From other threads it seems like the answer to my question 1) is not possible.

I've attempted to split the image into smaller parts (each part is 330mb) so that two parts fit to a CD.  I have created a custom WinPE cd that contains Ghost32.exe and the first part of the ghost image.  This allows me to use most of the space available on each CD.

However in testing this approach I have run into an issue with the way Ghost32 looks for the next span.  The first CD runs the command:

ghost -clone,mode=load,src=E:\CDR00000.GHO,dst=1 -NTCHKDSK -SURE

Which works until it asks for the next span.  I insert the second CD in the set which contains  the files CDR00001.GHS and CDR00002.GHS.  When I hit Next to continue Ghost32 throws an error for unable to find the next span.  If I hit Browse it looks like Ghost is looking for CDR00002.GHS and if I press Enter gives the error that this file is not the correct next span.  If I manually select the proper file CDR00001.GHS the ghost process continues with no issues.

Is there a way that I can get Ghost to correctly find the next span?   I've tried both the 8.3 naming convention and the newer naming of CDR00000001.GHS, etc, and both fail with the same behaviour.  I've also tried the -AUTO switch but it doesn't resolve the issue.

Below is the top part of my GHOSTERR.TXT:

*********************************
Date   : Tue Feb 10 18:56:50 2009
Error Number: (651)
Message: Unable to locate next span.
Operation aborted at user request.

Version: 11.5.0.2165 (Jan 22 2009, Build=2165)
OS Version: Professional  (Build 6000)
Command line arguments: -clone,mode=load,src=e:\CDR00000.GHO,dst=1 -NTCHKDSK -SURE
Active Switches :
       AutoName
PathName            : 6773 ieakmmc.chm
DumpFile            : e:\CDR00002.ghs
DumpPos             : 346021745
Last LFO Buffersize : 0
Last LFO Path       : 
  Full Path         : e:\CDR00002.ghs
  Drive Letter      : e:\ 
Last LFO Filesystem : Native
Last LFO Error      : Win32 error: (0x00000002)
The system cannot find the file specified.


Last LFO Error Path : 
  Full Path         : e:\CDR00001.GHS
  Drive Letter      : e:\ 
FlagImplode         : 0
FlagExplode         : 4

CloneSrc            : e:\CDR00000.GHO
BatchPartSrc        : 0
BatchPartMSrc       : 

CloneDst            : 1
BatchPartDst        : 0

Operation Details :
  Total size.........6130
  MB copied..........637
  MB remaining.......5493
  Percent complete...10%
  Speed..............415 MB/min
  Time elapsed.......1:32   
  Time remaining.....13:14   

Thread #1724 Call Stack
AbortLog
Generic_Abort
WinSpanning
GetNextFile
ReadSpanHeader
DumpRead
NTFSRead
readNextSeqPacket
loadRun
loadAttribute
loadAttributes
loadMFTRec
loadMFT
loadVol
LoadNTFSPartition
ProcessNTFSPartition
CopyPartition
ProcessAllPartitions
CopyAllPartitions
CopyFileToDisk
CopyMainline
AttemptOperation
sub_main
main

1. Answer is no as you have already found out. GBW has no intimate knowledge of GHO format.

2. This is limitation of a DOS bootable CD. Unlike Winpe DOS cannot boot directly off the CD. It requires BIOS support for that. BIOS supports two types of emulation mode for CD boot - HD and floppy. What this means that GBW create a HD image on a CD so that BIOS can boot off the CD just like it does from HD. We cannot make HD big enough to fit too many files - certainly not an image. Out HD size is ~25MB. We opted for HD emulation long time ago so that we can fit more files than on a floppy.

Your other question about spanning. Ghost always looks for the next span on the same media. When ghost creates CD itself it has a very special naming convention then when you create a regular image (GHO/GHS). When you put regular image on a CD ghost will restore first span and will then look for 001.GHS. It will not find it and prompt you for next span. There was a bug that we fixed in live update 3 for GSS 2.5 that causes ghost to skip to next span name when it failed to find the one it needed first time. It is only a problem for people like yourself who create images on HD and then wants to copy them to CD. Pleaserun Live update 3 and get ghost build 2165.

Cheers.

Eugene,

Thanks for the quick reply.  I believe I am using the build 2165 version of ghost as indicated in my GHOSTERR.TXT in the previous post.

What is the special naming convention that Ghost uses for CDs and would that help if I used it in my case?  I think the problem is that ghost is looking at the last available span when I insert the next CD.

So on the CDs I have the following:

CD 1:

- WinPE (~150mb)

- CDR00000.GHO (330mb)

CD 2: 

- CDR00001.GHS (330mb)

- CDR00002.GHS (330mb)

When CD 2 is inserted Ghost complains that the span we inserted is not the correct next span.  I believe this is due to it looking for the last available span on the CD, which is CDR00002.GHS.  Could you explain the logic Ghost uses to find the next span?

Thanks in advance.

Why spanning to cd's??

Can't you create an image to an Local D: drive or make an copy with GCS to an server?

it's much faster when restoring then cd media.

I am having the same problem as Nodrog except that I create the image straight to a disc(s) using ghost, which to my understanding that bug was fixed in build 2165.

The images I'm working with will fit onto one DVD. I can create, check integrity and restore an image from a DVD with no issues. But I also needed to test a spanned image so I have the same image spanned onto 4 CDs.

I have verified that I'm on build 2165 and no other updates are available. I'm using the new naming scheme (.gho) and I let ghost name the files.

When I check the integrity or try to restore the first disc runs fine but when it asks for the second disc and I put it in ghost will error that it "cannot open the image file e:\CDR0000#.gho [win32 error: (0x00000002) The system cannot find the file specified] (10010). Putting the next disc in the span just gives me an error that it's the wrong disc from the span.

Disc 1 has CDR00001.GHO, disc 2 has CDR00002.GHO, disc 3 has CDR00003.GHO and disc 4 has CDR00004.GHO

If I click browse and search the correct spanned disc and open the next sequential .gho file everything works fine but Ghost cannot open the correct one on it's own. It is always looking one file ahead.

Since it doesn't find the next span on the current disc it asks for the next disc but also asks for the next file, that should have been fixed in the latest build (When it should be looking for CDR0002.GHO it is actually looking for CDR00003.GHO so I have to browse to the 00002 file manually).

Anybody else running into this, any ideas?