Steps to create Rescue ISO using Macrium Reflect Free edition

 

Steps to create Rescue ISO

• Click Rescue

• Follow prompts to select ISO

• Click build

• After completed, file is c:\MacriumRescue.iso

• I copied this file to NAS as a backup.

Macrium reflect - Useful free backup /restore / clone tool

Recently, I had a external HDD fail at the house and data was lost so I am taking another stab at actually trying to maintain backups. 

Here is what I recommend:

• Find free software to perform the backup / restore /clone / image.
• I have bought software in the past it always seems like wasted money.
• I selected Macrium Reflect Free
• I decided to clone (instead of backup) to a HDD in a external USB cradle.
• Why? I am finding external USB hard drives suck and are too expensive for what they are.
• Buy an internal HDD and use a USB HDD cradle like this:
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• Steps to clone using 

• Registered  Macrium reflect - Free version

• Received code in email

• Installed software and applied code 

  
  
  

• Used HDD in USB cradle and connected to machine

• Started Macrium reflect - Free version

• Click clone this drive:

• Select a disk to clone to

• Select HDD in USB cradle

• Follow next select prompts, select to overwrite volume data

• After process is completed, (for me machine it was ~45 min 1 TB drive over USB3 port), reboot the computer and force it to boot from USB drive. Booting the computer will be much slower but you will know for certain in your cloning task was successful without actually swapping drives.

• Now, I know I have functional clone on a HDD and to recover this machine all I need to do is swap drives.