Failure creating a "System Image" disk to a 4.7 GB DVD

Are you using DVD-RW media or DVD+/-R media?

DVD-RW for whatever reason cause more issues, suggest that they be formatted prior to use, however I have had no problems using DVD+R high quality media.

How to use windows 7’s Backup and Restore to create your own customized set of recovery DVD media
http://www.pagestart.com/win7bckuprstrdvd071910b.html

JS
http://www.pagestart.com

I've only used DVDs to store a B/U on once before and had the same problem. The way it was explained to me: 

If your System Image or Backup is greater than the 4.7 GB available on the DVD, Windows first makes a 'Directory' to tell itself where and when to find the next disk in its proper sequence when it comes time to restore the B/U.

Hi Stuart,

I am using Sony DVD+R DVDs.

The tutorial page at the link that you included is far more lengthy than the one on the "Windows Seven Forums" link that I included above... it didn't say anything about ejecting multiple disks and inserting new ones to continue the process.

Does this mean that this "system image" creation process only burns 1 GB to each 4.7 GB disk that I insert?

Also, I was under the impression that if a catastrophic failure happened and no boot is possible and all system info and file info is lost, this "system image" would restore a computer back to it's previous state with all files and apps in tact... is this true or untrue?

I have a full install Windows 7 ULT disk, not an upgrade, that I installed yesterday and now have several apps installed, 2 user accounts and everything in both accounts set up including lots of taskbar and desktop icons and 19 gigs of system files, data and image files total... will a "System Image" series of disks restore back to my current state in case of a meltdown?

And if it only burns 1 GB per DVD, does that mean I'd have to burn a series of 19 DVDs?

Thanks for you responses,

numetro

No it should use far move than 1GB per DVD. For example a clean install of Windows will fit on 3 DVDs.

Yes if the drive crashes and you need to restore Windows the result is a fully functional version of Windows 7 with all your personal files and apllications.

JS
http://www.pagestart.com

Hi Stuart,

Why is it giving the message, " "Label and insert a blank media bigger than 1 GB..."  then... it hardly burned for one or two minutes before giving me that message.

If a clean install of Windows will fit on 3 DVDs, then why does a Windows 7 ULT full install disk come asone DVD and install from that alone ?

Forgive my lack of knowledge here, I'm trying to understand this tricky process.

This is my mom's computer that is finally in a perfect running state with Windows 7 ULT and 2 new GIGS of perfect PNY RAM,  after I replaced the 1 GIG of what turned out to be defective RAM that has been running this machine with terrible problems for about 4 years.

I want to make this "system image" disk, or series of disks, and not mess up the process.

Why would the first disk finish so quickly and give the "...bigger than 1 GB" message after burning for only about 1 or 2 minutes... it was really that short.

I know that even with a 40x DVD burner drive built in to this Dell, it takes more like a half an hour to burn one 4.7 GB DVD .

Can you please advise me on this?... I really appreciate it.

Thanks,

numetro

I'm at a loss as to why it only recoginzes your DVD as 1GB (a CD maybe but not a DVD).

Create a 'System Restore' point to backup the registry and then try the following.

How to reset the Backup and Restore’s Action Center:
After the backup failed the Action Center display needs to be reset to clear the error message and the failed backup folders and files deleted from the destination drive in order to perform a successful backup with the correct backup status results.

Start by creating a ‘System Restore’ point before you make any registry changes.

1) Updating the registry:
The following registry change need to be made change the action center status DWORD values.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsBackup\Status\ActionCenterState DWORD=0

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsBackup\ValidConfig  DWORD=0

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsBackup\ValidSystemImageBackup  DWORD=0

JS
http://www.pagestart.com

Hi JW,

Sorry, but I'm not going to start messing with the registry... it would be like a graphic artist with a little medical knowledge trying to do brain surgery.

I'll figure out how to get this done via the standard methods, whatever they are.

Thanks for your response.

numetro

Hi,

Since the system originally had another version of Windows did you run the Upgrade Advisor and
check the Compatibility Center for the CD/DVD compatibilty (and other devices as needed).

Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor - please run this now.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/get/upgrade-advisor.aspx

Also check the Compatibility Center (for major devices)
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-7/en-us/default.aspx

Check with the System maker and the Device maker for information about drivers for Windows 7.

Be sure to check for updates to firmware for your CD/DVD drive, BIOS, low level chipset drivers,
and other major device drivers.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do these to clear corruption and repair/replace damaged/missing system files.

Run DiskCleanup - Start - All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - Disk Cleanup

Start - type in Search box -  COMMAND   find at top of list -  RIGHT CLICK  -  RUN AS ADMIN

sfc /scannow

How to Repair Windows 7 System Files with System File Checker
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html

Then run checkdisk (chkdsk).

How to Run Disk Check in Windows 7
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/433-disk-check.html

-------------------------------------------

Check these :

The DVD drive does not function after you install Windows 7 - these are different Sony drives
however the same issue could be affecting your drive.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/975270/

Your CD drive or DVD drive is missing or is not recognized by Windows or other programs
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/982116

-------------------------------------------------------

If the System can run Windows 7 AND there are drivers for the devices these might help :

References to Vista also apply to Windows 7.

Stage 1 : Please do all the below even if you have done some before as it is often the total
process which solves the issue.

Try this - Control Panel - Device Manager - CD/DVD - double click the device - Driver's Tab -
click Update Drivers (this will likely do nothing) - then RIGHT CLICK the drive - UNINSTALL -
REBOOT this will refresh the default driver stack. Even if drive is not shown continue
below.

