Backup Restore Problem

[stingray]

I'm trying to restore a backup of My Documents from a partition (drive D) off my laptop onto My Documents on my desktop which is not partitioned (drive C).

When I try to restore it using WinXp's Backup, it won't let me restore it as there is no drive D on the desktop... If instead choose "alternate location", it then makes a copy of My Documents within the My Documents folder.

How I can restore these folders and files without having to copy each folder individually from the 2nd My Documents into the real My Documents, which would take hours as there are loads of files many of which are rather large in size, not least My Pictures?

Thanks to anyone who might be able to help!

[bailey]

copy , and paste would be a better way to do it when the restore system is not the same as the backup system.

I belive that to use the xp backup and restore features , it has to be on the same system.

[stingray]

I've used the back up before to restore to another system, so I'm baffled...

But I think I'm going to have to C&P after all. And then find some other back-up program that works properly!

Thanks.

[KHT]

MS back up works fine. When prompted to restore to an alternate location, on the target computer (your desk top) select C:\Documents and Settings\[profile]\My Documents and it should work. (providing C:\ is the drive you are trying to restore to)

[stingray]

Originally posted by KHT MS back up works fine. When prompted to restore to an alternate location, on the target computer (your desk top) select C:\Documents and Settings\[profile]\My Documents and it should work. (providing C:\ is the drive you are trying to restore to)

Sorry, it does not seem work in this instance... the backup was made from drive D on the laptop; the restore I'm attempting to make is to drive C on the desktop. When choosing Alternate Location, it simply creates a folder called My Documents (with the restored backup in it) within the real My Documents. Ditto with a backup of My Pictures - it puts a copy of My Pictures within My Pictures (and there's over 3gb of those in each...). It's as if it will only accept a "proper" restore if to the same drive letter.

This is driving me nuts....

Might it be something to do with the options of whether to replace or never replace etc?

[KHT]

OK, when you go to restore, try opening the My Documents you want to restore and select the files *within* the My Documents folder, not the folder itself. Then select the folder you want to restore to. This way it shouldn`t create a new My Documents folder but just restore the files within.

[stingray]

Thanks but I tried that too, and it still didn't work...

Anyway, what I did in the end was to manually copy or move the folders over to their original loation after the restore, and then delete the "fake" My Docs folder and ditto with the "fake" My Pictures folder that the restore created.

Thanks for you help, sorry nothing worked...

[andyms18a]

if both computer are running xp then you just run the files and setings transfer wizard on start all programs system tools
to copy all the docs from the laptop to the desk top

[stingray]

Unfortunately that won't work for me in this instance also. One computer is here and the other is in my 2nd home abroad...

But thanks for the suggestion!