A ghost disk image is one way of backing up data on computer systems. Businesses use the services of large providers like Norton and Acronis to make sure that everything on a specific hard drive is copied to a separate location. That way, if anything crashes, the data will not be lost. The need for ghost disk images and backup solutions is growing as businesses do more and more of their vital operations online. Learn about key terms involved in this kind of computer solution to find out what's best for your company's computers.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Hard drive

The hard drive of your computer is the part that keeps information. Various peripherals may contain smaller drives, but the hard drive is the one that ships with your workstation or other PC. The ghost disk image is a tool for dealing with the data that is on your hard drive.

I recommend: Learn more about hard disk drives at the PC Guide.

Partition

When you're talking about a 'hard drive partition,' you are referring to a specific space for storage located on your hard drive. Making a 'partition' helps to keep parts of your drive separate that are designed for different uses. You can make a ghost image of a particular or more important partition.

I recommend: Learn about partitions of a hard drive at Tech FAQ.

Operating system

Your operating system lets the computer hardware communicate with the software, depends mainly on whether you use a Macintosh or a PC and how old your computer is. Your operating system may affect which kinds of disk image software work on your computers.

I recommend: Find out a lot more about operating systems at Computer Hope.

Backup utility

'Backing up' data with a piece of software called a backup utility is one way to keep from losing data. Ghost disk imaging is a specialized form of a backup solution. Backup utilities vary by what kind of operating system you have.

I recommend: For help on backing up data, check out this page on Windows XP Backup Made Easy.

Volatile data

Volatile data is data that is most susceptible to change and often gets lost on powering down the computer. Unless you have auto-save features in your word processor, this includes all of those carefully crafted text documents. So, look out for volatile data loss and use backups accordingly.

I recommend: Learn more about volatile data and how to deal with it at this blog spot for The Adventures of a Security Junkie.

Freeware

Freeware is pretty much what it sounds like: free software. Freeware or 'open source' software solutions generally come at no charge to the user, as engineers have made them to be shared. Some ghost disk imaging software is freeware.

I recommend: Learn more about different kinds of freeware at WiseGeek.

Having a ghost disk image handy is a great way to reduce business downtime in the event of a vital system crash. The primary ghost disk image provider is Norton Ghost, but another popular contender is Acronis' True Image. Both programs give you the ability to back up your main hard drive partition as a whole, instead of one file at a time like a typical backup utility.

Although disk imaging software was originally intended for large-scale deployment of computer systems, it's extremely useful as a backup tool. When you schedule a regular ghost disk image, information is far less likely to be lost. Minimize the impact of a hard drive crash or other computer catastrophe on your company's productivity by incorporating this practice into your disaster recovery routine:

1. Purchase corporate or small business ghost disk image software.
2. Create a regular ghost disk image of the main hard drive partition of your most important systems.
3. If the cost of corporate software is prohibitive, consider a freeware ghost disk image solution.
   

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find ghost disk image software at a reasonable price

You can easily search the shopping section on Google for 'disk image software' to compare prices on the most popular ghost disk image software. You can buy older versions for cheaper, of course, but the new versions should still be reasonably priced. Most companies offer discounted prices for larger number of licenses, so the more computers you wish to image, the cheaper the cost for each individual computer.

I recommend: Get the latest version of Norton Ghost from Buy.com. Order multiple licenses for Acronis True Image Echo Workstation for small business networks from CDW.

Decide which computers require a ghost disk image and create a disaster recovery plan

You'll probably come to the conclusion that every computer in your office isn't of vital importance. Decide which ones have the most volatile data, and would require the most current backup. These are the ones you want to focus on. You are the most knowledgeable about your business. If you don't feel comfortable using the software to create your own backup and disaster recovery plan, consult with an expert.

I recommend: Download free disaster recovery white papers at Find White Papers. You can also register for a course with Symantec Education Services to learn how to use their software.

If your budget is tight, consider these freeware ghost disk image solutions

Money is tight for a lot of small business these days. If you can't spring for the corporate versions of the Acronis or Symentec ghost disk image software, you might be interested in a more simplistic solution. Keep in mind that you get what you pay for. Any freeware program comes with basically no support, so you have to be pretty confident that you can figure it out on your own!

I recommend: Dubaron offers a freeware disk image program, but it only functions in Windows XP and 2000. Paramount Software offers Macrium Reflect, which is Vista and XP compatible.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Create a ghost disk image of a brand new system, and keep it in a safe place. While most computers come with a recovery partition that allows you to restore your computer to factory settings, this partition will only work as long as the hard drive is intact. A ghost disk image of the new system will let you do the same thing even in the event of hard drive failure.

Ghost disk imaging happens when one computer's software is copied directly to another computer. Ghosting is very popular for large companies that require the same software program on many computers. Ghosting is also used to recover information when a hard drive needs to be reformatted. Ghosting is much faster than installing many software programs onto a computer. Encouraging ghost disk image education and training for employees can save you hours of work when setting up new computer systems.

There are three areas users of ghosting software need to learn from ghost disk image education and training. Basic information gives users an overview of what to expect and what software is available. Detailed instructions cover exactly how to use the software. Troubleshooting guides help solve issues and problems that occur while using the software.

1. Learn the basics of creating a ghost disk image.

2. Find detailed "how to" guides about creating ghost disk images.

3. Read troubleshooting guides to learn how to fix ghost disk image problems.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Start learning the basics of ghosting computers

The basics of ghosting teach you about various ghosting software and general information about how they work. The ghosting basics also give you information about how long the ghosting process takes and how expensive it is. This information assist you with the pros and cons of different ghost disk image software.

I recommend: Visit eHow to read articles about how ghosting works. Directron.com also supplies information about the ghost disk image process. Experts Exchange provides even more about the basics of ghosting.

Locate detailed directions about how to create ghost disk images

This detailed information shows you the steps of ghosting a computer using various free and pay-to-use software. Use the easy-to-follow instructions that explain each process in detail. Detailed 'how to' guides walk you through the installation, setup and operational processes when it comes to ghosting a computer program or system.

I recommend: Locate step-by-step instructions about using Symantec software. Hubert Feyrer supplies guides to ghosting Unix and Linux computers. Locate information about using Norton software to ghost a computer at Xisto.

Use troubleshooting guides to learn how to fix ghost image issues

Troubleshooting guides are designed to help users as they work with ghost disk image software. These guides cover issues and problems that other users have experienced when installing, using or uninstalling ghost images. Reading these guides before using the software assists you if and when a ghosting problem arises.

I recommend: Tech Spot offers many guides to assist ghost disk image software users. FixYa supplies expert help for troubleshooting ghosting issues. CBS Interactive provides forums and boards for fixing ghost disk problems.