[m0gely]

cannie said:

2.- If you simply use the traditional image obtaining methods, when your C drive fails you must stop working and you loose all your not previously saved personal files.

We agree factory restore images are bad. However Windows backup in Win7, and business versions of Vista create a current image of the entire system. When you restore the image, it contains all your current personal files so nothing is lost. This requires you to backup regularly, but in Windows 7 it can easily be scheduled and is a question the user is asked when they run their first backup. The backup software takes care of this for them. You mention "when your C drive fails." I know that what you mean is, when the "Windows partition needs rebuilt". However, if the hard drive physically fails, then nothing is gained by your method. In either case, using Windows backup or other backup tools to create a restore image that is regularly updated would still be a solution. It's fine, we just prefer different methods. I just prefer less effort.

[cannie]

m0gely, on 01 September 2010 - 09:45 PM, said:

1.- Windows backup in Win7, and business versions of Vista create a current image of the entire system. When you restore the image, it contains all your current personal files so nothing is lost. This requires you to backup regularly, but in Windows 7 it can easily be scheduled and is a question the user is asked when they run their first backup.
2.- The backup software takes care of this for them. You mention "when your C drive fails." I know that what you mean is, when the "Windows partition needs rebuilt". However, if the hard drive physically fails, then nothing is gained by your method. In either case, using Windows backup or other backup tools to create a restore image that is regularly updated would still be a solution. It's fine, we just prefer different methods. I just prefer less effort.

Well, I see it this way:
1.- Even when the recovery system now used by Microsoft is by far the best of all existing ones, no scheduling saves the last minute introduced personal files, unless you save inmediately every change, and today, as you know, your personal files are very frequently dispersed into hundreds of GB.

2.- Of course I exclude a physical failure of the HD. In that case the only solution is a new one. But in the everyday use we all have lived experiences in which restoring to a previous moment was not enough and you had to pick your external image to rebuild totally the HD, including the personal, and normally outdated, files and folders. Then you must stop working, and that may be a big problem in critical moments.

HTH

cannie

[dencorso]

The best strategy is many at once: full partition images burnt regularly to DVDs, full partition images saved at finer regular intervals to a big external HDD, two HDDs with independents OSes in system partitions and one data partition in one of them incrementally backed-up to another one of the same size in the other. And, at least one aditional partition in one of the drives for discardable data (which can be lost without problems) and the page file. It's time consuming, but the more paranoid you are, the safer you get.

[catsado]

For me the best way to get speed for your Win 7 is to install it on a SSD , and keep your data on a HDD .

[cannie]

catsado, on 03 September 2010 - 03:27 PM, said:

1. Install (Windows 7) on a SSD, and keep your data on a HDD.

Probably in a near future all hard drives will be outdated and substituted by solid state devices, but today is today.

[R600]

Isn't this the same as HyperOS? Given that this method maybe free, the process sounds a bit time consuming compared to HyperOS.
I haven't used it since 2005, but I do remember that having installed XP once, I could clone the C: drive and dump it on to a newly created partition via HyperOS and use the cloned copies as one wishes.

[cannie]

R600, on 04 September 2010 - 12:14 PM, said:

1.- Isn't this the same as HyperOS
2.- Having installed XP once, I could clone the C: drive and dump it on to a newly created partition via HyperOS and use the cloned copies as one wishes.

I've numbered your questions for an easier answer:
1.- This method is only based upon a previous one by choosing, collecting, resuming and putting together many ideas suggested by other members, now updated and rebuilt in order to optimize your HD for Windows 7 and duplicate your installation into the same HD, using your Administrator rights for it. You can find such antecedents here:

How to create easily a second Win98/XP in the same computer

BTW: Being this explanation very important, last paragrah of the tutorial has been modified to include it.


2.- Windows 7 is about 10 times bigger than Xp and is by far much better in every sense, including protection measures.

Thanks, R600!

cannie

[Bi2L]

Sorry for off topic but The Title must be HDD not HD
HOW TO OPTIMIZE Hard Disk Drive, not HOW TO OPTIMIZE High Definition

HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR HDD FOR WINDOWS 7

[cannie]

Bi2L, on 06 September 2010 - 05:14 AM, said:

Sorry for off topic but The Title must be HDD not HD
HOW TO OPTIMIZE Hard Disk Drive, not HOW TO OPTIMIZE High Definition

HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR HDD FOR WINDOWS 7

Hi Bi2L!

Even when HD is commonly used for "High Definition", the same initial letters are valid for "Hard Disk" and also "Hard Drive" in opposition "Pendrive" or "External Drive", according to the context into which they are used.

Best wishes

cannie

This post has been edited by cannie: 18 September 2011 - 04:30 AM

[cannie]

Modified paragraphs 3 (to simplify the process) and 5 (to include system image managing).

