Copyright: Copyright © 1994-1996 Symantec Corp.
Citation: Copyright © 1994-1996 Symantec Corp.


Lists the drives available for imaging.

You can select more than one drive to image.


Configures Image to create a backup file when imaging the selected drives. This backup file can be used to restore your file system information if the current Image data file is corrupt.


Images the selected drives.


Stops imaging your disk.

If you stop the image process, you will need to image your disk again in order to have a complete image.


Displays the options for Image.


Displays the associated topics from which to choose.


Closes Image.


Configures Image to run automatically when Windows is started.


Lists the drives that can be imaged automatically when Windows is started.

You can select more than one drive to image automatically.


Configures Image to create a backup file for drives that are imaged automatically when Windows is started. This backup file can be used to restore your file system information if the current Image data file is corrupt.


Closes this dialog box and saves any changes you have made.


Closes this dialog box without saving any changes you have made.


About Image

Image takes a "snapshot" of a disk's critical file information, a process called imaging. Image saves your disk's boot record, file allocation tables (FATs), and root information to a special file.

Various Norton Utilities programs can use the disk's image to:

Recover deleted files or directories

Restore files and directories that are lost if you accidentally format or seriously damage a disk

Norton System Doctor can help keep your image data up-to-date. For more information, see About the Image Sensor.

To open Image:

Click here [image] to open Image.

Click here [image] for related information.


Why you should use Image

The disk's image is used by various Norton Utilities programs to restore deleted files and rebuild deleted folders. UnErase Wizard and UnFormat are two such programs. Without a disk's image, reconstructing deleted files can be difficult, especially if the files are heavily fragmented. Using Image provides peace-of-mind data protection and ensures the best chance of a full recovery.

Click here [image] for related information.


When you should use Image

Whenever you add, delete, or modify files, the file organization on your disk changes. Ideally, you should image your disk whenever there is a change to your disk's file organization. If you rarely add, modify, or delete files, imaging your disk once or twice a day may be sufficient protection. On the other hand, if you add, modify, or delete files frequently during a typical day, you should image the disk more often. You can run Image on any number of disks.

Norton System Doctor can help keep your disk's image up-to-date. For more information, see About the Image Sensor.

You should have a current disk image for every hard disk (or disk partition) physically attached to your computer. Although you can run Image from a network, you cannot image a network drive.

Speed Disk automatically creates or updates the image of any disk it optimizes. Therefore, you need not image a disk immediately after running Speed Disk. To find out more about Speed Disk, see About Speed Disk.

Click here [image] for related information.


About Image features

Image includes two customizable features:

Imaging automatically when Windows starts
You can image some or all of your disks automatically whenever Windows starts. For more information, see To image a disk whenever Windows starts.

Creating an Image backup file
By default, Image creates a backup of the previous disk image whenever a new image is created. You should keep this feature enabled at all times. For more information, see About the IMAGE.BAK file.

If the current image data file gets corrupted or damaged, the backup can be used. For example, if you image a damaged disk, you might need to use the Image backup file. For more information, see To recover from imaging a damaged disk.

Click here [image] for related information.


About the image file

A disk's image information is stored in a special file named IMAGE.DAT. Whenever Image runs, it creates a new IMAGE.DAT file. By default, it renames the existing IMAGE.DAT (if any) to IMAGE.BAK. IMAGE.DAT resides in a disk's root and is a read-only file to prevent accidental deletion. Image also creates a hidden file called IMAGE.IDX, which is an index file that stores the locations of the IMAGE.DAT and IMAGE.BAK files.

Click here [image] for related information.


About the IMAGE.BAK file

By default, Image creates an Image backup file named IMAGE.BAK for every disk imaged. Before a new disk image is created, the existing IMAGE.DAT (if any) is renamed to IMAGE.BAK. IMAGE.BAK is a read-only file to ensure that it is protected from accidental deletion.

IMAGE.BAK is an important insurance policy against imaging a damaged disk. If you image a damaged disk and, as a result, bad data is stored in IMAGE.DAT, the IMAGE.BAK file can be used to recover the previous image. For more information, see "To recover from imaging a damaged disk.

In rare instances, such as when disk space is extremely limited, you may need to disable the creation of an Image backup file ito image a disk. If this is the case, consider running Space Wizard to free some disk space, rather than disabling backup file creation. For more information, see About Space Wizard.

Click here [image] for related information.


