Windows Re-install

On 4 Jul 2018 04:15:36 GMT, Paul wrote:

If you make a backup image, those can be mounted and randomly
accessed like it's a hard drive. It's possible to copy
any portion you want from the old setup that way.

Hehhehheh ... you bring up a good point where, you may notice that I have
tons of operating systems on each computer, simply because I use the method
of "adding a brand new disk" every time I need to re-install Windows
(usually because I brick the operating system testing something out).

As a direct result of that approach, this PC has 5 operating systems:
* Ubuntu 18.04 Desktop
* Windows 10 Pro
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked trying to eliminate all Microsoft updates!)
* Windows 7 Pro
* Windows Vista
http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=18_grub01.jpg

While this PC also has 5 operating systems:
* Ubuntu 17.10 Desktop
* Ubuntu 18.04 Desktop
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked by Microsoft after years of no updates!)
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked by eliminating Cortana - thanks Paul! (jk)
* Windows 10 Pro (current installation)
http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=18_dualboot103.jpg

In "effect", my approach is the same as your approach, as it's the same end
result as what you're proposing, while what you propose doesn't require an
extra hard disk drive each time!

On 4 Jul 2018 11:59:16 GMT, Keith Nuttle wrote:

I find it easier to be forced to decide to reinstall a piece of
software, than to find the time and motivation to uninstall it.

I agree with Keith Nuttle's sentiment.

I accidentally am forced to do the same as Keith in that I like to store my
installation archive in a huge (something like 100GB) directory tree, where
I copy the critical stuff to 4.3GB forced-size fixed-size folders (where
you guys helped me figure out how to do that), so that I can then archive
the critical installers to optical media.

It's that 4.7GB fixed-sized optical media that is always my *first* set of
software that I put on any new Windows installation within the first 10 of
the first 60 steps (where "install programs" is just one step even though
each program has its own README file explaining the details, as you saw
with the Epic browser install earlier this week).

As Keith Nuttle noted, things change over the decades, such as the choice
of newsreaders may no longer be Pan or Tin or whatever, and over time, we
don't use GhostScript/GhostView so much to strip out protections and edit
PDFs, and browsers such as Apache and Netscape fall by the wayside, as do
useful utilities like Change-of-Address (COA) and COA2 over time.

On the flip side, some installers become precious jewels, such as the last
known good Super, or the last known good SharePod, or the last official
copy of MSOffice 2007 (which we had to wrestle with earlier this year since
I couldn't find my DVD backup and had to get Microsoft tech support to
install it for me, over the net), or the last known good utorrent, or the
last available Adobe Creative Suite (CS2), or the last available PSP, etc.

What helps to find things easily is that all my archives over the decades
use the same task-based structure, honed over time, such that all picture
editors are put in C:\software\editor\pic\{here} and all video editors are
put in C:\software\editor\vid\{here} and all text editors are put in
C:\software\editor\txt\{here}, and where audio editors are put in
C:\software\editor\audio\{here}, etc. (and where inherent "viewers" such as
"Irfanview or VLC" are put with the editors).

There are always decisions to be made, such that "converters" are kept
separate, such as Handbreak and Super as are downloaders such as
Youtube-dl, and where there is always a decision to be made with
multi-purpose tools such as Shotcut, which edits, views and converts audio
and video files - but Shotcut is mainly a video editor - so that's where it
goes).

There are TWO areas where it gets a bit more confusing to organize:
a. Suites (e.g., MSOffice, LibreOffice, OpenOffice, Calligra, etc.)
b. Utilities (e.g., Nirsoft, Sysinternals, WindowsClub, MS tools, etc.)

These "suites" drive me nuts, because in one sense, each tool is different,
but in the other sense, they're all tied together in some way, if by
nothing else other than by BRANDING (which I try to avoid but which most
people seem to give in to).

