Macrium Reflect 7 Backup in 2 parts, both useless.

[kiotimak]

Hi.
Monday I used Macrium 7 Free to full image the C Drive in my computer. I started the backup about 3am, when it showed it had 30 minutes to complete I went to bed letting the backup complete itself and I can use it when I wake.
Nope, I woke 4 hours later and onscreen is the Macrium Backup window stating "No space on destination" (Disk).... Overall Progress Status was 99%, Current Progress 100%. File size 227GB
I changed Destination disk (after deleting previous images to make enough space for the new image) and I expected the uncompleted Image to be moved to the new destination and for the image to be completed. Nope. I ended up with a 227GB 00-00 image on one HDD and a 24GB 00-01 image on another HDD. I couldn't open the 00-00 image to restore it to another M.2 SSD because it was incomplete. I tried putting both files into same folder on one HDD but still no joy trying to restore the image/s.
In the end I deleted both images and started the backup image process again. It too almost 2 hours to complete and when I restored Macrium to restore the image in WinPE Mode to a new computers M.2 NVMe SSD that contained W10 Pro OS but it was faulty so it had to be replaced, that restore took almost 2 hours to complete. Slow on computers with 16GB DDR4 2400MHz RAM in each and a Ryzen 5 2400G in one and a Ryzen 5 2600 in the other computer receiving the cloned OS from the first computer.
But here's the beef, I cannot comprehend why Macrium would start to create an image if there is not enough free space available for it on the drive to which the image is being saved. I can only assume that it doesn't do any analysis of the recipient destination drive.

[1101]

But here's the beef, I cannot comprehend why Macrium would start to create an image if there is not enough free space available for it on the drive to which the image is being saved. I can only assume that it doesn't do any analysis of the recipient destination drive.

Nope. Its what should happen
Sometimes there is more data to backup than will fit on a single drive.
This is 100% normal to split the backup onto multiple devices if not enough space.
You get the same thing with commercial backup to tape , when the single tape capacity its no longer enough.

As you mentioned, splitting backup across drives is not the best way , its adding another point of possible failure
if the backup wont fit onto a single drive/tape, it really needs a rethink of the backup setup

You should really make sure the backup will fit on the drive BEFORE you start
If you cant fit a 250Gb or 500gb image onto onto your backup drive, you really need to rethink what you are backing up to.
Get a new USB drive . Use it ONLY for backups/images . Save yourself some grief

And test that you can restore from that backup : which it looks like you were doing



Keep it simple . Allways the best way
My boss is looking at the backup setup of one of our customers : its ridiculously complex , involving multiple PC's & devices , with many points of possible failure . Its what happens when something is cobbled together rather than spend the money & do it properly. I'd hate to be the person having to do a restore off it .

[zqwerty]

Just use Macrium or whatever to restore the operating system use copy and paste to backup data to an SSD, Flash, HDD or whatever.

Have your operating system plus a few important programs on one smaller fast SSD or whatever and put your data for games, music and videos or whatever on another separate disk.

Doing this makes everything easier and to me seems like common sense.

[kiotimak]

1101
Hi. Then why would the split backup not mount to be restored? I couldn't combine the two parts and why didn't the first part get sent to the new destination disk before it continued the backup and make only the one 00-00 file? As said I ended up with two useless parts.
Yeah my fault for not checking I needed 25GB more free space but as I said, why could Macrium have not checked and not started a backup it couldn't complete? Other programs or games inform there is not enough free space to use for installing the program/game/app.
I have a couple of unused USB3 500GB external drives, any one of which I could use solely for a main and differential backup. 500GB drive is ample to backup a 500GB M.2 NVMe SSD that has at least 100GB free space. When the backup drive starts getting close to filled I can start afresh on another of the 500GB external drives and format the other to be used again.
When I get a 1TB M.2 NVM2 I then may need a 1TB drive to which to save backups.
Thanks for your reply.

