Ghost Solution Suite

We are creating images of a 120 Gig Drive and end up with an image about 5 Gigs in size using the Z9 Compression switch.  We'd like to be able to put these images (Several) on USB so that the techs in the field can more easily carry them.  (Currently, this images are each spanned over 3-4 DVD-Rs) 

Is there any other way to make these images smaller, so taht perhaps they can fit on a single DVD?

Doug,

Ghost does leave out the blank space of a drive already. The way to create the smallest possible image (this will take longer to create) is to add the -z9 switch, which enables the highest possible level of compression. The High compression option is equivalent to -z2. No special switch is needed to restore the image, however. 

Thank you,

Randy

I'm beginning to see that we may be stuck using this as is. 
THanks!

Doug,

The only other thing I can think of that may reduce the image size is to delete the page file before imaging, defragmenting the machine, and deleting unnecessary files. Good luck with imaging!

Thank you,

Randy

As noted, Ghost does not (and never has) captured the unused space on a drive, *except* in cases where Ghost is explicitly blocked from reading the content of the drive by disk encryption software or similar code, or Ghost is actively directed to capture all the data using advanced options.

In addition, the Windows page file (and hibernation file) DO NOT need to be and SHOULD NOT be removed; Ghost is already aware of them and omits all the data contained in them (these files appear to be in the image if browsed with Ghost Explorer, but in the actual .GHO file they occupy no space, as Ghost knows that they contain no data). This too has been in place since the first versions of Ghost in the mid-90's so it has never been a useful suggestion to remove or alter these these files.

In most Windows systems the primary place in which actually unused data accumulates is simply the user temporary file directories, under "C:\Documents and Settings\<USERNAME>\Local Settings\Temp" and "C:\Documents and Settings\<USERNAME>\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files"  or the equivalent under "C:\Users" for Vista-type systems. For pre-Vista Windows systems, system restore point data will also be captured in images (for Vista and later, they are stored in a different way and not captured).