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Tigerllc74

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Everything posted by Tigerllc74

  1. I was trying the secure delete as an experiment. I have several computers as backups, so I can afford to do tests. Like you I heard so much about secure delete, yet found very few people even tried it. Most talk of it, but when asked specifics, they all back off. So plunged in. Here are some of my observations. First, secure delete is NOT compatible with Macrium restore. Something to do with the way secure delete programs kills the disk. It writes 000s, yet restore is looking for something on the disk. I don't know what, and Macrium support was no help at all. They acted like they never heard of secure delete procedure. In short, after I did recovery with factory settings, I created a new image, and now it works. The old image will NOT restore to secure delted HD even after format with factory settings. Like I said, tech support was poor, so I am moving on. Second, I will never do another secure delete again. It does "weird" things to HD that nobody can address. Besides I really never heard of anyone picking up your old HD and stealing information. In theory yes, but in reality it's not worth the hassle. But it's a good fear tactic to get $$$ from you. Just like wireless internet at local coffee shop can steal personal information. Again, in theory, yes..but in reality, it's very difficult to do (they would have to target you personally..like terrorist guys). even if they are successful, using it to hurt you is impossible. They got your bank ID, so what ?? How are they goingto take the $$ without your knowledge ?? No way?? They ruin your credit ?? If you are careful person, you would know immediately something strange has happened. Again, fear tactic. Third, most people offering help are no help at all in specific things. They are helpful in first step, then it's all guessing game. I found few who i can trust, but most juts pass on "hear say' information. I got to be pretty good at who's good and who's not. Fourth, backing up data and computer information (image) is most critical, yet I am amazed how many people don't do it. Even those who do, they have never really tried to restore. So I tried the whole circle, and I found there are lots of tricks that manuals don't discuss. It's like an emergency plans, you have to execute them once in awhile so when the real emergency happens, things are second nature. Each computers have there own tricks. I back up my data on two internet sites plus two HDs, and images on three HDs using three different image programs. It sounds like a lot, untilyou crash or laptop is stolen !!!! Some are auto scheduled and mostly done manually, so I stay current in operations. It's like firemen doing silly exercises on a nice sunny day. Boy do we nee them later !!!! In the end, I am a better man as result of my experiment. Not to mention I have better handle of my computer hardwares and software now.
  2. Update...Very strange experience. I used recovery disk and installed factory settings.. (took 5 hrs++) Then I tried to restore the old image into newly recovered HD, Same error. So I made a new image then tried restore. It worked. But I could not restore the old image. I have no idea what's happening and neither does anyone else. So much for new experience ...
  3. Funny..I found the exact same post. The key was holding down cntl key while selecting the partitions. I tried this before using Gpart, and since I used Gpart. Even after creating single new partition, 74GB. But the same error. It must be something to do with the way secure delete kills the disk that Macrium doesnot like. But secure delete is writing 000s so (I thought) there is NOTHING on the HD...no partition tables, no information of any sort. So I am very surprised that restore is "looking" for something ??? If there is NOTHING on the HD, what's going on ?? Maybe I really don't understand what it means to secure delete ??? This has been a great lesson. So I used the recovery disk to load all factory settings.. Formatted fine, loaded Vista, Compaq factory settings.... All I have to do is reload the programs...No big deal. But a new question ??? If I image the HD now, will i have the same "No new partition can be restored to this location" error ?? Since Whatever was causing the error may still be on HD ???? I will test it and see !!! I will never do another secure delete ever again. Thanks
  4. Interestingly, I already tried that. I created 74GB of NTSF partition. But still the same "No new partition can be restored to this location" error. GPart gave me many choices of formats..FAT32, NTSF, etc.. Which on should I have used ??
  5. I ran Gpart and deleted the partition. So now I have 74GB of unallocated empty space. Then I tried tor restore, but still got "No new partition can be restored to this location" message. This is getting way too deep for me. but it should 't that hard to understand. I deleted the partition and I have 74GB of unallocated space. What more can I do ?? What does Macrium restore looking for ??
  6. Thanks, I will try GPart program. The image I have is from before any of these issues. To be honest, I was doing some testing to see how secure delete really worked. Now I know. The image is clean so if I can restore, I am back in business. I was told to "delete the partition" in order to restore. But how?? I have the recovery disk, but typically, I just start it from DVD drive and it does the rest. How can I isolate partition deleting program from the recovery disk ??
  7. iden: What do you mean ?? Are you saying after DBAN, Macrium restore will not work ?? If so, any idea how I can restore to the same HDD ?? During restore, I got to Choose Partition to overwrite. So I chose two (using cntl key), but "no new partition can be restored to this location" error. Some told me to delete the partition first. But how can I ?? I am using rescue CD, and HD is cleaned with secure delete.
