# Making a partition image restore disk for laptop **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 16, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680 "2003-05-16T14:37:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/1 "2003-05-16T14:37:22Z")
I have a Compaq Armada M700 and would like to make a backup of the partition so I can restore the hard disk to its present state should the need arise. The Hard Disk is 10 GB in size but only 1.5 GB are used and the rest is empty so it would probably fit in 2 CDROMs. The laptop does not have a CD burner (only DVD-CD reader) but I have it networked to my home computer which does have a CD writer. I have Ghost 7.0 but it only allows local backups and restores, not over a network. How can I make a set of CDROMs to restore my laptop? Can I make the image on the local disk, then transfer it over the network and write it to CDrom? I have never used Ghost at all so I am quite lost here. What is the simplest and most practical way to go about this? ---
**Author:** ![breaknrun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@breaknrun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/breaknrun)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/2 "2003-05-16T16:34:56Z")
We use the symantec enterprise ver 7.5 ghost here at work. You can make an image to a local partition or if you’re version of ghost supports it, you can move the cd writer to the M700 and burn an image directly to the cd. The problem with creating the image on the hard and then burning it to cd might mean ghost won’t know how to restore it properly since you’ll need to span cds. We create ghost images over the network and restore from the network so I’m not sure what you’d need to do differently. I’d have to play with it a bit. You can get the manuals online though. [http://www.symantec.com/techsupp/enterprise/products/symghost/symghost\_7/manuals.html](http://www.symantec.com/techsupp/enterprise/products/symghost/symghost_7/manuals.html) will take you to the symantec ghost 7.0 manuals. ---
**Author:** ![breaknrun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@breaknrun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/breaknrun)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/3 "2003-05-16T17:13:48Z")
Check out these 2 links. This ought to be everything you need. [How to clone or save an image file over a TCP/IP peer to peer connection](http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ghost.nsf/docid/2000111914205025?Open&src=&docid=2000040710064725&nsf=ghost.nsf&view=docid&dtype=&prod=&ver=&osv=&osv_lvl=) [Which boot disks to use when writing to CD-R/RW drives](http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ghost.nsf/docid/2000110208385725?Open&src=&docid=2000112112190325&nsf=ghost.nsf&view=docid&dtype=&prod=&ver=&osv=&osv_lvl=) ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/4 "2003-05-16T20:33:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by breaknrun \* > You can make an image to a local partition if you’re version of ghost supports it As I said, the hard disk has only one partition so I have no other partition for the image file > [@](#): > > you can move the cd writer to the M700 and burn an image directly to the cd. No I can’t. It’s a laptop. Thanks for the link to the manuals although I think I’m out of luck and the only way would be to get the paying version of Ghost which would allow imaging over the network. ---
**Author:** ![Whiskey-Hotel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e68b1a/32.png) [@Whiskey-Hotel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whiskey-Hotel)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/5 "2003-05-16T21:04:04Z")
Also look into [PowerQuest’s Drive Image](http://www.powerquest.com/driveimage/). It allows an image to be split into user defined “chunks” for transfer onto removable media. It also supports writing images files directly onto CD-R/RW. And it, too, supports network image writing. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2003, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-partition-image-restore-disk-for-laptop/175680/6 "2003-05-16T21:46:40Z")
breaknrun, thanks for the links but it still seems I can’t do what I want to do with what I have. Whiskey-Hotel, that software does seem to do what I need but it costs $70 which is more than I am willing to pay right now.