4.4 Creating Images by Using Raw or Existing Volume Data

Portability Suite can use existing system images created with Acronis True Image or Symantec LiveState as volume data for a PlateSpin® Flexible Image. To use this functionality, Acronis True Image or Symantec LiveState must be installed on the Flexible Image Server host.

For image import, Portability Suite supports the following third-party volume backup formats:

Portability Suite can also use raw volume data when deploying an image.

4.4.1 Importing Raw Volume Data or Volume Data Extracted from Acronis True Image and Symantec LiveState

  1. Discover the source machine with the raw volume data you want to capture, or that corresponds to the existing Acronis True Image or Symantec LiveState image.

  2. Drag and drop the source server onto the target Flexible Image Server. One of the following happens:

    • The Action dialog box opens. Ensure that the Capture Image option is selected in the Actions area. Click Advanced. Alternatively, to use the Wizard, click Start Wizard.

    • If you configured Portability Suite to bypass the Action window on drag-and-drop, the Create Image dialog box prompts you to specify whether you want to create a new image or use existing volume data. Select Use existing volume data and click OK.

  3. In the Create Image Job window, click Volumes under the Drive Configuration category. A Properties dialog box opens.

  4. Select each volume. In the text box at the bottom of the dialog box, type the full path to the directory containing the raw volume data, or to the existing image file for each volume.

    If you are using an incremental LiveState image, the *.iv2i and *.v2i files must exist in the same directory. In that case, enter the path of the *.iv2i file in the Path of image on Image Server text box.

  5. For each image, further properties can be configured by clicking the Advanced button:

    • Raw volume data

      Repackage: Select this option to create a Flexible Image from the provided image file.

    • Symantec LiveState

      Repackage: Select this option to create a Flexible Image from the provided image file.

      Security: If the provided image is password protected, provide the required password.

      Use incremental backup: Select this option if the provided image is part of an incremental backup set.

    • Acronis True Image

      Repackage: Select this option to create a Flexible Image from the provided image file.

      Security: If the provided image is password protected, provide the required password.

      Use incremental backup: Select this option if the provided image is part of an incremental backup set.

      Index: Enter the index number for the volume contained in the provided image. The following tables show the index numbers for each volume.

      Volume:

      A

      B

      C

      D

      E

      F

      G

      H

      I

      J

      K

      L

      M

      Index:

      0

      1

      2

      3

      4

      5

      6

      7

      8

      9

      10

      11

      12

      Volume:

      N

      O

      P

      Q

      R

      S

      T

      U

      V

      W

      X

      Y

      Z

      Index:

      13

      14

      15

      16

      17

      18

      19

      20

      21

      22

      23

      24

      25

      If the image contains data from the E: volume on the source server, the index should be set to 4.

  6. After selecting suitable images or raw volume data for each volume to be included, confirm the settings for the Job Configuration and Image Configuration sections.

  7. Click Start to begin the image creation process.

4.4.2 Additional Information About Creating Flexible Images

Table 4-2 Knowledge Base Articles Related to Flexible Images

ID

Description

Q20768

INFO: Portability Suite and Double-Take* Application Note Download [PDF].

Q20392

HOWTO: How to create a Flexible Image from NT backup restore.

Q20417

HOWTO: How to create a Flexible Image from Computer Associates' BrightStor* restore.

Q20400

HOWTO: How to create a Flexible Image from Symantec's Backup Exec* system restore.

Q20461

HOWTO: How to create a Flexible Image from Ghost* Image extraction.

Q20723

FAQ: How to create a Flexible Image from IBM* Tivoli* Storage Manager (TSM).