  8. AJ: Have you actually tried Kill then restored Macrium Reflect image ?? Or other images ?? Thanks,
  9. Thanks, I assume after using DBAN, there should not be any problem restoring backed image using Macrium Reflect ??
  10. Can anyone provide me with a good Secure Delete program that I can run from CD drive ?? I am helping a friend and someone mentioned that wiping HD with bunch of 0000s (Secure Delete) is better than typical format. Thanks, Tiger
  11. I found the right answer to my question about rescue CD. http://support.macrium.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1739 Basically, CDs are backward compatible. So don't need to create rescue CD in advance or even check to see if it works now. Simply create one just before restoring.
  12. About rescue CD ?? I understand that rescue Cd is very important. Do I need to create a new rescue Cd each time I backup ?? Another words, does rescue CD have to match a particular backup or will it work to restore any previous backups ?? Or the first one I created will work for all future backups ?? Also, if I lose the rescue CD, can I just install Macrium Reflect and create another rescue CD ?? And will this new CD work to restore all past backups ?? My thought was this. Rescue CD is important, but if it can be created at anytime, then why be so concern about losing it?? Even creating one. Any not create one when ready to perform restore ??
  13. Thanks for all the input... I want to share my "unique" experience on this matter for the benefit of the forum members. Finally, I was able to access Bios and set DVD as boot priority then rescue CD loaded fine. As it turned, most (if not all) of my issues were related to not able to access the Bios at startup. I have both Compaq and Acer laptop. Compaq displays bios access option EVERYTIME at startup, so press esc then I am in Bios. Also, Compaq seem to know there's a CD in Cd player so it boots from it thus not requiring Bios change. Now, Acer is whole another story. It want me to determine whether boot from Cd or HD. So I have to enter the Bios. This is where the fun begins. Sometimes Acer screen is shown (like Compaq) and F2 will enter the Bios. BUT..BUT.. often Acer screen is NEVER shown and laptop goes directly to Windows (since there' only blank screen till windows logo, there isn't much I can do thus frustration). Then I never have a chance to press F2 and enter the Bios. For some unknown reason, when I remove the battery the Acer screen is shown just on Ac power. BUT..BUT.. sometimes it doesn't matter with or without battery installed. (I found this out thru hours of playing). In short, there's no logical reasons as to why Acer screen is shown or not shown at startup. Even worse...after I finally enter the Bios and set CD\DVD as priority boot, laptop still boots directly with Windows. This really is STRANGE !!!!! But so some odd reason, (at this time) I was able to access Bios and I am running a complete recovery. But next time who knows !!! So as you can see, my issue was just accessing the Bios. But so often comments and instructions are made from as though Bios are accessed with no problem (it's given fact)..thus chasing after wrong direction. Just access the Bios with F2 (esc) then do such and such. That's fine but what if one cannot get into bios ?? This question rarely gets addressed. I tried to contact Acer support, but absolutely worthless. 99% of the time they don't even know the question being asked. They seem like a pretty girl with a big smile and short skirt holding the door open at the hotel, but have no clue where anythings are and how hotel is operated. You get the point. Back to Acer. Now I know, there are tremendous difference between computer makers and it's not always Vista's fault. I still cannot control when Acer screen is shown, but at least I know what's going on. Thanks Dennis for stressing the checkout the rescue CD. As I said, often certain operations fail or misunderstood because of a simple unrelated logical step which were not covered in the instruction. But the school of hard knocks can shed much better light. Thanks again.
  14. I never tried the rescue CD because I didn't want to get stuck in restoring process. Can I try rescue CD to boot and not restore then go back to my normal operation ???
  15. I made an image of my laptop with Macrium Reflect. Now I am trying to restore, but ran into some "weird" problems. When I tried to restore, popup windos came up with "Drive C: is locked" (partition I am trying to overwrite is in use by Windows) and gave me three options. First option says "close all windows applications and try again". The only program running was Macrium Reflect. But If I close it, the I cannot restore since Reflect will be closed. This is very puzzling ???? So I tried to reboot using rescue CD. But laptop boots back as though rescue CD didn't even exist, and boots normally by passing the rescue CD. Any ideas ??? Also, when I made the image there were two partitions, PQSERVICE and C:\. but for restore I can only choose one. (For backup I chose both partitions at once) Is there anyway to restore both partitions just like before ?? Any comments ?? Thanks, Tiger
  16. Thanks for the idea about fast boot. It didn't make any difference on Aspire 5610, BUT you gave me a forum thread which discussed (by total chance) a battery issue. I have absolutely no idea how taking out the battery has anything to do with bootup process. But taking out battery and using AC power alone showed the Acer screen and allowed F2 to access the BIOS menu. Again, I have no idea why and how battery has anything to do with my issue, but it did allow me access to the BIOS. Speaking of removing the battery, this is the third time where removing the battery resolved weird and strange issues with the computer. Anyway, thanks for the input, and thing like this makes me really appreciate this forum. It make me think and not ever give up on any problems !!!! Thanks again.
