win7 doesn't work on a usb drive?
supposedly win 8 will work this way
Has to be an internal drive, or one of two
internal drives, neither does XP. Don't know
about W8.
You can make it work using Win PE http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Preinstallation_Environment
Windows Preinstallation Environment (aka Windows PE, WinPE) is a lightweight version of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows 7, or Windows Server 2008 R2 that is used for the deployment of workstations and servers. It is intended as a 32-bit or 64-bit replacement for MS-DOS during the installation phase of Windows, and can be booted via PXE, CD-ROM, USB flash drive, or hard disk. Traditionally used by large corporations and OEMs (to preinstall Windows client operating systems to PCs during manufacturing), it is now widely available free of charge via the Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK).
Haven't seen that one or the included programs, etc. or what it actually does.
My ActiveBootDisk does about everything I can think of, except defraggle
everything prior to backup, which allows an unfragmented restore, which
is hard to do with other programs.
http://www.livecd.com/I don't use Windows anymore so I can't try out the free WinPE you mentioned.