JSI Tip 0238 - Backup misses files and/or restore causes corruption.

When you use NTBackup to backup your NT partition (and other partitions), files that are in use may be bypassed. You can backup inuse files by editing the registry at:

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftNtbackupBackup EngineBackup files inuse

and setting the value to 1. The default is 0 - do not backup inuse files.

You should also edit:

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftNtbackupUser Interface

Skip open files     this type REG_SZ has 3 possible settings:
    0 = do not skip, wait
    1 = skip files that are opened unreadable
    2 = wait on open files for Wait time

Wait time     this type REG_SZ has a range from 0 to 65535 seconds with a default of 30 seconds.

Certain files will not backup because NT has them open. Others will backup but will corrupt upon restore. The proper way to backup is:

.  Run RDISK /S-  to backup the registry to the %SystemRoot%repair directory.
   The /S causes the %SystemRoot%Repair directory to be updated, the - prevents an ERD from being created.

.  Disconnect users from shares and stop all Services that have databases open
   such as WINS, DHCP, Exchange, SQL, etc.. See tip 159.

.  If backing up network workstations or Servers, use tip 072 to backup their registry.

Combine the above with tip 013 for the best freeware approach to backup.

For a much more robust and flexible backup, try the fully functional UltraBac evaluation.