ImageUSB exFAT partition write failure

[JuiceTekKevin]

I can not get ImageUSB to write IMG file containing an exFAT partition. The result is a RAW disk. I can mount and view that IMG file in OSF. No issues writing a BIN of a drive with an exFAT partition, but the drive is only part full and so writing lots of empty space.

Thank you,

[David (PassMark)]

Where did the .IMG file come from.

ImageUSB doesn't care about the file system in use. It just writes out the bits and bytes without any real knowledge of files and file system.

.IMG files and .BIN files are normally the same thing. In the sense that the file extensions are interchangeable and don't really tell you anything about the file's content. So it doesn't make sense that the same file with .BIN would work and .IMG wouldn't. It should also make not change to the amount of empty space. So there is something else going on.

[JuiceTekKevin]

I made IMGs from OSForensics=>Imaging and from www.datanumen.com/disk-image, both give me the same results. (the BIN is from ImageUSB) Now with OSForensics=>Imaging I can restore a exFAT partition IMG to a partition on another disk, but not that same exFAT partition IMG to a disk itself.

My issue seems be IMG of a exFAT partition vs a IMG or BIN of a "disk" with ImageUSB. (But no issues with NTFS partitions)

Space ... if I have a 64 GB disk with 33 GB of data: when imaging the whole disk then 31 GB of empty space to copy, but if I create a partition of 34GB and image that only, then my duplication time should be almost 1/2. (I dont care if the unused 31/30GB is unavailable).


Thank you again!

[David (PassMark)]

ImageUSB assumes the image is a full disk image. So if you take part of a disk (just a single partition), and drop it onto a USB drive then it might not work. That is to say ImageUSB doesn't care and it will do what you asked, but it might not make sense later on when Windows tried to mount the USB drive.