Disk imaging is the process through which you copy the contents of one data storage device or medium and then transfer it to another similar kind of medium or device. To understand it in the simplest sense disk imaging can be said to be the creating of a duplicate of a computer’s hard disk drive. This would be an exact duplicate with all its programs, data and setup. This can then be stored in a special compressed file format.
The aim of disk imaging is to provide the user with a ditto copy of his computer’s system and data. This is useful in cases where the computer experiences a catastrophic dish crash and the user stands in need of recovering the system and data.
A classic example of such a need arising is when a computer gets infected by a virus or undergoes an accident. By cloning the systems set up for the purpose of installation and placing it in another drive or computer you will always have a recovery option at hand.
The multiple uses of Disk Imaging
As is obvious the primary use of disk imaging is to provide the user with a backup option for the computer software and data that is stored on the hard disk. This backup option is quick to access and easy to use.
You will find that commonly people are concerned with having a back up for the data that has been stored on a computer’s hard disk. Disk imaging however provides the user with the computer’s system and configuration along with the data.
Disk imaging captures everything of the active computer system. This includes its basic structure and registry programs along with tweaks and software. The threat of developing problems during the running life of a computer is ever present. This can happen either from deliberate virus attacks that have the potential to erase the data as well as the systems. Then you have such software and hardware glitches that may require you to format or erase the data on the hard disk. Even man made incidents and natural disasters pose a threat to the computer system.
Having a disk image is like having an updated rescue disk. One can use this rescue disk in order to easily reinstall everything that has been lost up until the time when the duplication was made. This way the user is saved from the whole process of having to install the software and tweaking the settings in order to achieve his desired configuration.
Disk imaging software is also a helpful tool in cases where system administrators are required to oversee a number of computers that all have similar configurations. In this case the system administrator can save time and trouble by making use of the disk imaging software that will not require him to transfer and configure systems on each computer separately. Rather it will allow him to duplicate the entire systems on one machine and then install the disk image on to the others.
This is a lifesaver if you have a machine that needs to be up and running 24/7. If it goes down, it takes a lot less time to get it back to where it was vs. having to rebuild it. Bonus if you have a spare hard drive that is already imaged to just plug right in.