Ghost-ing from an iPod

[rallynavvie]

Here's an interesting idea for my 60GB portable hard drive that also plays music (my iPod). I just can't figure out how I'd go about doing it.

I have to update all the workstations at work with a new image and I've been supplied with two DVDs with a Ghost image to install with. Not all of our workstations have DVD drives and rather than swap one it for the install at all the sites I thought perhaps it would be easier to boot from a USB drive. However all my drives at home are FireWire except for the iPod.

I've already read the warnings about using the iPod as a boot drive for long periods of time, I only really need it to install each so maybe an hour tops per workstation. I've read about using USB flash drives as boot devices but it involves using Windows boot sectors for them. I'm trying to figure out if Ghost has a way of taking the images and putting them on a portable hard drive (the iPod) for booting instead of the two DVDs.

Perhaps someone here has some better insights. I searched but I'm running out of steam. If I find a way to do it later I will certainly post it up here for future reference for others.

[Conquest10]

Your iPod is not firewire? That doesn't sound right.

[drjtech]

The 60GB iPod has both USB & FireWire, so he can use it as a USB boot drive. His other drives are FireWire only.

-drj

[thevoelk]

The BIOS of the workstation has to be able to see the USB drive, which is a problem since most imaging software packages work in some form or other of DOS. If the workstations are fairly new, within the last 2 years, you're probably ok. You still may need a Ghost boot floppy/CD to boot to, then pick the iPod as the image source. My guess is, as long as the iPod has a standard file system, Ghost is going to see it.

I don't have an iPod (got 4 30GB DJs from my Dell Rep for free), but I'm assuming you can put files other than media files on it. I don't see what Apples warning would have to with anything. When you use the iPod for music, it's still technically a boot drive.

[rallynavvie]

Actually when it's playing music the drive spins up to load the song into memory and then it plays from there rather than directly from the drive itself.

I did some research in the help files of Ghost on my home computer and it looks like the Ghost restore CD that came bundled with it will allow me to boot to a USB device. I can use Ghost at home to merge the images from both DVDs to a single one so that it doesn't ask for another disk halfway through. I'll put it together this weekend and give it a run next week to see if it works. Just another good use for that little 60GB hard drive

I wonder if it even charges while doing that since part of the USB port is for power is it not? Even more useful if no power adapters are required. Some of those workstations are in tight spaces and don't have any spare outlets around otherwise I'd have used the USB DVD drive floating around at work.

[smearbrick1]

Actually when it's playing music the drive spins up to load the song into memory and then it plays from there rather than directly from the drive itself.

I did some research in the help files of Ghost on my home computer and it looks like the Ghost restore CD that came bundled with it will allow me to boot to a USB device. I can use Ghost at home to merge the images from both DVDs to a single one so that it doesn't ask for another disk halfway through. I'll put it together this weekend and give it a run next week to see if it works. Just another good use for that little 60GB hard drive :)

I wonder if it even charges while doing that since part of the USB port is for power is it not? Even more useful if no power adapters are required. Some of those workstations are in tight spaces and don't have any spare outlets around otherwise I'd have used the USB DVD drive floating around at work.

My Ipod charges when it is connected to the USB. I'd imagine yours does also.

[thevoelk]

Regarding the iPod as boot device, if it doesn't have a boot sector that Ghost understands, which I doubt it does, you still need the floppy/CD for Ghost. It's worth a shot. As for merging the images, if they are in the same directory, Ghost might see it and load it automatically. Again, most of my experience is with PowerQuest, but occasionally I'm asked to make a bootable DVD image disc for our non-netowrked workstaitons, and PowerQuest will split the image into 2GB files, leaqving me with image.pqi, image.001, image.002, and as long as the files are in the same directory on the DVD, it chugs right along until it's done.