Just like in the "olden days" when I tried to keep "Programs" menus clean
and "My Documents" clean and "Program Files" organized, I eventually gave
up trying to clean up the pollution, so at the moment, in my OS hierarchy I
have a section for 'suites' (such as Nirsoft) and likewise, in my editors
hierarchy, I have a section for 'suites' (such as OpenOffice).

The good news is that my *current systems* are organanized mostly the same
as the systems of two decades ago (very few tasks have changed over that
time period) as are my backups and installation and menu hierarchies, all
of which "mirror" each other.

So, to Keith's point, it's really easy for me to pop in a DVD and just
install, one by one, my preferred archiver, browser, cleaner, database,
editor, finance, game, hardware, etc. programs - simply because all the
"honing" occurred in that evolutionary process of picking the best tools to
fit onto the DVD.

On 07/04/2018 2:24 PM, Arlen Holder wrote:
On 4 Jul 2018 04:15:36 GMT, Paul wrote:

If you make a backup image, those can be mounted and randomly
accessed like it's a hard drive. It's possible to copy
any portion you want from the old setup that way.

Hehhehheh ... you bring up a good point where, you may notice that I have
tons of operating systems on each computer, simply because I use the method
of "adding a brand new disk" every time I need to re-install Windows
(usually because I brick the operating system testing something out).

As a direct result of that approach, this PC has 5 operating systems:
* Ubuntu 18.04 Desktop
* Windows 10 Pro
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked trying to eliminate all Microsoft updates!)
* Windows 7 Pro
* Windows Vista
http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=18_grub01.jpg

While this PC also has 5 operating systems:
* Ubuntu 17.10 Desktop
* Ubuntu 18.04 Desktop
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked by Microsoft after years of no updates!)
* Windows 10 Pro (bricked by eliminating Cortana - thanks Paul! (jk)
* Windows 10 Pro (current installation)
http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=18_dualboot103.jpg

In "effect", my approach is the same as your approach, as it's the same end
result as what you're proposing, while what you propose doesn't require an
extra hard disk drive each time!


I didn't know you could pile **** that High!

On 7/4/2018 12:24 PM, Arlen Holder wrote:
On 4 Jul 2018 11:59:16 GMT, Keith Nuttle wrote:

I find it easier to be forced to decide to reinstall a piece of
software, than to find the time and motivation to uninstall it.

I agree with Keith Nuttle's sentiment.

I accidentally am forced to do the same as Keith in that I like to store my
installation archive in a huge (something like 100GB) directory tree, where
I copy the critical stuff to 4.3GB forced-size fixed-size folders (where
you guys helped me figure out how to do that), so that I can then archive
the critical installers to optical media.

It's that 4.7GB fixed-sized optical media that is always my *first* set of
software that I put on any new Windows installation within the first 10 of
the first 60 steps (where "install programs" is just one step even though
each program has its own README file explaining the details, as you saw
with the Epic browser install earlier this week).

As Keith Nuttle noted, things change over the decades, such as the choice
of newsreaders may no longer be Pan or Tin or whatever, and over time, we
don't use GhostScript/GhostView so much to strip out protections and edit
PDFs, and browsers such as Apache and Netscape fall by the wayside, as do
useful utilities like Change-of-Address (COA) and COA2 over time.

On the flip side, some installers become precious jewels, such as the last
known good Super, or the last known good SharePod, or the last official
copy of MSOffice 2007 (which we had to wrestle with earlier this year since
I couldn't find my DVD backup and had to get Microsoft tech support to
install it for me, over the net), or the last known good utorrent, or the
last available Adobe Creative Suite (CS2), or the last available PSP, etc.

What helps to find things easily is that all my archives over the decades
use the same task-based structure, honed over time, such that all picture
editors are put in C:\software\editor\pic\{here} and all video editors are
put in C:\software\editor\vid\{here} and all text editors are put in
C:\software\editor\txt\{here}, and where audio editors are put in
C:\software\editor\audio\{here}, etc. (and where inherent "viewers" such as
"Irfanview or VLC" are put with the editors).