Then work your way through these - remember the drive could be bad, could have a loose
cable or slight corrosion on the contacts (usually for a laptop) and other issues.

Your CD drive or DVD drive is missing or is not recognized by Windows or other programs
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314060 - a Mr Fixit

Manually try this fix if the 314060 Fixit did not work
http://www.pchell.com/hardware/cd_drive_error_code_39.shtml

Your CD drive or DVD drive is missing or is not recognized by Windows or other programs -
a Mr Fixit
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/982116

The CD drive or the DVD drive does not work as expected on a computer that you upgraded to
Windows Vista
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929461

When you insert a CD or a DVD, Windows Vista may not recognize the disc
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/939052

Your CD or DVD drive cannot read or write media - A Mr Fixit
http://support.microsoft.com/gp/cd_dvd_drive_problems

CD/DVD drive does not appear in Windows Vista, or you receive this error during Windows Vista
setup after booting from the DVD (AHCI)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/952951

CD-R drive or CD-RW drive is not recognized as a recordable device
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316529/

Hardware devices not detected or not working - A Mr Fixit
http://support.microsoft.com/gp/hardware_device_problems

Another possibility is that the cables are loose. Remove ALL power, then check cables in both
ends. Remove and replace, do not just snug. For laptops you can often clean the power and
data contacts with a pencil eraser.

Some DVD drives do not use the Windows default drivers so check with the System maker and
device maker to see if there is firmware or drivers for you drive if needed.

===============================

Stage 2 : You could have drive issues as the CD/DVD is actually 4 drives in 1 case ( CD & DVD
burn and CD and DVD read). So it is not unusual for 1 or 2 parts to not function while the others
do so properly.

Did you complete the troubleshooter for the drive that still does not work? There are some
registry entries that the troubleshooter does not fix and those "might" be the cause.

Check with your System Maker and Device maker for both possible firmware updates and the
correct Registry entries for your drive.

These are the keys I think are the ones in question - for the CD/DVD drive sub-keys of course
as there will other sub-keys in these keys. Be sure to ask for specific keys involved as well as
the settings.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\IDE

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Hardware Profiles\0001\System\CurrentControlSet\Enum\IDE

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

You probably can find more info here and maybe even the exact registry settings for your CD/DVD
drive from someone with the same model.

Forums - a lot of real expert help
http://club.myce.com/

CD/DVD units
http://www.myce.com/storage/

Use DevManView to locate CD/DVD in registry (be careful and make a Restore Point before
changing anything) - find the device in DevManView and then Right Click on it Open in RegEdit.

DevManView - Free - an alternative to the standard Device Manager of Windows, which displays all
devices and their properties in flat table, instead of tree viewer
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/device_manager_view.html

Hope this helps.

Hi Spirit,

I'm confused by your last reply... are you sending troubleshooting info for my CD/DVD drive from our other thread about burning DVDs that was already answered and solved? That other thread and DVD burning issue was solved when I installed "Ashampoo Burning Studio 6" and was able to burn DVDs and CDs flawlessly with no problems... which just left us with the conclusion that the builit-in stock explorer burning app is useless.

I am currently running Windows 7 ULT, which I installed Saturday and it is running solid and with no errors or crashes... 2 new gigs of fresh RAM solved all problems.

Since I am running W7 ULT, I'm not sure why you would suggest running the W7 Upgrade Adviser or the going to the Compatibility Center, which I did a week before I installed a clean install of W7... all hardware and plug-in devices are working perfectly.

Did you copy and paste in your prior letter from the disc burning thread that we were on a couple of days ago?

There is no drive that does not work... the built in DVD burner is working perfectly.

The thread we are on now is "Failure creating a "System Image" disk to a 4.7 GB DVD" ... it is the "System Image" process that went wrong last night, recognizing my 4.7 GB DVD as a 1 GB DVD and burning for about 1 minute before it gets in to a "Label and insert a blank media bigger than 1 GB - Please write the following label on a blank media and insert it into E:"and "formatting disk"loop.

Since I am able to burn a full 4.7 GB DVD with my new burning app, it has already been determined that there are no problems with my DVD drive.

The advice from you and JW Stuart to use registry key changes to do, something... not sure what, is not sound advice forme ... I am not making registry changes. 

I finally have this machine running solid with new RAM and a 2 day old W7 ULT clean installation with all of it's other software installed and all hardware functioning perfectly... there are no errors crashes or corrupt files. I just ran Check Disk and sfc /scannow and I have screenshots of this computer's clean bill of health.

Since the re-install of W7 ULT on Saturday and the new RAM, I have not had one crash or even one error message ... and believe me, I think I've seen them all by now between the prior corrupt Vista OS and bad RAM adventure that I've had for 48 days.

I have run the built in Dell PSA diagnostics test on this machine's RAM, the hard drive and processors since the new 2 GIGS of RAM were installed on Saturday...this computer is as clean as a freshly showered 18 year old virgin girl.

I just need to successfully run the "Create System Image Disk" process with however many 4.7 GB DVDs as it takes.

I'm not making any registry updates or registry changes to the"action center" status "DWORD" values" ... whatever in the name of hesus that means.

If JW or Spirit have any advice on following thePagestart.com tutorial on "How us use Windows 7's Backup & Restore to create your own customized set of recovery DVD media" and having it actually succeed and finish, then please advise me on this topic.

Thanks again for your replies,

numetro

Hi,

Sounds like the drive has problems if it will not recognize a DVD properly.