58bits - Tech

The following MS link - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/274188/ - will help you to troubleshoot and fix orphaned logins in a database, re-joining the database username to the SQL Server Login.

However if you've moved a database from one machine (A) to another (B) using the attach database method and B doesn't have the logins available to be fixed in the first place - then you need to create the required SQL Server logins first. MS have a great helper script that will extract the Login name, SID, default database and password as well as create a script that can be run on the new machine B to re-create all the required logs (and SIDs). You won't need to fixed any orphaned users since the user information in the newly attached DB and SQL Servers login information will now match.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/246133/- How to transfer logins and passwords between instances of SQL Server.

A huge time saver and makes moving a DB using the attach method a breeze.

OK – so the post below gushed over True Image. That was until I spent a weekend kicking the tires on Vista RTM (more soon….)

Firstly, on Vista 64Bit – True Image was broken; corrupt images and failed restores. Not sure about 32Bit Vista yet – however having discovered the new Vista Image format and full backup and recovery options – I’ve switched (I also postponed the Vista 64Bit install until Cisco kindly update their VPN client). I’ve run several complete Vista image backups – nuked the drives and restored flawlessly each time. Before my Vista box goes into production I need to be super confident that I have good recovery options.

The new Backup and Restore Center in Windows Visa is excellent; boot from the Vista install CD, enter your language and time information, and then choose repair Vista on the next screen. If there’s nothing to repair (i.e. an empty drive) you will still be allowed to move onto the next screen where you can choose your repair options – including a full recovery. No need to install the OS first. The Vista image will recreate all drive partition information and restore the machine to the state it was in during your last backup. Can be used in the same way Ghost and True Image are to upgrade or replace a drive.

Lots of good things in Vista – and this is certainly one of them.

I’ve been a loyal follower of Norton Ghost for many years. I’ve used it regularly in the past to copy, clone, and restore drive images. I’ve always used a dedicated drive image tool to create my own system restore points. The last DOS version of Ghost running from my boot CD with USB support to store the image was the zenith of Ghost usage for me I think. Feature bloat and a really terrible recovery CD in the latest version forced me to begin a search for an alternative.

Powerquest’s Drive Image Pro is long gone thanks to their acquisition however - happily I found exactly what I was looking for at Acronis True Image. Thank you Acronis. What an excellent piece of software. For starters the imaging tool is cool – well designed, easy to use and FAST. I can do a full image of my OS disk in about 15 minutes (a 14GB image file from 28GB of data). But the really amazing part is their recover CD. It takes only a couple of minutes to prepare, boots VERY fast, and runs True Image nicely – allowing me to browse for the backup image wherever it’s located, on another disk, or on my USB drive. The Ghost recovery CD takes nearly 10 minutes to boot – using a PE version of Windows (I think). The simplicity of True Image combined with their excellent recovery CD was the killer blow to Ghost, and I’m now an Acronis True Image convert.

For interest – I use True Image to create recovery images of my OS partition (my C: drive) and another very cool tool called SmartSync Pro to sync my data volume (my D: drive) with an external USB drive. I run backups (syncs) to the USB drive every day and also keep a fortnightly drive on rotation, locked in a safe at a friends office for off-site storage. The Robocopy console app is also a good way to kick-start the backup of a data volume and can also be used to mirror or sync data – but I liked the UI in SmartSync Pro enough to pay the asking 35.00 USD for the product.

Between the two – Acronis True Image 10 and SmartSync Pro, I’m pretty much covered on the system backup and data recovery front.