Acronis Secure Zone
Encyclopedia
Acronis Secure Zone is a hard disk
partition
type created and used by Acronis True Image
(ATI) as a backup
storage target.
designed a solution to this problem by carving off part of the local disk as a proprietary partition, which they refer to as Acronis Secure Zone (ASZ). Since this partition is accessibly only by True Image and Backup & Recovery, it functions as a backup target safe from malware, user files, or other uses or corruption. It is important to note that ATI can manage only a single ASZ per computer.
partition labeled ACRONIS SZ, and the "partition type" code set to 0xBC. Knowing these requirements, one can manually create and/or manage existing Acronis Secure Zone using any partition manager. Since the ASZ is actually just a modified FAT32 partition type, it is possible to gain direct access to this partition by changing the partition type code in the MBR
to 0x0B (FAT32 LBA) using any MBR management application such as MBRWizard
.
ATI is designed to self-manage the backup archives stored to the ASZ. As such, all backup files will be stored with autogenerated names in the root folder. If there is not enough freespace for the next backup file, ATI will automatically delete the oldest image set (base+incremental/differential files) in order to create space for the new files.
Acronis Secure Zone differs from other backup places in that:
secure zone", which is technically the same as a regular ASZ, but uses a partition type of 0xBB, and typically contains only a single image file with the "factory default" OS and application configuration set forth by the manufacturer.
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
partition
Disk partitioning
Disk partitioning is the act of dividing a hard disk drive into multiple logical storage units referred to as partitions, to treat one physical disk drive as if it were multiple disks. Partitions are also termed "slices" for operating systems based on BSD, Solaris or GNU Hurd...
type created and used by Acronis True Image
Acronis True Image
Acronis True Image is disk imaging software, developed by Acronis, that creates backups and recovers PC systems. The software allows a user to create an image of a disk while it is running Microsoft Windows or offline by booting from CD/DVD, USB flash drives, PXE, or other bootable media...
(ATI) as a backup
Backup
In information technology, a backup or the process of backing up is making copies of data which may be used to restore the original after a data loss event. The verb form is back up in two words, whereas the noun is backup....
storage target.
Overview
Backup applications typically use network storage for storing backup archives, but this can be problematic when such resources are not available. AcronisAcronis
Acronis, Inc. is an international computer software company, dealing in the area of computer backup, disaster recovery, bare-metal restore, system deployment, and storage management in both Windows and Linux systems.-History:...
designed a solution to this problem by carving off part of the local disk as a proprietary partition, which they refer to as Acronis Secure Zone (ASZ). Since this partition is accessibly only by True Image and Backup & Recovery, it functions as a backup target safe from malware, user files, or other uses or corruption. It is important to note that ATI can manage only a single ASZ per computer.
Technical Details
Although the Acronis Secure Zone has its own partition type, it is actually just a rebadged FAT32File Allocation Table
File Allocation Table is a computer file system architecture now widely used on many computer systems and most memory cards, such as those used with digital cameras. FAT file systems are commonly found on floppy disks, flash memory cards, digital cameras, and many other portable devices because of...
partition labeled ACRONIS SZ, and the "partition type" code set to 0xBC. Knowing these requirements, one can manually create and/or manage existing Acronis Secure Zone using any partition manager. Since the ASZ is actually just a modified FAT32 partition type, it is possible to gain direct access to this partition by changing the partition type code in the MBR
MBR
MBR may refer to:* Minerações Brasileiras Reunidas, a division of Caemi* Malaysian Book of Records* Master boot record, the first sector of a partitioned data storage device, used for booting* Membrane bioreactor* Memory buffer register...
to 0x0B (FAT32 LBA) using any MBR management application such as MBRWizard
MBRwizard
MBRWizard is a Master Boot Record management application for x86 and x86-64 based computers. As the use of disk imaging applications for backup and operating system deployment began to increase, as well as many users beginning to experiment with dual-booting Linux on existing Windows machines,...
.
ATI is designed to self-manage the backup archives stored to the ASZ. As such, all backup files will be stored with autogenerated names in the root folder. If there is not enough freespace for the next backup file, ATI will automatically delete the oldest image set (base+incremental/differential files) in order to create space for the new files.
Acronis Secure Zone differs from other backup places in that:
- It is used exclusively by ATI (this provides a level of safety against corruption)
- As it is local to the system, it is always available
- When the free space is exhausted, old archives (the oldest full slice with all its incremental/differential slices) gets automatically overwritten.
- Of course if local hard drive fails, then Acronis Secure Zone backup archive is no longer available.
OEM Secure Zone
OEM versions of True Image are designed to use a special "OEMOriginal Equipment Manufacturer
An original equipment manufacturer, or OEM, manufactures products or components that are purchased by a company and retailed under that purchasing company's brand name. OEM refers to the company that originally manufactured the product. When referring to automotive parts, OEM designates a...
secure zone", which is technically the same as a regular ASZ, but uses a partition type of 0xBB, and typically contains only a single image file with the "factory default" OS and application configuration set forth by the manufacturer.