  17. I am trying to help a friend re-format and reload the factory settings. Acer Aspire 5610 laptop. Still works on Vista and function properly most of the time. Not totally crashed. Typically, recovery CD\DVDs are bootable, so insert dvd then power on the rest is history. These are things that I tried, but failed. 1. Shut down, then at power up, presses F2 to access BIOS to boot from DVD. Direction was to press F2 when Acer logo showed, but only Windows logo then proceeded to load Vista. 2. Same thing except pressed F12 (maybe F2 was not correct). Same result..kept loading Vista. 3. tried Alt-F10, but kept loading Vista. 4. tried eRecovery management in Acer. When asked to insert DVD then click yes to format, laptop shuts down and nothing happens. 5. Just for kicks, tried F8 for safe mode menu. Again kept loading Vista in normal mode. Sometimes right after power on, when function key is pressed, laptop stops loading Vista. Power light is on but nothing happens?? Under each try, laptop totally ignored any attempts to access BIOS and proceeded to load Vista. as I said, some computer have bootable recovery DVDs. But apparently for ACER BIOS must be accessed first. So, either entire functions keys are bad (unlikely), or ??? Any ideas ?? Thanks,
  18. Since my laptop's internal wireless is not working anymore, I decided to get USB Wireless Network Adapter. There appears to be many different options such as 802.11g and 802.11n. Ina addition, 2.4 Mhz or 5 Mhz, 50, 150, or 300 Mbps, etc.... I search eBay and found some name brands (Belkin, Linksys, etc...) and generic brands. Any comments ?? I assume 802.11g at 50 Mpbs is more than sufficient, but what does forum members think ?? Thanks, Tiger
  19. I heard that using laptop 24/7 on AC power do not need battery installed. Leaving battery space open shouldn't be any problem except (maybe) for dust ?? Any comments ??
  20. I use my laptop as desktop computer most of the time. I used to set laptop to sleep after 30 minute or so even on AC power. Currently, I never allow "sleep" or "hibernate" while on AC power. but Screen saver is activated after 30 minutes. Complete shut down 1-2 times per week. I would like to hear any comments on this matter. Is there any danger with NOT "sleep" when computer is not used ??? Also, if computer is on "sleep", does automatically scheduled programs (spyware or backup) still operate ?? Thanks, Tiger
  21. I have Anytime Organizer v12. I tried to uninstall the program, but I get "unwise.exe" error and uninstall stalls. I tried to re-install thinking it would remove or repair existing version, but new instillation just add more byte to the disk. Now the file size (per Vista uninstall option in Program and Features) is up to 2.1GB. It should be only around 400MB. I called Anytime but not much help. Can anyone recommend uninstall programs that can perform better than uninstall attached to the programs?? I tried CCleaner uninstall (which didn't work either), but I think it just mimics Vista uninstall. Thanks, Tiger
  22. How do you save cookies so a new version of CCleaner will not erase all the cookies?? "Cookies to keep" option doesn't seem to save the cookies when new version is installed. Also when new version is installed, how to save "checked/unchecked options" from previous version. Right now, when I install new version, everything is checked. I left cookies unchecked but when new version was installed, cookies are checked again. My ultimate purpose is to save certain cookies such that even "cookies" are checked and new version is installed, I can keep these cookies. I have version 2.27.1070..latest version. I only use Firefox. Thanks,
  23. How do you save cookies so a new version of CCleaner will not erase all the cookies?? "Cookies to keep" option doesn't seem to save the cookies when new version is installed. Also when new version is installed, how to save "checked/unchecked options" from previous version. Right now, when I install new version, everything is checked. I left cookies unchecked but when new version was installed, cookies are checked again. My ultimate purpose is to save certain cookies such that even "cookies" are checked and new version is installed, I can keep these cookies. I have version 2.27.1070..latest version.
  24. How do you save cookies so a new version of CCleaner will not erase all the cookies?? "Cookies to keep" option doesn't seem to save the cookies when new version is installed. Also when new version is installed, how to save "checked/unchecked options" from previous version. Right now, when I install new version, everything is checked. I left cookies unchecked but when new version was installed, cookies are checked again. My ultimate purpose is to save certain cookies such that even "cookies" are checked and new version is installed, I can keep these cookies. I have version 2.27.1070..latest version. Thanks in advance..
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