Is pack and go + pictures sufficient for a restore?

[6b6561]

Hi,

I have a computer dedicated to IMatch, operating system and IMatch DB sits on C:\, pictures and Pack&Go backup is on my F:\ drive.

F:\ drive is regularly backed up to a local NAS, Cloud and a rotation of USB drives so I'm 100% confident that I will always be able to restore the F:\ drive. I also run regular checksum checks on the data drive to ensure that nothing is corrupted.

I have no backups of the C:\ drive as the recovery plan in case of issues with the operating system or disc is to plug in a fresh disc, install the OS and application from scratch.

I have read through the https://www.photools.com/help/imatch/backup.htm a couple of times and I would assume that 1, 2 and 3 are included in Pack&Go?

How is it, is the relevant parts of the registry included in Pack&Go?

If I would reinstall the OS and IMatch, would the restore take me back to the state of IMatch at the point when Pack&Go was run?

Kim

[Mario]

Pack & Go is not a backup tool.
The backup section in the help explains what to backup for IMatch. It also assumes of course that you do a full backup of your system at least daily.
Pack & Go is designed to easily transfer IMatch settings, presets, apps etc. between computers, for users who use IMatch on multiple computers.

When new version of IMatch are released, Pack & Go packages produced with older IMatch versions become incompatible. You cannot restore them anymore. Pack & Go is for short-term use only. You create package on PC A and then restore it on PC B to get your database and settings over. That's it.

I have no backups of the C:\ drive as the recovery plan in ...

All installed applications store settings, presets, templates, license data etc. on your C: disk.
Applications store important settings in the Windows registry, which is stored on C:

If your disk dies, all that data is gone.
And it can be very, very time-consuming and complex to recreate everything from scratch.

As we in the IT business say: "No backup, no mercy".

I recommend you look into backup software like Macrium Reflect or Acronis TrueImage, which make backups easy and automatic. Macrium has saved my butt a number of times over the years, e.g. when I deleted the wrong file or something became damaged.

[6b6561]

I have what I hope is a rock solid backup setup for my data drive. Data drive is F:\.

I have actively decided not to backup the windows installation, reason for this is in case of serious HW failure with a PC replacement to avoid installing a backup including wrong HW configuration etc. Probably better to go for a clean install in that scenario.

It's clear that Pack&Go isn't a backup and restore tool for the operating system etc. The question is if Pack&Go will restore IMatch to the state when the Pack&Go package was created?

What would be the outcome if I would:
1: Run a Pack&Go package to F:\
2: Wipe the C:\ drive
3: Install a new windows
4: Install IMatch
5: Restore the Pack&Go

This is pretty much comparable to moving IMatch to a new device. Would IMatch come up in the same state as before wiping and re-installing the system? Or would it be missing some settings?

https://www.photools.com/help/imatch/packandgo.htm states that:
Pack & Go automatically packs all IMatch settings, apps, configuration files etc.

My understanding from that statement is that Pack&Go would include all the settings for IMatch.

Does IMatch store any settings in the registry, if so, are those included in the Pack&Go?

[Mario]

This is pretty much comparable to moving IMatch to a new device. Would IMatch come up in the same state as before wiping and re-installing the system? Or would it be missing some settings?

If the computer name and your user name as the same, yes.

Does IMatch store any settings in the registry, if so, are those included in the Pack&Go?

Yes. No. Not needed.
IMatch recreates missing registry settings automatically. There are only a few, and most are related to communication with Pack & Go.

Why not make a backup of C:, wipe/replace it, and restore your backup?

IMatch is just one application of probably many you use. You'll loose all settings and stuff from other applications, the Windows registry etc. Sounds like a lot of work to restore everything by hand.

[6b6561]

Thanks, this is now clear, sound's like I'm fine the way that I'm setup at the moment and that I would be able to recover from a complete failure.

My IMatch PC is really dedicated to IMatch, it's only used for IMatch, so there isn't that much else to worry about on it. So a restore and rebuild would probably take about the same amount of time and give the benefit of a clean install.

I could throw a backup agent on it just for the sake of it, but I don't expect that I would ever make a restore from it.

[rolandgifford]

When new version of IMatch are released, Pack & Go packages produced with older IMatch versions become incompatible. You cannot restore them anymore. Pack & Go is for short-term use only.

Are there similar risks restoring a database from an earlier IMatch version than the one installed?

[Mario]

Are there similar risks restoring a database from an earlier IMatch version than the one installed?

No. Databases are upwards compatible. Never versions of IMatch can read / migrate databases created with older versions (down to IMatch 5). Older IMatch versions cannot open databases created or migrated by newer IMatch databases.

The compatibility with Pack & Go between versions is simply that IMatch usually migrates the settings database, adds new settings required for new features. Replacing such a newer settings database with an older version from an older Pack & Go package would be bad. Also, IMatch may ship with updated presets, updated apps, renamed or reorganized app folders. Overwriting this with outdated data from a Pack & Go package could cause all kinds of issues, from duplicated apps to non-functional apps.

This is why Pack & Go prevents restoring packages from older IMatch releases on top of newer IMatch installations. Or at least shows a big warning message in that case.
Restoring only the database is OK, though, since the new IMatch version will automatically upgrade it on first open. But not the settings database and other data.

[ubacher]

What about the case of "Off-Site" backup? Let us assume that, by the time I want to restore, there are many new versions of Imatch. And I have by then another computer running Windows.

