Keep your computer contents safe by cloning your hard disk

As we are going to be working with a locally installed hard disk, select ‘local_dev Use local device’ and press Enter, wait for a second and press Enter again.

Any available hard disks and partitions that have been detected will now be listed. Select the one that should be used to store the image that is about to be created and press Enter.

Note that the partition containing Windows is usually referred to as ‘hda1’ (the size of each disk or partition is listed, which helps aid identification).

If you’re happy to continue, type ‘y’ and press Enter.

When asked to indicate where Clonezilla should store the image, select ‘Top_directory_in_the_local_device’ and press Enter followed by Enter.

We want to create a clone of a hard disk, so choose the option labelled ‘savedisk’ and press Enter before entering a name for the image file and pressing Enter again.

The next thing to do is to select which disk should be imaged ­ referred to as the source drive.

As many computers tend to have no more than two hard disks or partitions, there may well only be one entry listed in the screen that appears.

Ensure that the correct partition is selected and press Enter.

The next screen makes it possible to apply some more advanced imaging options, but just press Enter to continue and press Enter once again.

Now choose a level of compression for the image.

High compression will result in a smaller image but will take longer to create, while no compression will result in a large image, but the process will be much quicker.

If you would like to split a large image file into a number of smaller pieces to fit on CDs or DVDs, enter the relevant size in megabytes at the next screen ­ if not, enter 0 ­ and then press Enter.

After choosing whether the computer should be switched off when cloning is complete, press Enter followed by Enter and the image will be created. The computer can then be restarted without the Clonezilla disc inserted to load Windows as normal.

Restore cloned images
When restoring an image that has already been created, it’s important to take great care when selecting the partition or disk to be restored ­ pick the wrong one and the information on it will be lost forever.

Launch Clonezilla and select the ‘device-image’ option again and opt to mount a local device before selecting the drive on which the image is stored.

This time, select the option labelled ‘restoredisk Restore_an_image_to_a_local_disk’ and then choose the directory (folder) in which the image was saved.

Follow the remaining on-screen instructions and the data that has been backed up will be restored to its former state in next to no time.

Advanced uses of Clonezilla
It’s possible to install the live version of Clonezilla on a bootable USB drive or memory key.

As long as your PC can boot from a USB device, you can use this instead of a CD installation.

It’s not the simplest of procedures, however, and is beyond the scope of this feature, but a full guide is available on the Clonezilla website.

There is also a pre-configured live CD available that combines Clonezilla with many other rescue tools. It also features enhancements to Clonezilla that let you create an automated system restore DVD.

Another use for the disk-to-disk feature is to create a clone of an entire hard disk.

This is handy when you want to upgrade a PC’s main hard disk, for example.

The target disk must be the same size or larger than the source disk, and it can be located anywhere that Clonezilla can see it ­ such as a second internal drive or connected via USB or over a network. See the workshop below for the main steps.

If you do this to clone a Windows system disk, remember that Windows will need re-activating when you boot from the cloned disk as the changed hardware will be detected.

Having done this you won’t legally be able to use the original Windows installation unless you buy a new licence.

Clone away
Hard disk cloning is a great way to back up important data or replace your PC’s system disk with a new one, and Clonezilla proves that carrying out such essential backup tasks does not require expensive software.

Clonezilla does not always use the friendliest language and the interface leaves a lot to be desired.

However, once you get used to Clonezilla’s methods, we think you’ll find it quicker and simpler to use than many a Windows backup tool.

And if you’re worried about how it works, why not try it out first on a virtual PC using Virtualbox or Virtual PC?

Just set up a virtual PC (run a compact version of Linux for your experiment to minimise installation time) with two small virtual hard disks, set it up to boot from the Clonezilla ISO image and try cloning the system disk. See our introduction to virtualisation for tips on using virtual PCs.

Clonezilla alternatives
Clonezilla isn’t the only hard disk cloning tool.

Norton Ghost is probably the best-known commercial drive-imaging program, but at £40 it’s not an impulse buy.

Thankfully, there a few free alternatives, in addition to Clonezilla. Ping (Partimage Is Not Ghost) is available. windowsdream.com and works using a live CD much like Clonezilla.

The program can be used to create images that can then be stored on another partition until needed, or copied onto several CDs or DVD using disc-spanning.

Or try Partimage, which again works in a similar way, though the interface is slightly more complicated.

Finally, there’s Drive Image XML. This free program can be used directly from within Windows, or a bootable disc can be created.

See also: How to clone a disk or partition with Clonzilla Workshop.