Creating a bootable rescue disk

[torres-no-tan-magnifico]

From the UBCD home page:
The Linux-based distro Parted Magic is now included with UBCD V5.0.
FYI Ubuntu is a Linux OS whilst UBCD is a Linux based product that enables diagnostic tools to be run from a CD.
Regarding the download size, this could simply be an error: when I attempted to download via a torrent client the download was 817.00 MB. Also, websites don't always update their info after a new version is released.
HTH

[v.laurie]

I suggest you consider making a Windows rescue disk as well as having boot disks like UBCD. This article describes a variety of useful boot disks,

[Joe A.TT]

Originally Posted by Melita-s

The reference to Ubuntu CD is in the penultimate paragraph of the write up, as follows:

"If files that big sound too daunting then try one of the many Linux based rescue disks [4]. Many are smaller and simpler to set up; just download the ISO file and burn it to a CD. The popular Ultimate Boot CD [5] for example is an 87 MB download. Usage though can be a little daunting for those not used to the Linux environment but there's an excellent Linux rescue disk guide for Windows users here [6]"

Melita, I wonder if you are thinking UBCD and Ubuntu is the same? They are two different things.

UBCD (or Ultimate Boot CD) is a collection of repair tools that were put together in a bootable CD image.

On the other hand, Ubuntu is the name of a Linux operating system. The home page is here: http://www.ubuntu.com/

Originally Posted by Melita-s

The quoted paragraph also says "The popular Ultimate Boot CD [5] for example is an 87 MB download" But the website at link No.5 says it is a 597 MB. How come?

I agree with Torres. I believe that is an error. The magnet download shows up as 617,777 KB (or 603 MB) on my BitTorrent client (i.e. Tixati) whereas the download from Softpedia is 589 MB. Nevertheless, the UBCD website provide checksums for the ISO image. When you download the ISO it would be wise to compare the checksum against theirs and make sure it's the same.

[Anupam]

Melita-s, as torres and Joe have explained, it should be clear now that Ubuntu and UBCD (Ultimate Boot CD) are different things. I guess you were getting confused between the two.

About the size, please note that Gizmo had written this article a long time back, and therefore, the size might have been different then, from now. So, please disregard that, and just go by the size available now at the site.

The correct size seems to be 589 MB, which I got by trying to download the ISO file from different mirror sites. Just download from any of the mirror site, and you should be good.

Vic, thanks for the link to your article. Making a Windows repair disc is a good idea, for specific repair of Windows.

Apart from that, if there is any particular rescue disk, which you can recommend for a general user, it would be good, because there are so many rescue disks listed there, and it's easy to get confused. The article seems to cover pretty much same options as Gizmo did, and I think UBCD seems to be the best, from a general user point of view.

Hiren's CD and System Rescue CD are the two extras, but I don't have any idea about the latter. First one is a good CD to keep too.

[Melita-s]

Well, things are finally getting sorted out in my head! My apologies for the confusion of Linux and Ubuntu.

I have downloaded 1. UBCD from "sourceforge", 2. Windows 7 Home Premium 64Bit (this is in my Laptop), and 3. Windows XP package by Dean Adams(I use XP on my Desktop).[2 and 3 from the links at v.laurie's web page; very kind of you to provide that!]. I already have a Windows repair disk that I have made earlier.

Pleas clarify the following:
1. Do I burn the ISO images to separate individual disks?
2. In case of boot failure, can any one of these disks be used to boot up any computer regardless of the operating system?
3. How do I go about comparing the check sum in UBCD? [never done it before]
4. Is there a method to check that the image has burned properly to the disk?
5. What happens if you use one of these disks to boot up a computer in good working order?

Many thanks to all.

Kind regards,

[Joe A.TT]

Originally Posted by Melita-s

1. Do I burn the ISO images to separate individual disks?

Yes. One disk, one image.

Originally Posted by Melita-s

2. In case of boot failure, can any one of these disks be used to boot up any computer regardless of the operating system?

Generally speaking, yes, however, it won't make sense to boot a Windows 7 installation disk if an XP machine isn't booting. On the other hand, you want to do some sort of repair to a Windows 7 computer you can boot a Windows 7 installation disk for that. In other words, you'd want to choose a disk that's relevant to the task you want to perform.

Originally Posted by Melita-s

3. How do I go about comparing the check sum in UBCD? [never done it before]

You have to get a program that can generate and compare checksums. For example, I know of some people who like Hashtab (which is one such program) because it integrates with Explorer and creates an extra tab in the File Properties window. Personally, I use Hasher because it's tiny, portable, and does exactly what I want.

Originally Posted by Melita-s

4. Is there a method to check that the image has burned properly to the disk?

I may be wrong, but if you are using Windows 7 or 8/8.1 and you use Windows' native burn feature there's an option to verify the burn. On the other hand, I know for a fact that ImgBurn has the option to verify. (Notice I linked to the portable version of ImgBurn because it doesn't have unwanted extras which the installer version has).

Originally Posted by Melita-s

5. What happens if you use one of these disks to boot up a computer in good working order?

Nothing - once you know what you are doing. For example, it's been recommended that if you do online banking it would be safer to do so from a live Linux CD since it won't be as prone to malware like Windows.

I hope I've answered all you questions adequately. If you have more questions please ask away.

[Melita-s]

Hello Joe'

Thank you for answering all the questions. I used the Windows Disc Image Burner in my Windows 7 to create the disks (it is very simple to use), except for Windows XP.

For XP, in Dean Adams's pakage (v.laurie's link),'Readme.htm' file gives a link to Microsoft to down load the necessary files. Both the Readme file and the Microsoft link says that this is for Windows XP with Service Pack 2. My XP has SP 3. Please see attachments.

* Would this make any difference for the purpose of the bootable disc? i.e. to boot my XP in case of boot failure?

* Would it be all right if I created this disc on my Win 7, even though it is to be used for XP?

* I down loaded hasher but I am at a loss how to compare Check Sum.

Best regards,

[Joe A.TT]

Originally Posted by Melita-s

* Would this make any difference for the purpose of the bootable disc? i.e. to boot my XP in case of boot failure?

You got me there. I don't know. Hopefully, Vic or someone else will chime in here.

Originally Posted by Melita-s

* Would it be all right if I created this disc on my Win 7, even though it is to be used for XP?

Yes.

Originally Posted by Melita-s

* I down loaded hasher but I am at a loss how to compare Check Sum.

Okay, let's use UBCD as an example.

1. Go to UBCD's site here..

2. Select and copy the checksum. In this case I've copied the MD5 checksum. (Note: Hasher can do SHA1 as well but it can't do SHA-256).



3. Open Explorer and browse to the ISO of UBCD which you had downloaded.

4. Ensure Hasher is set to MD5.

5. Drag the ISO from the Explorer window into the Hasher window. Hasher will calculate the MD5 checksum for the ISO file.

6. Click on the icon that looks like a lightning bolt.

7. In the dialog box which pops up, click OK.



8. You will get another dialog box that either tells you SAME or DIFFERENT.



That's it!

[Edit]
I am using version 1.20 of Hasher. If you downloaded the latest (i.e. version 3.1) then it's very similar. There are just two major differences:

1. Uncheck all the checksums (or hashes) you don't want Hasher to calculate. If you don't then all the hashes will be calculated and this will take longer.

2. Use the scale icon to compare a hash with one which you've already copied to your clipboard.

[Melita-s]

Thank you Joe for the answers and taking all this trouble. I compared the check sum and it looks OK. I have attached a screen shot for you.

Best regards,

[Joe A.TT]

Looking good.