A friends computer came with XP installed- but no back up CD. What do I need to burn on teh Cd so we have a back up copy??

Is the I386 folder already included in a 'backup' copy we make? or should it be added seperately.

or should i just kazza the thing??

Nowadays, when you buy a PC with pre-installed OS and software, much of it comes on "image" disks which are nothing but copies of how the hard drive should look [i]after[/i] the software is installed.  That way, the user can "recover" a completely lost install simply by putting in a few CDs and rebooting the machine.  This usually overwrites the [i]entire[/i] hard drive, so any data on the drive is lost.

There's not way to get XP off of the recovery CD and the only "backup" is to completely re-install the system from the CD.

You can use a program like Symantec Ghost to burn an Image of the Operating System as it currently is on that computer.

He says he doesn't have a Cd - I'll look again.

Doesn't Ghost run a couple of hundred bucks?? I'd love to have a copy.

edited fur spelin

You can probably Kazaa or otherwise download a copy of XP Pro "Corporate Edition", which has none of the Activation crap from the retail copy.  Just has a serial number to enter in like previous Windows installs, no online verification/authentication with Microsoft...

As stated above a lot of vendors do not send out the OS installation CD but a recovery CD that is an image of the computers hard drive as shipped from the factory.

If this is the case he is SOL he cannot repair or reinstall the OS and is bad news especially if he decides later to upgrade the motherboard then even the recovery CD maybe useless.

I would call the vendor and complain that I did not get my copy of the OS that I paid for… be polite but firm and say if the OS CD is not forthcoming you will not buy or recommend their products ever again, sometimes this even works but don’t hold your breath.

He may want to send the computer back for a refund if this is still an option.



The version of Ghost meant for larger networks is expensive but online you can get an OEM copy of Norton System Works Professional 2003 (which includes Ghost) for under $20 dollars.

I forgot about the corp ed. :)

I found a ver. of ghost - looks like about 95 megs. DL'ing now....

Hios is an HP pavillion- from comp usa-- 18-24 months old- think he could still request a copy of the os cd??

If he has the "restore" disk (which is how HP does it) he doesn't really need an individual XP disk, unless he plans on installing it on a different pc.  If he has OS trouble, run the restore disk.  With the HP you can restore your system (keeping all other data already on your HD) or you can reinstall your OS (formats HD before restoring the OS, all data lost).

Much of Microsoft's new software has to be registered otherwise it stops working after a limited number of uses (logons).

re-installing the XP OS formats the HD???  it doesn't with 98.  That looks like a damn good reason to have two hard drives.  One for the OS and maybe other applications and one for you primary copy of all your data. or keep your data on both.  In any case it sounds like religiously backing up data is a good idea

you dont- bill will come and sue you cause he cant feed his kids...

Reinstalling XP doesn't necessarily format the hard drive.  It depends on what route you want to take, you install over your old XP installation or do a Clean install which will format the drive.  

The first choice I listed is nice, I have used it as a repair when I might have Windows patch problems as sometimes they mess everything up.  All you Apps still work but you have to reinstall Windows patches.  A far easier option than having to do a clean install and reinstalling all your Apps!

The second choice is more for when everything else fails or you want to just start from scratch!!!

This sounds like typical a notebook with a hidden and protected area on the disc called a HPA. HPA have been standardized by the drive industry and are getting quite common (IBM notebooks as an example... rapid restore). I disagree that a HPA with the OS can replace the recovery CD but IBM, Sony, and others do this now.

I use Linux to copy it and make a recovery CD. There are websites that document how this is done. I'd recommend searching on HPA recovery CD in your favorite search engine.

The other alternative is to call the vendor back and ask for a recovery CD. Don't pay for another Windows license since that was already paid for... only for the cost of the CD and shipping. You will need to make a little noise for this, however.

With Windows XP Home Edition you can make your own back up disks.

I also ordered (at no cost since it's under warranty) system recovery cd's and a console recover cd.

Unless a harddrive gets ruined, I can completey restore my pc as I see fit.

You can't burn a cd just by picking folders and files out of an installed windows directory.
You can, as someone above mentioned, use [url=http://66.90.75.92/torrents/659/Norton.Ghost.2003.iso-rar.torrent]Symantec Ghost[/url] or similar.
Speaking to the OEM in a loud and scary voice might get you a restore cd, but as someone else mentioned, partitions containing a compressed installation of the operating system are becoming increasingly common. If your box is like that, I wouldn't put money on you getting a copy of xp from them.
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Additionally, the woes of later reinstallation can be lessened by partitioning one's single hd into several 'logical drives' visible through My Computer as seperate harddrives.

Edited because the hand is quicker than the grammar.

No; running a recovery CD will.