Did I do the right thing? (PC HDD failure)

[theeaglehunter]

One more question I presume acronis is quite user friendly? I'm pretty clued up with computers but am no programmer!

and dave I intend to buy one of these I think to stick the stuff on, unless anyone can give me a reason not to

http://www.eclipsecomputers.com/product.aspx?code=HES-500FPUE

 

[brendy]

Do you have an Esata connector on your machine? otherwise save a few quid and go for the same model without that function (not many pcs currently have it)
http://www.eclipsecomputers.com/product.aspx?code=HES-5000FU2
Acronis is fairly intuitive, their site isnt too bad for support either (then I can always help out too)

 

[theeaglehunter]

Good point Brendy I do on my desktop PC but not on the laptop that most needs backing up (what I do most of the important work on) and I am debating the standard model as opposed to the 'pro' anyway (I can't be bothered to move files to the desktop first). I guess I might as well save myself a few quid.

 

[RGuk]

£77 for 500gb.....good find......

Don't have any experience of Seagate (other than my broken laptop drive!!!), Western Digital and Lacie only, I'm afraid. Should be good.....can't see why not.

500gb! How large is that!

I know some folk with 1tb (1,000 gb) external drives full of recording studio files......and video (pro files) are even bigger......

 

[brendy]

The pro edition is just as it says, home users only need the standard model.
Both units use the same hard drive (probably the same circuits minus a couple of chips soldered on).
The hard drive is a 7200rpm 500gb drive, inside a pc it would have transfer speeds of around 70mb/s, usb 2.0 has an internal speed of around 480mb/s.
The reality, an external hard drive in this guise has a maximum transfer rate of around 30mbs due to overheads (its got to actually find the specific data on the drive and flick between the stored locations as well as other limitations). Good USB flash memory sticks are not so fortunate, I have benchmarked dozens of sticks and to be honest there are good sticks and there are pi$$ poor sticks.
Not all Pro models are as fast as some classic models of a different make.
This model came out top in my testing
http://www.ginger6.com/peak-flash-drive-...0d108c1194e0e83
and for less than a tenner for 4gb, a similar model sony cracks 15mb/s while this Peak Extreme stick does almost double that at 29mbs. The sony model costs £12 and is half as fast, so much for brands eh!
If anyone is wondering why I was testing them, basically our backups have to complete as quickly as possible as it impacts the pc's performance while its running and it looks bad on software (regardless of what actually causes it) should it die on its arse while the mini backups take place.

 

[theeaglehunter]

Cheers Brendy, nice to have things explained I just assumed it would be better, but for me obviously not.

And Dave seagate are meant to be very good and reviews I have read on that model are excellent. It certainly should hold all the files from my 250gb laptop as well ! At £65 for the standard model which Brendy says will be more than adequate / better suited for home use I am definitely going down this route.

What is the best price you have found for the acronis software? I've only looked at the 2009 model for £40 off their website.

 

[brendy]

I used the USA site to download for a while but not so sure since the pound started going into freefall. Acronis.co.uk or .com will be the best price I reckon.
That said, keep an eye out in the usual computer mags dvds as an older version, 8, came free a few months ago. I might be able to dig it up but 11 is better.

 

[viscount17]

brendy,
Apparently I've been running too many AntiVirus programs, which has caused my pc to run at snails pace, so I want to get just one.

I've been recommended to use Kaspersky rather than AVG. This is the first I've heard of it so am somewhat uncertain and any advice would be welcomed.
I also suspect you mean the paid version of AVG rather than the freebie?

 

[brendy]

kaspersky is ok, Avg free is exactly the same version as the paid edition minus little points like the ability to schedule scans, which to be honest to the home user doesn't really matter that much.
I did evaluate kaspersky last year but found it a little akward to use. that said, it may well be easier to use than avg to some folk.

 

[viscount17]

thanks, once I get the redundant Anti-virus s/w off I'll settle on one or the other.

 

[brendy]

There is a Norton/Symantec removal tool available, basically Norton does not remove everything it has installed previously when uninstalling so really you want to run it to totally get rid of the offending software. Beware that it removes all Symantec/Norton programs from your pc.

 

[RGuk]

brendy.....

just had lunch with the IT chaps and they think Acronis is the way to go (they use ghost) and to buy another drive asap and clone it.

So, unless I cock it up, I'll make the image on DVDs and copy the new HDD onto another new HDD.....as if I'd lost the current one.

Seems sensible for £60-ish.....saves messing about trying to get the vista disks.....

Thanks, all really helpful.

 

[Macster]

Buy a Mac. Simple as.

I grew to hate PC's, and simply wouldnt go back, EVER.

My Mac works quietly, efficiently, without the need for Virus protection, and doesnt go wrong.

isnt that what we want them to do ?

 

[RGuk]

I'm not surprised to see this old chestnut appear.

I use a Mac at work, it's like something from 2020, absolutely crazy spec......

Although I use the music software without any trouble, getting around the machine drives me bonkers.

They are lovely looking things and have a beautiful user interface (albeit a tad annoying for windows users).

It's not a fair comparison though i.m.o. because the prices are simply not comparable.

Most PCs go wrong because folk mess around with them, not because they are basicaly rubbish.....OK, so in the early days (windows 95) they crashed more than macs etc. etc. but I have found XP and Vista flawless more or less....

A broken HDD can happen on day one or never at all.