There are always decisions to be made, such that "converters" are kept
separate, such as Handbreak and Super as are downloaders such as
Youtube-dl, and where there is always a decision to be made with
multi-purpose tools such as Shotcut, which edits, views and converts audio
and video files - but Shotcut is mainly a video editor - so that's where it
goes).

There are TWO areas where it gets a bit more confusing to organize:
a. Suites (e.g., MSOffice, LibreOffice, OpenOffice, Calligra, etc.)
b. Utilities (e.g., Nirsoft, Sysinternals, WindowsClub, MS tools, etc.)

These "suites" drive me nuts, because in one sense, each tool is different,
but in the other sense, they're all tied together in some way, if by
nothing else other than by BRANDING (which I try to avoid but which most
people seem to give in to).

Just like in the "olden days" when I tried to keep "Programs" menus clean
and "My Documents" clean and "Program Files" organized, I eventually gave
up trying to clean up the pollution, so at the moment, in my OS hierarchy I
have a section for 'suites' (such as Nirsoft) and likewise, in my editors
hierarchy, I have a section for 'suites' (such as OpenOffice).

The good news is that my *current systems* are organanized mostly the same
as the systems of two decades ago (very few tasks have changed over that
time period) as are my backups and installation and menu hierarchies, all
of which "mirror" each other.

So, to Keith's point, it's really easy for me to pop in a DVD and just
install, one by one, my preferred archiver, browser, cleaner, database,
editor, finance, game, hardware, etc. programs - simply because all the
"honing" occurred in that evolutionary process of picking the best tools to
fit onto the DVD.

Sounds simple, but what do you do about all the
program configurations
program updates
misplaced activation keys or keys that won't work
on the version you can get now.
program addons
browser addons that no longer work with current
browser versions.
links you use to group stuff together
scripts that run stuff
stuff that was only available to install from the vendor site
or that no longer exist on that site
or that have been updated to change functionality/spyware that you don't
want
freeware that was available to install for a few days only
bookmarks, passwords, ip addresses, fixes for false positive antivirus
firewall blocks for programs you want to PREVENT accessing the web
stuff installed in non-standard locations to keep your C: partition small

Then there's device driver hell.
Drivers that don't exist.
Drivers that resist all attempts to install on operating
systems they weren't designed for. (including compatibility mode)
Drivers removed from vendor support sites.
Driver hacks and cracks and malware that might do more harm than good.
Drivers that worked on earlier versions, but not now.

I've had systems that were updated from 7 to 10 and worked fine.
Fresh install refused to allow a workable display configuration.
Had to reinstall 7 then update to 10.

When I install a system, I keep a log of what I did.
I try to keep it updated with system changes.
I keep directories of drivers that worked for each machine.
Two years later, after all the hardware changes and software
changes or updates or OS updates, I'm finding my log
less than adequate.

A fresh install is trivial on the surface, but a nightmare
to get all working as it was before.

On 4 Jul 2018 20:38:12 GMT, mike wrote:

Sounds simple, but what do you do about all the
program configurations

Easy peasy.

Each and every installer has an ad-hoc README file which is just a log of
what I did when I installed it.

In that installation log, I note what the software did (e.g., did it phone
home upon installation) and what the software does (e.g., does it
constantly ask for updates) and where it defaults to (e.g., does it default
to the Downloads folder for documents), etc.

I also add non-intuitive tricks (e.g., how to make Irfanview crop to a
fixed 4:3 aspect ratio), and I note any non-intuitive settings (e.g., how
to make CCleaner NOT add itself back to the task scheduler after you use
CCleeaner to remove it from the task scheduler).

For the misbehaving apps, like the OpenVPN tap installer, Belarc Advisor or
the Epic Privacy Browser, I note in the README how to move them after the
fact (if I figured that out as I did with Epic just recently).