[kiotimak]

zqwerty
hi, yep I thinking of doing that. Reinstalling W10 20H2 and then a few necessary apps (AV and a couple others VC++ etc) I have several 1TB SATA HDD's or the 500GB EVO 860 SSD that is available for use which I could use for programs and game installations.
I was considering getting a 1TB M.2 NVMe to use for installing OS and all programs/games etc because that would prevent any bottlenecking. Perhaps that's not something I would visibly notice.
Cheers

[kiotimak]

1001
Sorry, I said I tried to restore the 00-00 file and that was incorrect. I tried to run/view the file in viBoot and it wouldn't run/open because it was incomplete file. Same with the 00-01 file. So I threw them and started again.
Learn something new everyday but stupidity lasts forever.
I was sure I had enough free space and thought it will go close to being about 10-20GB remaining and maybe I misread the numbers like I did checking Bank Balance the other day on computer Internet banking.... what I thought and saw as an 8 was a 3!!!!

[1101]

" Then why would the split backup not mount to be restored"
thats why I dont like splitting a backup .

Possibly just a bug in that FREE software . This is why companies can pay $1000 for backup software .
Although , even $1000 backup software isnt bug free . You then have to explain why that expensive software you sold/recommended has bugs


"Yeah my fault for not checking I needed 25GB more free space"
ha, easy mistake, we've all done that Im sure

"why could Macrium have not checked and not started a backup it couldn't complete"
Free software
Also, the backup is a compressed file, so Macrium wouldnt know what size the backup/image will compress down to .

I agree, when setting up that image/backup , there should have been some sort of warning about free space in backup device .
Its free , not perfect .

[wainuitech]

The reason it doesn't warn you is because of the way compression works. As stated By Macrium:

The disk space required for an image is not known before completion. Some data blocks will compress by up to 90% and others will not compress at all. It depends what type of data is stored in the file system.

Usually though you have to look, if you had 250GB of used space on the Drive, the you need that at a MINIMUM to do backups in one Image.

Splitting images is not always a good Idea, As 1101 posted:

Keep it simple . Allways the best way

I've set up Macrium on several Business Companies, all work fine, got one Business I have setup, there are 2 x 4 TB drives, doing daily backups from 5 computers. Set the Schedule the same as I have here - Keep only 2 Full Images (every Friday) then do differential every day apart from Sat/ Sun, keeping 5 ( mine here do every day) deleting older ones. This allows for two weeks of Backups to be stored.

As an example here's one of the backups: Its all completely Automated to a server.



With Every file you can simply Double click it, extract any files you may want, or put the whole image back. ( example in cases of HDD failure)

Then with my own, every couple of weeks I plug in another drive and manually copy / paste the backups to a External drive and store it away (when I remember ) Business, ones the person who I told has to do it does it every couple of weeks also.

[kiotimak]

wainuitech
hi. Yeah maybe I should read the Users manual. Here's my excuse
Free software huh..... well I couldn't unearth the Macrium Technicians version I have & install it so I DL'd, installed and used the Free version. I seem a bit disorganised huh. 5 x3/4TB Storage Drives all disconnected while I trying to get the new computer rig working. I will find & install it but that will not be until I have wiped the OS etc that I am using now in this Gigabyte MB Rig.
I am not happy with it. It is the cloned copy of the W10 Pro x64 v20H2 Build 19042.685 that I have on my other Asus MB Rig. Takes so long to Shutdown, I turn off the computer using the PSU power switch. But that's not the main point that is bugging me. I was about to post a new thread detailing that which seems completely out of whack about having 8 Partitions on the Intel 660P 512GB M.2 NVMe SSD.
8 Partitions? 4 of which are unallocated space and two Recovery partitions & the EFI(System Partition) are all 100% Unused, and of course the 'C:' NTFS Data Partition which is fine.
Something doesn't quite seem right to me. Here's a pic showing the Drive in Easeus Partition Master and Disk Management. Would you agree that its skew-wiff and I'd be best starting with Fresh install of W10 v20H2 and all else that is necessary. I may connect a 3TB Sata HDD for installing Progs/Apps and games to. I said 'may connect a 3TB Sata HDD'... I did connect it and its invisible as you will see in the attached pic. I have 3 others I can try. If none show up in Disk Management well that's another issue I have to look into.
Here is the pic of the 8 partitions of the Intel 660P NVMe SSD.

[wainuitech]

Never really had any problems with (Free) Macrium, only my own making.

As for the Partitions, Why not simply merge them then expand out C Drive to make it larger.

Using both EaseUS AND Disk Management is asking for trouble BIG TIME. As 1101 remarked in another answer -- Keep it Simple. Seen it countless times -- People make their own problems sometimes by over thinking problems.