Sylvander
10-08-2008, 05:40 AM
I've been here before with Paragon software! (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=52243)
1. Got a FREE copy of Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.5 SE from Computeractive magazine.
2. Installed the program and made the "Recovery Media".
3. The program looks REALLY GOOD...
Seems like it does everything you could ever want to do with your HDD and its partitions.
4. An example is the partition defrag capability.
It's the only program I've used so far that TOTALLY DEFRAGMENT'S EVERYTHING.
You run it within Windows, specify one partition after another to be defragmented [including those partitions on external USB devices], then click the green tick to give the job the go-ahead, and OK it to restart.
It does the job at Restart, and when finished boots back into windows with Paragon HDM open once more.
5. You can work within Windows to make separate images, or one combined image, of chosen partitions [and include the MBR if you like], and save that anywhere that's accessible to Windows, including in a folder on a partition on an external USB HDD.
6. THE PROBLEM
...Is the Recovery Media.
The [DOS?] program loaded from this cannot work with USB devices!
So even if you had used the program to make/save image backups to a USB HDD...
If Windows was failing to load...
You cannot fall back upon the Recovery Media to save you...
Because the program it loads cannot see any USB devices! Fatal Flaw!
HOW CRAZY IS THAT!
No wonder they're having to give it away for free!
I won't be making any image backups with this since I won't be able to restore them if Windows won't load.
See here (http://kb.paragon-software.com/paragon/include/templ/object2.jsp?catId=2124&objId=1840&statId=1118255&foLang=en), where it says...
[1st question answer 4]
In DOS mode not all hardware is supported (USB/Firewire devices, some RAIDs).
That was got to from here. (http://kb.paragon-software.com/paragon/templ/302.jsp?catId=2124)
1. Got a FREE copy of Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.5 SE from Computeractive magazine.
2. Installed the program and made the "Recovery Media".
3. The program looks REALLY GOOD...
Seems like it does everything you could ever want to do with your HDD and its partitions.
4. An example is the partition defrag capability.
It's the only program I've used so far that TOTALLY DEFRAGMENT'S EVERYTHING.
You run it within Windows, specify one partition after another to be defragmented [including those partitions on external USB devices], then click the green tick to give the job the go-ahead, and OK it to restart.
It does the job at Restart, and when finished boots back into windows with Paragon HDM open once more.
5. You can work within Windows to make separate images, or one combined image, of chosen partitions [and include the MBR if you like], and save that anywhere that's accessible to Windows, including in a folder on a partition on an external USB HDD.
6. THE PROBLEM
...Is the Recovery Media.
The [DOS?] program loaded from this cannot work with USB devices!
So even if you had used the program to make/save image backups to a USB HDD...
If Windows was failing to load...
You cannot fall back upon the Recovery Media to save you...
Because the program it loads cannot see any USB devices! Fatal Flaw!
HOW CRAZY IS THAT!
No wonder they're having to give it away for free!
I won't be making any image backups with this since I won't be able to restore them if Windows won't load.
See here (http://kb.paragon-software.com/paragon/include/templ/object2.jsp?catId=2124&objId=1840&statId=1118255&foLang=en), where it says...
[1st question answer 4]
In DOS mode not all hardware is supported (USB/Firewire devices, some RAIDs).
That was got to from here. (http://kb.paragon-software.com/paragon/templ/302.jsp?catId=2124)