before i get started some input would be good
A partition and disk imaging/cloning program
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We have a lot of machines which have nearly identical hardware configurations. What I would like to do is set up a station where i could store a master image locally and install blank slave drives to image.
What I need to know is:
Which distro will work the best?
Should I use a GUI or command line?
Does clonezilla copy the boot sectors?
Im planning on installing debian etch…
Your cloning station could be OS-less ;)
Just have an empty formatted HD: FAT32 (vfat), NTFS, Ext3, ReiserFS would all fit the bill. Beware to file size limitations, though (eg: vfat).
This HD will be used to store the disk images.
That bare PC will also need a CDROM drive (set as first bootable device) and, possibly, USB 2 connectors.
Attach the source HD (from the PC you wanna clone) and image it to the host HD using Clonezilla live CD. That source HD could be attached as IDE, SATA or USB (using an adapter).
Then, attach the target-to-be HDs (IDE, SATA or USB) and, booting Clonezilla, restore from the host HD image.
And that's it. Any old-timer hardware (well, not too old ;) can fit your needs.
Thanks a lot jean-francois,
I hope you dont mind if i pick your brain some more.
i just want to get this straight.
1) install source IDE drive as master
2) install bare drive as slave
3) boot live clonezilla
follow the instructions?
it cant possibly be that easy!
do i have to "create an image" or will it just copy the source drive bit for bit?
will this method copy boot sectors?
Omar,
your source drive could be master or slave, it doesn't matter for the cloning session. So your 1, 2, 3 can be ok, yes. Just make sure you're cloning the right disk to the right storage one...
It really *is* that easy, thanks to the Clonezilla team!
If you create a DISK image, then it will hold all and everything your source disk has, incl. boot sectors (there are options if you don't want them at restore time). If you create a PARTITION (or partitionS) image, then you'll have to get a pre-partitioned target HD in order to restore your saved partitions.
HTH,