Clonezilla
Clonezilla is an Open Source Linux program that can be an important tool for refurbishing computers. While Ghost and Acronis can offer multi-tasking and cloning opportunities over a network, the costs of using the proprietory software are very high. As a not for profit refurbisher and a non-Linux user, it has taken a great deal of time to set up this guide for PC Users.
At Computers for Classrooms we have been using Clonezilla Live and Clonezilla SE for the past two years. Our server has been VERY stable and multi-cast cloning has greatly speeded up operations. Multi-cast refers to the method of loading many computers at one time using the network.
Additional information can be found by visiting Clonezilla.org and Sourceforge.net. The information guide on the Linux web site is difficult for non-Linux users so we have developed a simpler step by step tool.
The longest part of setting up your server is downloading the DVD as explained in the guide. With the guide you should be up and running within one day.
Clonezilla Live is simply run from the CD drive and is an easy tool to get started. You need to save the hard drive as a partition image. You can store the image using Clonezilla Live to an external USB Drive and then restore the image to the new computer of the same make and model. It is very easy to try without even having to set up a server. When you give your image a file name it will be in the form of 4-22-Dell-620-img. The file always ends in "-img".
This process when combined with Sysprep and a Driver's Disk can allow for unattended computer setups on any make and model using just the sysprep image! There are no license fees to worry about. Try it out!