Quote:"... A newbie question:
Is it possible to ghost-image a laptop hard disk to an external SATA hard disk attached via the cardbus?
ie, create a bootdisk/bootcd to boot to dos, and somehow getting ghost 2003 to recognize the external SATA hard drive in order to create a ghost image of the laptop's internal hard disk (or a partition) onto the external disk..."
CLICK HERE to view comments about external SATA HDD enclosures. I have no genuine knowledge - but a very strong gut feeling - that the very concept of a cardbus will prove to be the roadblock, irrespective of the mode of communication. You will just have to try it and see.
The really weird - but eminently functional - Metal Gear Box 780SAU2 enclosure has dual USB 2.0/SATA 150 capability, but uses a unique bridge chipset inside to host an
IDE HDD
. Since 80GB-to-160GB IDE HDDs are going for $20-to-$40 USD after MIR these days, you could trick one out for way under $100. The only drawback is that the DOS-based operations of Ghost 2003 are restricted to the USB mode.
On the other hand, if you already have decided to go SATA - as I have - then to merely prove the concept before making a major outlay, try this trick:
(1) borrow
any style or kind of external HDD enclosure kit;
(2)
with the top cover temporarily removed
, simply shunt the existing data cable aside and attach the distal end of a SATA 150 cable to the SATA HDD before mounting the HDD in the enclosure;
(3) attach the 4-pin MOLEX connector from the enclosure power supply to the legacy connector on the SATA HDD (if no legacy connector is available, use a 4-pin MOLEX to 15-pin SATA power adapter);
(4) attach the proximal end of the SATA 150 to the SATA cardbus; and
(5) power up the external enclosure kit prior to booting the laptop.
In the case of my desktop PCs, they will boot off the external HDDs -
via a SATA cable port adapter - as long as there is no competitor in the boot sequence.
El Pescador