About the IMAGE.DAT file

A disk's image is stored in a file called IMAGE.DAT file. This file contains the disk's current boot record, file allocation tables (FATs), and root data. IMAGE.DAT is a read-only file to ensure it is protected from accidental deletion.

For compatibility information, see Compatibility with earlier versions.

Click here [image] for related information.


About the IMAGE.IDX file

IMAGE.IDX stores the locations of the IMAGE.DAT and IMAGE.BAK files. It is stored on the last available disk cluster. The IMAGE.IDX file is both hidden and read-only to ensure it is protected from accidental deletion.

Click here [image] for related information.


Command-line options for Image

You can run Image from the command-line by clicking Run from the Start menu. Use the following syntax:

IMAGE32 [drive:]...[/NOBACKUP][/OUT | /Q]

drive:	Saves disk information for the specified drives. Each drive letter specified must be followed by a colon. This option overrides those that may have been previously chosen in the Image window.

/NOBACKUP	Prevents the current IMAGE.DAT file from being renamed IMAGE.BAK. You should not use this option unless disk space is limited, in which case you should consider running Space Wizard. For more information, see "About Space Wizard."

/OUT or /Q	Runs Image minimized unless it requires more information.

The options may be entered in any order.

For example, to run Image minimized and save information for the C: and E: drives, you would enter:

IMAGE32 C: E: /OUT

Click here [image] for related information.


Compatibility with earlier versions

Image is compatible with earlier versions of Norton Utilities, and can use FRECOVER.DAT files created by Norton Utilities, Version 4.5. The first time Image runs, it converts the FRECOVER.DAT file to an IMAGE.DAT file that conforms to the current format used for image data.

Click here [image] for related information.


When you should not use Image

There are times when it is not a good idea to image a disk:

You should never image a disk if you suspect the boot records, file allocation tables (FATs), or root information is damaged. Imaging a disk with damaged information will not cause immediate problems, but, if the image is used to recover erased files, the recovered files may have errors or be unusable.

If you have imaged a damaged disk, do not image the disk a second time. For instructions on how to recover, click here [image].

Do not use Image immediately after making repairs with Norton Disk Doctor or after restarting Windows from a failed session. Always make sure Windows is fully functional before imaging any disk.

Click here [image] for related information.


To image a disk
To image a disk:

1	Click here [image] to open Image.

2	Check the drives you want to image from the list.

3	Click Image.

By default, Image creates an Image backup file for every disk imaged. The Image backup file is an important insurance policy against imaging a damaged disk. If you inadvertently image a damaged disk, the Image backup file can be used to recover the previous image.

Click here [image] for related information.


To image a disk when Windows starts
To image a disk when Windows starts:

1	Click here [image] to open Image, if it is not already open.

2	Click Options.

3	Check Start Automatically With Windows.

4	In the Drives to Image list, check the drives you want to be imaged automatically when Windows starts.

You cannot image removable disks, such as floppy disks, automatically when Windows starts.

Click here [image] for related information.


To open Image
To open Image:

Click here [image] to open Image.

Click here [image] for related information.


To recover from imaging a damaged disk
To recover from imaging a damaged disk:

Warning: If you image a damaged disk, your IMAGE.DAT file will contain bad data; do not image the disk again. The IMAGE.BAK file contains data from the previous IMAGE.DAT file, which may still be recoverable.

The IMAGE.DAT and IMAGE.BAK files are read-only files that cannot normally be renamed or edited. Before you can rename them, you must clear their read-only attributes.

To clear the read-only attribute from IMAGE.DAT or IMAGE.BAK:

1	Right-click the file whose read-only attribute you want to clear.

2	Select Properties from the context menu.

3	Uncheck Read-Only.

You can also clear the read-only attribute from the DOS prompt:

1	Type   ATTRIB -R filename   at the DOS prompt.
(filename is the name of the file whose read-only attribute you want to clear.)

2	Press Enter.

To recover from imaging a damaged disk:

1	Rename the IMAGE.DAT file, or move it to a different folder.

2	Rename the IMAGE.BAK to IMAGE.DAT.

3	Click here [image] to run Norton Disk Doctor and repair any disk problems.

4	In the list of disks, click the name of the damaged disk.

5	Click Diagnose, and let Norton Disk Doctor fix any problems it finds.

6	Check the disk for missing files.

To recover missing files (if necessary):

Click here [image] to run UnErase Wizard.

Click here [image] for related information.