For default settings, such as how to get pictures to open up by default in
Irfanview but to "Edit" en-masse in Paint.NET (and to show zero other
picture editors in the context menu if possible), I write the highly
non-intuitive solutions into the README after figuring the tricks out, with
your help.

For startup settings, I write those too into the README too, for example,
chrome://settings/clearBrowserData
so that each app opens up the way I want it to open up, if possible.

I've maintained these log files since the dawn of computers, but in the
olden days, I used to include the registry changes and file system changes,
but in those days, those changes were manageable - but today they're not
(if you've ever watched the huge number of registry changes when installing
something like Microsoft Office, you'll know exactly what I mean!).

program updates

Hehhehheh ... program updates.
Name a single freeware program (I mostly use freeware unless I can't
accomplish the task with freeware - which almost never happens) that
*needs* to be updated.

Seriously.
* Irfanview of 10 years ago does basically what Irfanview of today does.
* Vim of 10 years ago is essentially the same as the VIM of today.
* FileZilla, despite its propensity to constantly update, is the same.
etc.

My point is that it's extremely rare for an update to confer any
appreciable functionality in almost any tool (e.g., I'm fine with MS Office
2007 for heaven's sake, for what I need it for).

The main exception might be the Internet-facing tools which are often
attacked, such as browsers, but setting up browsers is trivial via the
"update" button if that's what people want to do.

My main problem with downloading the current set of installers is that a
lot of the downloads are just stubs, where I have to go to trouble to get
the full installer (as I just did given Paul's recently suggested Macrium
Reflect (where the 3MB stub, when executed, downloaded an 809MB Windows PE
in addition to a separate 64MB Macrium full installer.

misplaced activation keys or keys that won't work
on the version you can get now.

This is a problem - but not much of a problem for me, since I use almost
exclusively freeware. In fact, I'm on record for having asked, in the past,
what payware is ever needed, as I can almost not think of anything that you
can't do just fine with freeware if you think about it.

Certainly, there's almost nothing I've ever needed to do that I couldn't do
with freeware, and, trust me, I think outside the box all the time.

However, to your very point, every once in a while, there *is* something
with keys, e.g., FinePrint is a classic case, where even the archived
solution with the archived keys won't work because they *design* into the
software the inability to work on the latest platform, even if you have the
old archived keys.

But most of the time, the archived solution will work with the archived
keys, where, for example, MS office or Adobe Acrobat (version 6.x and
below) payware are classic examples.

program addons

Plugins?
Scripts?

I simply make a "plugin" or "script" directory in the software archive area
(note all directories are singular, if possible, so I don't have to guess
whether it's plugins or plugin or scripts or script, etc.).

browser addons that no longer work with current
browser versions.

Hehhehheh ... I have a sub directory under my Mozilla plugin directory that
has something like plugin_before57 and plugin_after57 for exactly that
reason.

It doesn't happen often, but it happens, so, when it happens, that's why
they invented sub directories.

links you use to group stuff together

Hmmmmmmmmm... what's that?
Do you mean menus?

(All my menus are basically portable from one machine to another, and even
from one version of Windows to another. In fact, my WinXP cascade menu
works just fine on Windows 10, with only minor modifications due to honing
over time).

scripts that run stuff

I have scripts galore, e.g., _vimrc is a "script" of sorts, and certainly
newsreaders (such as 40Tude Dialog) have scripts galore, as do image
editors such as ImageMagick and certainly command-line tools have scripts,
such as youtube-dl.exe, etc.

As stated, that's why they invented subdirectdories!
C:\software\editor\pic\imagemagick\script\{put scripts here}
C:\software\editor\pic\irfanview\plugin\{put plugins here}
C:\software\editor\pic\paintnet\plugin\{put plugins here}
etc.

stuff that was only available to install from the vendor site
or that no longer exist on that site

Hmmmmm.... I *only* obtain my installers from the "canonical" site, by
which I assume you mean the "vendor site", where almost never, if ever, do
I need to resort to the third-party sites such as Cnet or Sofpedia or
whatever they are called nowadays.

