Coping with the Compaq CQ56-115DX - Life After the NVIDIA Settlement

[Deldrin]

Interestingly, I had to image a win7/64 laptop last night and at first had trouble with it. It wouldn't boot onto the CD and errored trying. I know the CD itself worked because I tried it in another machine. Thinking of our conversation, it made me think a bit, but I remember my more recent experience successfully creating and restoring images of win7/64 at work. So I popped the hard drive out of the laptop and plugged into my other computer via USB and successfully created my image. This from a version that's 4-5 years old and 4-5 versions back (Acronis TrueImage 11).

BTW,

I'm downloading Macrium to give it a shot. It does everything I wanted out of Acronis and it's free.

[Mr. Fox]

I think you will like Macrium Reflect. I look forward to hearing your feedback.

I have the retail version with a few more features and WindowsPE environment, but those are not absolute necessities for imaging.

[shinobi1]

I think you will like Macrium Reflect. I look forward to hearing your feedback.

I have the retail version with a few more features and WindowsPE environment, but those are not absolute necessities for imaging.

Yes, Deldrin:

I also look forward to hearing how you make out with "Reflect".

Interestingly, I had to image a win7/64 laptop last night and at first had trouble with it. It wouldn't boot onto the CD and errored trying. I know the CD itself worked because I tried it in another machine. Thinking of our conversation, it made me think a bit, but I remember my more recent experience successfully creating and restoring images of win7/64 at work. So I popped the hard drive out of the laptop and plugged into my other computer via USB and successfully created my image. This from a version that's 4-5 years old and 4-5 versions back (Acronis TrueImage 11).

Apparently when it comes to 7/64 and Acronis there might be a measure or two of "black magic" in the mix. Instead of confusing the issue by using the term "black magic", perhaps I should just come right out and call it "unpredictability".

I hope "Reflect" contains fewer situation-dependent "wild cards". The idea of imaging a USB-connected drive troubles me at a gut level.

[Mr. Fox]

Hmm. I have been imaging to USB connected drives for a number of years without issue. I have never CLONED (direct copied) to a USB drive, but creating images on USB drives used to restore drives and partitions works beautifully.

[shinobi1]

Noted in passing:

Every dog has his day. And my time to purchase 8G of RAM for my CQ56-115DX draws nigh. I can smell it.

I missed this deal

Patriot Signature 4GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model - $9.99 after rebate + free shipping - Slickdeals.net

but Black Friday is right around the corner.

Bogie price is $7/stick AR (after rebate). But I would have bit at 10 bucks had I seen the above deal in time.

Hmm. I have been imaging to USB connected drives for a number of years without issue. I have never CLONED (direct copied) to a USB drive, but creating images on USB drives used to restore drives and partitions works beautifully.

Yes, yes. I quite agree and have done the same.

What we did was to image a boot drive onto a USB connected drive. At the time of its being imaged, the boot drive was in the "boot" (physical) position inside the computer. Which is to say, had we wished to do so and absent any physical changes, we could have booted the computer straightaway to that drive.

My "gut" qualm concerns physically removing a computer's boot drive and connecting it to another computer via USB, through use of an "enclosure", and then imaging that same drive with hope the image so produced will be able to allow subsequent restoration of the imaged drive in such a way as to allow its use as a boot drive. Not saying it won't work. Just saying this approach bothers my "gut" feel for such things.

My sense is that it's a better idea to image boot drives in situ.

[Deldrin]

I can't recall a problem with that since using Acronis. Ghost on the other hand, was a pain.

Had anyone tried Drive Image XML? It's free as well.

And then there is Clonezilla. Clonezilla.org

[shinobi1]

nVidia soars past bad GPU debacle:

Nvidia 3Q Earnings More Than Double - ABC News

We are scarcely more than a distant memory for them now.

[CaelanT]

We received our pos CQ56 replacement a few weeks back. It already crapped out after my wife used the laptop only 5 or 6 times. No video, no BIOS, and no way to get into safe mode or Windows at all.

From a $2500 entertainment laptop that stopped functioning to a $300 paperweight replacement that also doesn't work!

Guess I have to try and return this under warranty!

[shinobi1]

We received our pos CQ56 replacement a few weeks back. It already crapped out after my wife used the laptop only 5 or 6 times. No video, no BIOS, and no way to get into safe mode or Windows at all.

From a $2500 entertainment laptop that stopped functioning to a $300 paperweight replacement that also doesn't work!

Guess I have to try and return this under warranty!

Wow. Bummer. First report like that I've heard.

[Mr. Fox]

Good luck, CaelanT. Sorry to hear the reliability is as poor as the specs in your case. Let us know how the warranty fulfillment process goes. I hope it turns out better for you than it ever did for me with HP (Hopelessly Pathetic). Looking forward to hearing back from you on this.

And, by the way. Welcome to NBR. We are glad you joined the Community.