If you selected standard compression (the default) the rule of thumb is about half the size.  I just backed up 11gb of c drive used and result was 6 gb file.  (page file is skipped)

Check your Ghost 10 definition to be sure you said Independent Recovery Point backup, and not Recovery Point Set (base + incrementals).  If you chose base plus incrementals, then the first backup is a full one, but subsequent ones are the changes only.

I like independent backups which I take weekly.  But some people take backups every day and like the base plus incrementals approach.

ollie90680 wrote on Mar 9^th, 2007 at 11:22pm:

It is probably a holdover from the errors you had earlier.  When you select Recovery Point with Incrementals, you never actually get to choose whether Ghost will take an incremental or a full backup.

My suggestion is to delete the backup definition you currently have and define a new one from scratch.

(I'm surprised you chose LaCie again after the problems you had.)

Sounds like a good plan to me.  Ghost 9/10 sometimes gets confused after an error during one of its backups or its database catalogue gets messed up.

Assuming that the USB2 drive will be connected to your Windows XP computer, the first thing I would suggest doing is a quick-format of the drive to NTFS (my computer/right click/manage/disk management/then select the usb2 drive, etc).  Some vendors pre-format their usb2 drives as fat32, so unless you need fat32 for portability to some other non-xp computer, I recommend NTFS.

Then create a folder on the USB2 drive, such as G10Backups to contain your backup images.

Ghost4Me, I am definately have some problems with NG10. I have made several attempts to backup F: to G: where G: is an 18GB FAT32 hd.   F: is 10GB.  I have tried it as USB2 and Firewire only to have it not be able to complete. It seems to say that it has a problem with F but chkdsk on F seems ok. Partition Magic said that F had some open files and to use the OS check utility. I assumed that meant Chkdsk as I don't know of any other.  Still no change.  I kind of long for the days of being able to check the entire surface of the HD, something I believe we cannot do now although maybe Steve Gibson does have some software.

Oh well, I expect the Big Drive to be deliverd Monday and that should elimate whether drive G has problems. Still I will need to get answers on F:

I will do as you suggest on the Big drive when I get it.

ollie90680 wrote on Mar 10^th, 2007 at 10:39pm:


chkdsk x: /r will do the check followed by a full surface verify and relocate and fix (substitute your drive letter for x)
Run both:
chkdsk f: /r
chkdsk g: /r

It also helps if the drives are defragmented before creating a backup image with Ghost.  PerfectDisk (www.raxco.com) and Diskeeper (www.diskeeper.com) are the two most popular commercial defraggers.  Both are good.

El_Pescador, I appreciate your entering into the conversation and the knowledge that you are trying to impart to me. I am not completely sure that I understand what you are suggesting.
   The NG 10 I purchased had both NG10 and NG2003 CD's in the package. I installed NG10. I guess that you are telling me that Norton 8.2 is also available on the NG10 CD and you are telling me that I can use it to restore my system. Problem is I haven't been able yet to backup anything using NG10. There have been problems with the LaCie NAS so I tried a USB2 HD with a limited  backup. It has not been successful either as USB2 or FW400. There may be problems with the receiving HD or the source HD. I am still trying to determine this. Unfortunately I do not have any testing which indicates either one has problems. I intend to move the files off of source F: and remove this HD from the system. I will replace receiving G: with the new Big HD (USB2)  that I receive tomorrow from LaCie. Then I plan to do a Acronis backup followed by a NG backup. Hopefully the NG will then perform as expected. If not then I will have to find another way to make NG10 or N2003 work. I do know that I have never been so frustrated by any software or received so little support from the mfr as I have trying to us NG10.  Thank god for you guys in the forums. You have been a godsend. I will need to study your suggestions more to understand what you are telling me. I am sorry that I am so slow.

Pleonasm wrote on Mar 11^th, 2007 at 12:06pm:

After my experience of making a "(whole)disk-to-image" legacy Norton Ghost Backup of a Compaq Presario MN1650NX desktop PC in its dying throes, I came to the conclusion that Ver 8.2 was indeed a robust product as it achieved the task without a qualm in WIN PE whereas a previous attempt with v2003 running in DOS was riddled with error messages.