Best wishes

cannie

This post has been edited by cannie: 11 September 2010 - 03:13 PM

[sixcentgeorge]

your way of installing windows 7 is the same hp used with the touchsmart . i find it good but not that much .
first i prefer to have the first partition being at 2 Go and formated with fat16 .
second after installing windows 7 , is to create a grub4dos entry in the boot menu
third is to install the win98 boot files to be able to update the bios
then may be add to the grub menu some linux or bartpe iso image to do backup of the second partition onto the third

[cannie]

sixcentgeorge, on 12 September 2010 - 10:53 AM, said:

1.- your way of installing windows 7 is the same hp used with the touchsmart.
2.- have the first partition being at 2 Go and formated with fat16, installing windows 7, install the win98 boot files to update the bios, iso imagadd some linux or bartpe to do backup of the second partition onto the third

As usual, I divide your post in parts for a better answer:

1.- Windows 7 is a very special OS: it creates an special boot partition when installed first into an unallocated space. So methods must also take it into account. No connection at all between Touchsmart from HP and this humble tutorial, made as a completion of a previous work for Win98 and XP that you can find in the Windows 98 thread of this forum.

2.- Yours is also a valid option if your machine allows you to do all that. But there are a lot of difficulties when you try to install Linux or any previous version of Windows into new computers running preloaded Windows 7 64 bits, and even to run most linux or bartpe CDs. Because of this impossibility it is even more important than ever to install an easy working clone to replace the original: no problem of drivers or incompatibilities of any kind, and a single and simple install and update procedure.

Best wishes

cannie

[cannie]

Text has been modified to include paragraph 4.4.

HTH

This post has been edited by cannie: 18 October 2010 - 11:04 AM

[cannie]

Paragraphs 4.2 and 4.4 have been improved for better results.

HTH

This post has been edited by cannie: 30 October 2010 - 02:55 AM

[cannie]

Latest improvements:

Light text corrections, not affecting at all the contents of the tutorial .

HTH

This post has been edited by cannie: 02 December 2010 - 04:06 PM

[cannie]

Bi2L, on 06 September 2010 - 05:14 AM, said:

Sorry for off topic but The Title must be HDD not HD
HOW TO OPTIMIZE Hard Disk Drive, not HOW TO OPTIMIZE High Definition

HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR HDD FOR WINDOWS 7

Even when I modified the title of the tutorial after reading your post, the whole text has been reviewed and the abbreviation HD has been changed into HDD just whenever it exactly matched the sense of the sentence.

Thanks for your suggestion.

cannie

[cannie]

Latest changes:

- A considerably improved new version replaces the old one.

Enjoy it!

Greetings.

This post has been edited by cannie: 10 March 2011 - 06:20 AM

[xpJohnson]

cannie, on 18 May 2010 - 04:33 PM, said:

5.5.- REDUCE THE SIZE OF WINDOWS 7 BY DELETING UNNECESSARY FILES AND FOLDERS.-
- The Windows size can be considerably reduced by deleting the C:\winsxs\Backup subfolder.
- Use the "Search" option of "FreeCommander", copy this line "as is" into the search space and delete all results:
.log1;.log2;.pnf;.tmp;.bak;.evtx

I am having problems with this. I can't delete the files it finds. It says they are in use. Any ideas?

Also I noticed you removed the language files you were mentioning to delete as well. Should I keep those now?

Great guide, your last update is easier to follow now but I would still recommend the larger win2 partition. My install to backup is 13.3GB without the hiber and page file and I started with a 2.5GB slimmed version.

[cannie]

xpJohnson, on 10 March 2011 - 06:41 PM, said:

1 - I am having problems with this. I can't delete the files it finds. It says they are in use. Any ideas?
2 - Also I noticed you removed the language files you were mentioning to delete as well. Should I keep those now?
3 - ...25 GB....

Hi xpJohnson:

1.- Windows 7 uses many .lnk files connected to C drive into the drive root folder. If you copied any of them into the unactive unit it will redirect the search towards the current C unit. Delete all .lnk files at the drive root.

2.- Asian language files can of course be deleted using the line I included into the previous version of the tutorial. Nevertheless I deleted it because Windows 7 detects the changes, forcing you to activate again. I thought that even when I used it happily it could mean a problem for some users, so I've tried to avoid it.

3.- The 25 GB dimension is thought in order to make it possible a reinstall into the same drive using a copy of the install DVD kept into the same HDD by simply clicking on "Setup", which leaves the previous Windows 7 into a "Windows.old" folder, to be deleted manually. I have reconsidered the size of primary partition 3 and any logical unit to be used as drive C after detecting that the use of any other partition or logical unit to do the same does not work properly. This way the only possible install partition is the correct one. The 12 GB size is nevertheless considered as a minimum, and if you have space enough it is better to keep the 25 GB for any partition used as drive C because it considerably reduces fragmentation.

Gretings.