Most effective backup method for computer with multiple profiles

September 20, 2005 3:37 PM

I will be wiping the hard drive of my Dell Inspiron 600m, which is currently running Windows XP with multiple profiles. What's the best way to make sure I back up everything?

The main motivation behind the wipe is that I purchased the laptop for my personal use and then stupidly brought it into work at my last job, where they installed all sorts of crap and partitioned my hard drive and added seven profiles in Windows XP networking. When I left, the individual who had installed all the stuff was conveniently gone, as well, and no one could figure out how to remove all the profiles, recompose my hard drive, and delete all the programs. Now, the computer runs very slowly despite my efforts to remove all unnecessary programs, and I end up having to log in each time I use it, even though I'm now just using it at home. I was told by a friend that I should just erase the hard drive and start over from scratch. However, because of all of the different profiles (mmckeon, megan, admin, network, mckeon, etc.), I'm worried I might lose some files I might need later. So, I want to use the most comprehensive back up process available. I'm willing to spend up to $200 for a software program if necessary.

posted by MeetMegan to computers & internet (6 comments total)

Grab an external USB hard drive slightly larger than the hard drive in your existing laptop (which should cost significantly less than $200), partition it in a similar way that your current drive is partitioned, and then use the free utility DrvClonerXP to clone the partitions on the drive. You'll have a perfect backup that you could even boot from (assuming that your machine can boot from an external drive), as well as a backup drive for regular future use.
posted by eschatfische at 3:59 PM on September 20, 2005

Are you a local admin on the machine? You will need to be.

If there are files from other profiles that you want to keep, you will find them under C:\Documents and Settings\... You'll need to explore in that folder hierarchy until you're satisfied you've got all you want to save. Then...

My Computer -> right click -> Properties -> Advanced Tab -> User Profiles -> Settings (Select).

In the list: Keep COMPUTERNAME\Administrator and COMPUTERNAME\(your acount) Delete everything else.

That will get rid of all the other user profiles. All of the installed applications and programs will still work. You can uninstall most unneeded programs via the control panel - Add/Remove Software.

If you've got crap that running at startup and you can't figure out how to disable it, that's because it is listed in a special registry key. Using regedit, go to: HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\... But don't muck w/ regedit without googling up some clear instructions, mkay?

If you go with the Nucular Option, check out Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Files and Settings Transfer Wizard. It works nicely.
posted by Triode at 4:38 PM on September 20, 2005

Oh, and XP has a backup program built in. It can only write to tapes, disk or network share - not optical media like CDR.

Start -> Run.... -> "ntbackup" (type it into the Run menu without quotes) and point it at an external USB hard drive.

If you're having to log in at each use, then the machine is probably still in the "Domain" of the last office it was at. You want to move it into a "Workgroup".

My Computer -> right click -> Properties -> Computer Name -> Change.. Toggle the Workgroup button. Reboot. Then in Control Panel -> User Accounts you can disable the CtrlAltDel requirement for login.
posted by Triode at 4:48 PM on September 20, 2005

I offer no further assistance, simply appreciation for Triode's thoroughness. Bravo.
posted by mic stand at 6:10 PM on September 20, 2005

I mention this a lot, but if you are looking for programs to back up, clean, and restore your data (after heeding Triodes good instructions) the best freeware boot CD I have found is Ultimate Boot CD. It has everything.
posted by Dean Keaton at 10:16 PM on September 20, 2005

There is the aptly named "File and Settings Transfer Wizard", comes from Microsoft, and is free.
posted by stupidcomputernickname at 5:23 AM on September 21, 2005