Create image of 2008 R2

Question

I'm trying to create an image of a Dell PowerEdge T320 server that can be used for future backups in case anything occurs with this server. Originally I tried to create a bartPE and use ghost32.exe in order to do this, however due to driver issues and bartPE being so old, I was not able to accomplish this.

Are there any known methods of creating an image for a Windows 2008R2 server without having to go through the hassle of figuring out how to make a bartPE or winPE?

Thanks in advance!

score 9 · Answer 1 · answered Jan 18 '13 at 18:03

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The Windows Server Backup Feature that ships with Windows and is free to use will do exactly this. It can make a hot-backup (i.e. no downtime) that can be used in a bare-metal restore scenario.

answered Jan 18 '13 at 18:03

MDMarra

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You beat me by a few seconds... – joeqwerty Jan 18 '13 at 18:05
Hi Marra, thanks for the fast response. One question however, how do you use this feature? Is it usable without the use of a PE? – Valrok Jan 18 '13 at 18:12
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It's [very well documented](http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee849849(v=ws.10).aspx). Part of being a pro systems admin is being able to read the documentation of products that you're interested in and seeing how they fit into your infrastructure. While I can easily answer your question, it would be much more worthwhile for you to read it yourself in the link that I provided above. – MDMarra Jan 18 '13 at 18:13
@MDMarra: Is it possible to take the system restore and put it in a USB and apply it to any other servers? This is my first time working on something like this so I'm new to everything – Valrok Jan 18 '13 at 18:29
Yes, that's called restoring a backup to dissimilar hardware. – MDMarra Jan 18 '13 at 18:34

score 2 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 18 '13 at 18:05

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Well if you live in the year 2013 and not the year 2003 you can use Windows Server backup to create a full image of the server in order to perform a bare metal restore to the same or dissimilar hardware.

answered Jan 18 '13 at 18:05

joeqwerty

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Dave M · Accepted Answer · 2014-12-09T16:18:44.340

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Symantec System Recovery will do this as well as the native OS Backup tool. Lots of other features as well. We use it for bare metal recovery and it works very well. Added benefit is you can convert the image to a VM at time of backup or later . Makes a temporary recovery with the VM quick and easy while you rebuild the failed hardware

Free Demo is available.

edited Dec 09 '14 at 16:18

answered Jan 18 '13 at 18:08

Dave M

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Create image of 2008 R2

3 Answers3