Since I save my software for decades, if I need the last known good Super,
or the last known good PSP or the last known good Sharepod, I simply need
to dig deeper into my software DVDs to find it.

Sometimes, as with the last known good PDFCreator, I don't have archives
since I didn't know about it, so, *then* I do have to jump through hoops to
find the last known good version. But that's only due to my ignorance,
where it's rare that there's something I need to do that I can't already do
using the software from my archives (and that last known good PDF Creator
wasn't useful anyway since it didn't create clickable PDFs of web sites
anyway which is what I was testing out a few weeks ago).

or that have been updated to change functionality/spyware that you don't
want

Aha! This is a biggie! And I have that solved!

Some freeware, as you know, gets WORSE over time, with respect to bull****
that they add (like Super did, or like ES File Explorer did on Android),
where it's a fantastic BOON to have the old installers handy (even on
Android, the saved installers work just fine on (almost) any device!).

Some, like SharePod, get turned over to the dark side, such that they're
paid to force iTunes into the mix, so ONLY the older software works sans
iTunes.

Others, like Irfanview, add a bunch of "Add Google Chrome" buttons to the
installer, where they didn't do that in the older versions.

So, the solution is to use the oldest versions you can get your hands on,
before they turned over to the dark side, which is exactly what I do, by
design.

freeware that was available to install for a few days only

Hehhehheh ... you mean crippleware?
I don't use it.
In fact, I delete it on sight.

I've asked in the past what task we *need* payware for, and I don't think
we have more than a tiny handful of things that we actually do, that we
don't have freeware to do it.

That statemenet allows for things like:
- US federal & state taxes (the freeware sucks, IMHO)
- PDF to Office converters (the freeware sucks, IMHO)
- MS Office compatibility (the freeware isn't as compatible as needed)
etc.

bookmarks ...

Aha!

You may not remember, but I use a *different* browser for each webs site.
There are strategic (privacy) reasons for that.
But what it means, in practice, is that I have a *lot* of web browsers!

In the olden days, I used all the cross-browser bookmark solutions, but I
gave up that (just as I gave up trying to keep Program Files organized).

You know how I do bookmarks today?
Easy peasy.

Two separate simultaneous solutions, in fact, depending on the type of
bookmark we are speaking about.

The first solution is "Start Run bm {enter}"
Up pops my 1 bookmarks file, in any editor (or browser) I want it to be in.

The second simultaneous solution is that each browser is set to one site.

So, by virtue of the fact that, for example, Edge does Gmail, then there's
no need for bookmarks because Gmail always comes up when I start Edge, and
Edge is never used for anything else but Gmail.

passwords,

Passwords?

That's a different problem altogether, where there are *plenty* of software
solutions for passwords, but I happen to have this command which I need to
add encryption to, but which currently uses a plain text file:
Start Run vipw {enter}
Up pops my passwd file.

Two things I'd like to add to that mechanism though, a
1. It would be nice if it's encrypted, and,
2. It used to "grep" the one line I needed - but I forgot how I did that.

I will post a separate question asking for both those features!
(Thanks!)

ip addresses

Hmmmm... Using the App Paths key:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\hosts.exe
@Default="C:\Windows\System32\etc\drivers\hosts"

That already give me the following command for free:
Start Run hosts
Which opens my hosts file for edit.

And, if I wanted it, I could make:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\ip.exe
@Default="C:\path\ip.txt"

So that this would work:
Start Run ip
Which would just open an IP file for edits.

fixes for false positive antivirus

Hmmmmm.... I never have any problem with antivirus programs simply because
I don't deal with them. I leave Windows Defender running, and that's about
it.

