Just got a new T42, want to create recovery CD

[JimR1998]

I just picked-up a used T42 for $500. Pentium M 1.7, 512MB, Radeon 7500, Wifi, good battery, and under warranty until 2008. I'd much prefer this "cheap laptop" instead of the Acer's that are on sale at the big box stores.

The previous owner did a clean IBM re-image for me. I'd like to create a Recovery CD just in case there's a problem with the drive later. It appears the Predesktop area is intact as a few GB of space is missing from my 40GB drive.

But I can't figure out how to create the CD's. Pressing the Blue AccessIBM before bootup takes me into the BIOS, same deal for F11. Pressing it inside Windows XP opens a menu with"Protect and Recover" but has nothing about creating CD's.

I downloaded a 200MB Rescue and Recovery file from IBM but the install errored with a #6... not sure if that program is what I need or not.

Also, assuming I create this CD, when I restore from it will all the IBM drivers be installed as well or will I have to download them from the IBM website?

Ideally I'd like to re-image the drive again from this CD so I know what to expect down the road.

Any suggestions would be appreciiated. Thanks!

[Thinkpad_T43_Fan]

I know what you mean about this "cheap" laptop over the run-of-the-mill laptops in the stores for the masses.

You might want to ask your previous owner if he restored the image from the HD partition or if he used CDs.

He might be able to tell you how he did it, and either provide you the CDs if he did so, or tell you how to use the hidden partition.

Good luck and enjoy. The T4X series are among the nicest laptops out there.

[pianowizard]

I just picked-up a used T42 for $500. Pentium M 1.7, 512MB, Radeon 7500, Wifi, good battery, and under warranty until 2008.

Wow, $500 only! Even though the display is probably only XGA, it's still a very good deal!

On my T43, this is how I make recovery discs:

Start --> Programs --> Access IBM --> Create Recovery Discs

[pksw]

Jim, it sounds like the recovery partition is still intact, as you've noticed you are a few gigabytes short of 40 Gb. You can confirm this by hitting F11, at the BIOS, and running the recovery program.

It'll run through a little way before prompting you with a confirmation message warning you that re-imaging the hard disk will lose all data on the main partition. Obviously hit NO at this stage and shutdown.

Once you've confirmed that the recovery partition is active - then there really is no point in backing up the main partition using IBM's tools, as you can always restore it from the recovery partition. I recommend using something like Acronis TrueImage or Norton Ghost to backup your main drive.

What you will want is a backup of the recovery partition. On my T41p, there is a "firstware" partition. I'm not sure if it's the same for your machine.

To back that up, I followed the instructions somewhere in this forum using FWBACKUP. Just search for it, and follow it. I tested my backup of the recovery partition by restoring it to a new hard disk, and I was able to restore the recovery partition, then use it to image the hard disk with WinXP with all of the IBM Thinkpad software installed.

An alternate might be to use IBMs Rescue and Recovery, but I've found the program to be "bloatware". It consumes a lot of space, and there are better alternatives in my opinion.

Good luck.

[carbon_unit]

Pianowizard hit it on the head. If it is not there then it is not a factory restore. If it is there it will require either 7 cd's or 1 cd and one dvd.
These cd's will wipe all the partitions from the hard drive, install the Predesktop area (hidden partition), then reboot and restore the main partition from the Predesktop area. Everything will then be as it was fresh out of the box.
They are a good thing to have in case of hard drive failure or if you ever sell it.

[JimR1998]

I tried F11 and it booted to the predesktop partition (initially it went to BIOS, not sure what happened), but when I tried to burn the CD it complained about the partition not being intact.

I called IBM support-- top notch!! I got right through and wasn't rerouted to a foreign country. The associate was very friendly, stayed on the phone and made conversation while I tried a few things, and is shipping me a set of CD's to fix the problem.

Good customer service. Wow. I can't even get that with a $2000 Dell.

[agarza]

Good to hear Recovery CD's are on your way!

Indeed the best laptops brand to own is obviously a Thinkpad