If I store
- All my (image) files
- a P&G file
- the imatch installation file which was active at the time of storage
- and maybe the imatch.pts file - just to restore the workspace I suppose.
I should be able to recreate a working Imatch database.

(Changes in Windows which would prohibit old Imatch versions to run would be fatal)

Would this be the proper way for backup? Or would storing the database file be more logical.

[Mario]

Always backup your database!
And the config folder. As explained in detail in the Backup help topic. The settings database contains a lot more than just the workspace!

If you work with D&P etc. don't forget to backup the user folder with your templates.

After replacing a damaged disk, install IMatch. Restore the database and config folder to get all your settings back. Apps, scripts, presets etc. will automatically be re-installed by IMatch.

I find it much easier to just backup all my disks at least once a day, and high-activity folders like my development folders 3 times times a day.

[6b6561]

Sorry Mario for being a die hard on this topic but I want to be sure that it's correctly understood. I need to understand how to recover from a situation where the OS can't be restored and I must start with a fresh OS install.

If I have understood this correctly then the:
- picture database is upwards compatible and can be loaded into a newer version of IMatch.
- the settings database and the data in %PROGRAMDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN and %APPDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN must match the IMatch version, otherwise bad things could happen and therefore P&G does a version check prior to a restore.

Isn't the P&G basically a backup of:
 - Picture database
 - %PROGRAMDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN
 - %APPDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN

And a restore requires the same:
 - IMatch version
 - username
 - paths to pictures

So a recovery to a new build PC with restoring IMatch settings would be:
 - install OS
 - create user
 - restore pictures
 - install the same version of IMatch
 - restore the P&G

[Mario]

the settings database and the data in %PROGRAMDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN and %APPDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN must match the IMatch version, otherwise bad things could happen and therefore P&G does a version check prior to a restore.

Usually you would only ever restore the \config folder and \dictionaries folder. These contain the important settings databases for IMatch and IMWS and spell checker dictionaries.

Settings databases are upwards compatible, like IMatch databases. If the installed IMatch version is newer, it migrates settings. But older IMatch versions cannot handle settings databases modified by newer versions.

Apps, presets and all the other stuff in this folder and the user folder etc. will be installed automatically when you install IMatch.
Restore the user folder, if you have created your own apps or D&P templates.

Pack & Go optionally includes one or more databases, depending on your settings. You can also backup your database separately, which is what I would recommend. And the entire %PROGRAM DATA% and "APPDATA% folder hierarchy.

Follow Backup and common backup practice. Don't use Pack & Go for backup. That is not what it is designed for.
It is designed to make a package on PC A and then transfer it to PC B. Nothing long term or for backup.

I've only added the backup reminder back in the day when I learned to my horrors that many users never back up anything!
And if the let run Pack & Go, they have at least a backup of their database and settings when the disk dies.

When your C: disk dies and you have no image backup to restore it, restoring IMatch databases and your settings will be the least of your problems. Re-installing all applications, having no settings, license info and all that will be a nightmare to recover from.

[6b6561]

I agree with you Mario that most users should go with a "real backup solution", way to many users doesn't know the ins and outs of where their data is and things are getting even more confusing with the cloud based services.

I always want to be in a position where I don't have to worry about my C: and the windows installation. I have seen way to many issues with Windows and restores of it so I sleep way better if I know that I can just do a rebuild from scratch and restore the data.

All my data including installation packages, licensing etc. is excessively backed up. (I could probably get a NT4 with IMatch 3.6 up and running in a matter of hours if there would be a need to do so...)

My personal disaster recovery plan is and has always been: "Get new HW, install OS and apps, copy back the data". A DR starting from recovering Windows including applications from backup would be a big worry for me as I see more risk for failure in there than doing a rebuild.

I do still see the P&G as the best option to get IMatch up and running on a newly installed PC.

Is there a difference between
 - running P&G or
 - to run a backup that only includes the DB directory, %PROGRAMDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN and %APPDATA%\photools.com\IMatchN?

Is it possible to extract the P&G .impag file to see what it contains or is it a proprietary format?

[Mario]

Proprietary. You can see what it contains by running Verify in Pack & Go.

[6b6561]

Thanks!

Then I will continue with what I do, backup of:
 - Installation medias
 - Photos
 - P&G archive

In case of a disaster, re-install OS, install IMatch application, copy back data and restore the P&G archive.

But for a "normal" user I would make the same recommendation as Mario and go for a complete operating system backup.

[Mario]

restore the P&G archive.

Make sure the same IMatch version is installed.
Else only restore \config and \dictionaries as explained(Pack & G restore to a separate folder, then copy manually).

[ChasS]

A good complete backup of the Windows drive is very sensible, but make sure it is re-storable without any propriety software. Long ago had what I thought were complete backups, but the software doing backup and restore changed slightly during time to build new computer and wouldn't read the old backup. Even with licence keys some software never ran again as depended on history of updates being available to allow the licence to authenticate.

[Mario]

Modern imager software like Macrium come with a recovery system that is basically a bootable USB stick.
You replace the damaged C: disk, boot from the recovery media and restore your image backup. Did that twice over the past couple of years, always worked. C: disk restored, bit-by-bit.

If you have to replace a disk different than the boot disk, you can just restore by running the software directly in Windows.

There are free alternatives in the open source, I believe. But spending a few bucks on a good backup software that gets the job done is sensible for me. What's important is that everything is automatic and runs in the background while I can continue to work.