" changed and refused to run?

[carfal]

Truthfully i have not actually performed a sector by sector image but i have read about it in other forums such as this one

Rollback Software - Wilders Security Forums

A few Rollback type apps are discussed here and different methods people use to backup. You may find it interesting reading.

In a nutshell the sector by sector method is recommended if you want to keep your snapshots and Rollback intact.

A successful restore to a different drive or an even larger one is an educated guess but based on a vage memory of reading it somewhere. I know... doesnt instill confidence but might i suggest that you borrow a friends drive and give it a try before you cough up on a new drive? That way if it fails you still have your original drive to plug back in. Better to test it now rather than later when your drive actually breaks down.

Expanding the partitions while Rollback is installed is a definite no, no. I know this for a fact because the topic has come up before in this forum. It has something to do with Rollbacks tables being created to suit a specific partition size at install so resizing partitions after Rollback is installed will be disasterous.

EDIT: You should be able to activate Rollback again (if necessary) using the same Product Key. If you have any activation issues, lodge a support ticket with Horizon and they'll be glad to help you out.

[awong]

To add to this, I am considering do the sector-by-sector cloning to the Western Digital Caviar Green WD20EARS 2TB SATA Hard Drive that uses the NEW 4K SECTOR.

Will this create a problem with Rollback Rx if the original drive uses the older 512b sector?

[carfal]

I'm not technical enough to give you a binding answer but i suspect that because of the different sectors it will not work in this case....but lets hope that somebody with more technical expertise will respond now.