Even though I install a *ton* of freeware, I can't remember the last time I
got a virus (it was in the floppy disk days). I did get a ton of calls from
the Indian robo callers who just wanted to help me fix my machine though...


firewall blocks for programs you want to PREVENT accessing the web
stuff installed in non-standard locations to keep your C: partition small

Hmmmmmmmm.... I don't use firewalls.
For a while, I used Glasswire (as I recall), but like antivirus programs
which keep popping up, I got tired of the false alarms.

If I really wanted a firewall, I'd likely figure out how to put it on the
main router, so that it's a single solution for everyone on the SOHO
network.

Then there's device driver hell.

Hmmmmmm... really? I don't have a device-driver hell.

For the hardware, I generally go to the maker's web site and do a single
driver download and archive that onto its own DVD disc (CDs are hard to
find nowadays). That only has to be done once, as Dell, Toshiba, Asus,
etc., don't "meaningfully" update their drivers all that often, in reality.

Even so, I almost never *need* that backup, simply because both Windows and
Linux are pretty good at autodownloading drivers (e.g., Nvidia display
drivers).

My only problem is installing legacy HP printers (the HP 2100tn for
example), but I solved that by installing a similar printer driver instead.

Nowadays, whether it's Linux or Windows, device drivers "just work".

At least I can't remember a device driver problem in a loooooong time,
although you only have to "shim a kernel" with nvidia display-driver
binaries once in Linux to begin hating how Nvidia does things and to
appreciate the default linux x-org vgs and vesa drivers.

Drivers that don't exist.

See above.

And no, DoubleDriver and DrvBack freeware do not archive HP printer
drivers.

But they do seem to archive everything else, after the fact.

Drivers that resist all attempts to install on operating
systems they weren't designed for. (including compatibility mode)
Drivers removed from vendor support sites.
Driver hacks and cracks and malware that might do more harm than good.
Drivers that worked on earlier versions, but not now.

See above.

I've had systems that were updated from 7 to 10 and worked fine.
Fresh install refused to allow a workable display configuration.
Had to reinstall 7 then update to 10.

I've updated iOS from 7.0.0 to 7.0.1 and all hell broke loose.
Windows 10 updated itself in January for me, and bricked itself.
Even the local Microsoft store couldn't fix it.

Such things happen.

When I install a system, I keep a log of what I did.

Yup. Me too.

Look here for the three score things I do (before installing software)!
What else do you do when setting up a new Win10 desktop from scratch?
http://www.pcbanter.net/showthread.php?t=1104489

I try to keep it updated with system changes.

Well, I had the Microsoft Windows 10 updates turned off for *years*, but
eventually Microsoft got mad at me and bricked my system in January this
year.

I keep directories of drivers that worked for each machine.

You have more problems with drivers than I do.
I have almost zero problems with drivers nowadays.
On both Linux and Windows.

Two years later, after all the hardware changes and software
changes or updates or OS updates, I'm finding my log
less than adequate.

My logs have archives for each year, where I need to coalesce it all into a
single log (but that's a lot of work).

A fresh innstall is trivial on the surface, but a nightmare
to get all working as it was before.

Look here for my solution to that problem set:
http://alt.comp.os.windows-10.narkive.com/lBLr7yQH/what-else-do-you-do-when-setting-up-a-new-win10-desktop-from-scratch

In article , Arlen Holder
wrote:

bookmarks ...

Aha!

You may not remember, but I use a *different* browser for each webs site.

there aren't enough browsers to use a different one for each website.

There are strategic (privacy) reasons for that.

except that it doesn't accomplish your claimed goal.

But what it means, in practice, is that I have a *lot* of web browsers!

and a lot of hassle, all for no benefit.




I've had systems that were updated from 7 to 10 and worked fine.
Fresh install refused to allow a workable display configuration.
Had to reinstall 7 then update to 10.

I've updated iOS from 7.0.0 to 7.0.1 and all hell broke loose.

that's because you were using a buggy and incomplete third party
driver, which needed to be updated for ios 7.0.1.

