The term imaging software is used to refer to two completely different software products. Disk imaging products are used to duplicate your disk for data integrity, data restoration and redundancy. Image software is also used to refer to digital image applications with photo storage, image editing, and photo presentation tools.
This page will look at disk image applications as they are used for data integrity solutions. These software programs allow businesses and users to automate system backup, and clone hard disks. Users are able to create a full drive backup and instantly restore it after any system issues.
Some of these software products are web based, while others are installed directly on your PC. Most are designed to meet the needs of large businesses, small businesses and individual users. Some are stand alone solutions and others offer a complete data integrity software solution designed to meet other backup options such as file based backups, differential backups (capture changes made since your last full backup).
Features available with disk imaging applications products include:
- Scheduling – automates backups
- PC Cloning software
- Partition imaging
- Compressed and/or non-compressed images
- Wizard driven interface
- Multiple supported storage devices
- No reboot restore
- System file imaging
- File based backups
- Differential backups
- Fast restore processes
- Imaging action report
Major Vendors of software for disk imaging include:
- Acronis
- Active @ Disk Image
- R Tools technology
Factors to consider when looking at a disk image software application include:
- Storage device to be used (2 nd hard drive, Networked storage devices, CDR(W), DVDR, zip, jazz (or other removable device), etc)
- Ease of use and training
- System resources: Requires a lot of RAM and disk space as well as the storage device.