ping (partimage is not ghost)

[Uraken]

does any one use this as an alternative to ghost i'm looking for a way to distribute my PC images on the cheap/free and have had a quick look but i can't get the dhcp server to give out ip addresses..

[SimpleSi]

I tried it once and it did backup my test machine to my main machine at home

 

But then I couldn't restore it no matter what I tried

 

I keep trying all of these Ghost repalcement type tools out but none so far have both worked and been useful at the same time.

 

The main problem is usually dealing with NTFS partitions

 

 

regards

 

Simon

[Uraken]

thanks mate, i can't stomach paying for ghost its about a tenner for every machine!!

[CyberNerd]

I've used this on several servers and over 70 laptops:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/g4l

 

NTFS isn't an issue because it copies bit for bit. will compress and work from ftp server

[Uraken]

hi cybernerd i also tried this but can't get the ftp server part to work i think its to do with setting up a new user called install which i'm having a bit of a thick moment with.

[Geoff]

You just need a valid account with upload privs on your ftp server. Nothing complicated.

[NetworkGeezer]

I've used this on several servers and over 70 laptops:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/g4l

 

NTFS isn't an issue because it copies bit for bit. will compress and work from ftp server

 

Bit for bit? What level of compression do you get?

[Geoff]

The free space obviously compresses down to nearly zero (especially if you defrag before you image). How well the rest compresses depends on if you use gzip or bzip2. gzip is faster, but doesn't compress as well as bzip2.

[Uraken]

in theory i agree but the install instructions ask for there to be a user called install and windows xp pro won't let me add users to the ftp site operators? i have come across this issue before but can't remeber a way around it.

[Uraken]

ah of course cos its xp you can't add users.it has to be a server

[Geoff]

I used a linux box with proftpd as my ftp server.

[SimpleSi]

I've used this on several servers and over 70 laptops:

sourceforge.net/projects/g4l

 

But how slow was the process

 

NTFS isn't an issue because it copies bit for bit. will compress and work from ftp server

 

It is an issue because the software has to transfer the whole partition and not just the active sectors in current use which Ghost does (because they paid MS the money for a license )

 

The free space obviously compresses down to nearly zero (especially if you defrag before you image).

 

The "free space" is only free if the software can understand the partition file system which AFAIK G4L can't

 

IF the free space is filled with a repeating pattern (say all zeros), then the compression algorithm stands some chance of compressing it to a small amount of data.

 

But in the real world, the free space contains lots of old rubbish and therefore doesn't get compressed and therefore data needed to be transferred to recreate the partition can be much larger than what you'd hope for

 

So as long as your prepared to zero all the byes in the empty space on the partition before cloning then maybe its usable

 

And for those who care about such matters, there is the slight issue of the G4U/G4L license infringement. As a GPL author I do care

 

My info is 6 months old so maybe somethings changed

 

regards

 

Simon