On Wed, 04 Jul 2018 17:36:38 +0100, Peter Johnson
wrote:

On Tue, 3 Jul 2018 09:08:37 -0400, Big Al wrote:

On 07/03/2018 08:08 AM, Shoe wrote:
My desktop is running Windows 10 Home Premium 64 bit. I received this
version of Windows as a free upgrade from Windows 7. I am now having
several problems with the computer. It will not recognize my 3 TB
external drive any more, it will not recognize my printer or allow me
to reinstall it and it will not allow me to send emails with
attachments. It looks like time to do a clean install of Windows 10.
My question is this - do I have to purchase a new copy of Windows 10
as I have no media to use to reload it.

Get the ISO for a DVD or USB from:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/soft.../windows10ISO/

You have a digital license and don't need a CD Key any longer. Once on
line MS will see you were previously licensed and activate you
automatically.

But keep a note of the license key handy, if you have it, in case the
digital entitlement is not recognised.

Take a look at Belarc.com. This free software shows all the license
keys for all programs you have installed.

On 7/5/2018 7:26 AM, Shoe wrote:
On Wed, 04 Jul 2018 17:36:38 +0100, Peter Johnson
wrote:

On Tue, 3 Jul 2018 09:08:37 -0400, Big Al wrote:

On 07/03/2018 08:08 AM, Shoe wrote:
My desktop is running Windows 10 Home Premium 64 bit. I received this
version of Windows as a free upgrade from Windows 7. I am now having
several problems with the computer. It will not recognize my 3 TB
external drive any more, it will not recognize my printer or allow me
to reinstall it and it will not allow me to send emails with
attachments. It looks like time to do a clean install of Windows 10.
My question is this - do I have to purchase a new copy of Windows 10
as I have no media to use to reload it.

Get the ISO for a DVD or USB from:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/soft.../windows10ISO/

You have a digital license and don't need a CD Key any longer. Once on
line MS will see you were previously licensed and activate you
automatically.

But keep a note of the license key handy, if you have it, in case the
digital entitlement is not recognised.

Take a look at Belarc.com. This free software shows all the license
keys for all programs you have installed.

When reinstalling Windows 10 it will ask for your license key.
Tell click the option that means I don't have one or don't want to enter
it right now.
Then Windows 10 will query the Microsoft servers and if it can determine
that your hardware was running Windows 10 in the past it should go ahead
and re-authorize your machine to be licensed.

There are around 20 programs available to do the job.

And on some, you can tell a CS graduate who has
taken a "Usability Course" was in on the design.
Acronis, a recent trial I tried out, makes it
pretty difficult for the user to go off the rails.

Acronis: Good GUI, weaker on technical issues (see Acronis Disk Doctor)
Macrium: Confusing GUI, stronger on technical issues (you can tell they
test stuff)

Just about all these products, need a 150-200 page manual to discuss
all the options. Macrium leaves a lot of elements on the screen,
exposes a lot of stuff, which can be distracting. Or, in some
cases, it distracts enough to prevent you from seeing
the full capability (you can actually back up multiple
disks in one run, something I didn't figure out
for... months).

As for the rest, you can find the RaymondCC web page
with the quick review. AOMEI has relatively good speed.
I don't know any more about it off hand, than that.

Paul


Not sure which Acronis software you are talking about but Acronis TrueImage
2018 version has a full suite of tools - plus it includes some other 3rd
party community tools available on their website.

Acronis Tools include:

1. Clone Disk
2. Bootable Rescue Media Builder
3. Universal Restore (bare metal restore to different hardware...)
4. Parallels Access (separate purchase required but you can try for free)
5. Try & Decide (a sandbox app)
6. System Cleanup
7. Acronis Secure Zone
8. Drive Cleanser
9. Startup Recovery Manager
10. System Report
11. Add New Disk

Not exactly weak on the technical side for an imaging/cloning application
but maybe you meant Acronis Disk Director (not Doctor) software which is a
partition manager and recovery application and not backup or imaging.

--


Bob S.