Norton Ghost 2003 [OLD VERSION]

Customer Rating:
Summary: Helpful so long as you're patient
Comment: I've used this product for four years. While I've been displeased with it at least a half a dozen times, I eventually got used to its being "moody" and it behaves like it should when I need backups onto CD's. However, if(as another reviewer wrote), Symantec no longer offers tech support, I couldn't enthusiastically endorse it.

Customer Rating:
Summary: NG2003 and large backups
Comment: I got this software mainly because of its Windows interface. I have also been using older versions without hassle.

With time everything gets bigger and larger including the volume of data stored on hard disks. So, I will just mention the problems I had with reference to this context:

- If the total length of the labels exceed a certain limit (e.g. if you are trying to back up logical drives with labels like
"N_D1P4_Bks_Phys_Astro_Math_Sci" + "O_D1P5_EE_Tex_Hobbies" + "P_D1P6_CompuDataBase"+ etc. in one go) then you are sure to get a message that NG2003 does not support such long names. The solution is to break up the job into a number of smaller units.
- The program hangs if the right USB version (connection) is not chosen. No messages.
- The program can backup onto large hard disks (with 48bit Lba enable) but is unable to read the files later if the total backup exceeds a certain limit (reports a corrupted hard disk). It can read the earlier backups again once the later backups have been deleted (i.e. when the total size goes down below that 'certain limit'). [Note: I have not carefully investigated this limit - but roughly my guess is that it lies around 160GB].

I would go for an earlier version (if you are still conversant with DOS?) or buy a later version (no comments yet!). Symantec no longer supports it.
It, however, is a very convenient program for small backups.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Faithful service for almost 5 years
Comment: Bought in late 2002 after using previous versions, this is still the most reliable and fastest version ever. From win 95, 98 to winXP SP2, its a workhorse and does it job flawlessly.

I would like to upgrade to a newer version of Ghost and am investigating the pros and cons of doing so.

Customer Rating:
Summary: This product is dead as far as Symantec support is concerned
Comment: Like alot of developers all i needed was a basic imaging tool, nothing fancy and after reading how everyone swore by 2003 i bought the product. Bad move as symantec NO LONGER SUPPORTS NORTON GHOST 2003. This product is dead as far as Symantec support is concerned. To quote there web site "We no longer provide technical support for Norton Ghost 2003. To continue receiving support, we suggest that you upgrade to the latest version of Norton Ghost, which we offer to previous users at a discounted price."

You are pretty much on your own or at the nercy of message boards as far as installing or degugging this version and believe me i had quite a bit of debugging to do on this product especially as i run MS XP Pro SP 2.

I therefore agree with a previous reviewer who stated that selling this product is a ripoff,

Customer Rating:
Summary: Nice Product, hard to find.
Comment: This is the best backup solution I have ever used. I read somewhere that Norton removed some features in its successor. I am happy with it.