Windows 7 Backup Error 0x8078002A

I upgraded my main computer to Windows 7 Home Premium which has a C drive (500 GB) and a Raid 5 SATA array (2.7 TB) on drive D:. I tried to backup the install as an image on the D: drive and I get the following error code 0x8078002A and a comment about an I/O error and one of the backup files could not be created.

I plugged in a USB external hard drive in and it works.

This computer is part of a gigabit switched home network (the main file server), so I tried to back up one of the home computers (running W7 Professional) through the network onto a shared folder on drive D: and I get the same error. The backup gets 27% of the way through on both computers and then fails.

I have updated the Raid driver (I had to as part of the W7 install).

I tried the reboot trick mentioned in another forum which did not work.

Any ideas or solutions on this one?

Secondly, can I copy through Windows Explorer the backup off the USB drive onto the D: drive and have a reliable backup, or will that copy corrupt the backup?

Thanks for your help

Hi alov1258, welcome to the forums

The only solution I've seen posted elsewhere is the one about rebooting the PC before backing up, which you've already tried. Do you get any extended error information in Event Viewer? Do you have any luck trying to make a backup in safe mode?

Also, I don't see why you couldn't copy the backup from the USB > D: drive in the short term for a backup.

Having spent a fortnight sorting out Wireless Lan driver problems with my new Medion MD8341, and getting my data and programs transferred, ( from a Vista Medion 8822 which proceed to die a BSOD death whilst downloading the updated drivers!! ) I decided number one priority was to make a proper backup, and not rely on the ad-hoc measures I had used before.
Luckily I had made a complete copy of my C drive boot partition.
So, strictly according to technical advice I trusted, I used the Win7 proceedure, ( omiting the option to make a complete drive image ) to back up the Windows selected items to an external Sata hard drive.
It ran with no reported problems.
I then used the separate selection to 'make a complete drive image', to a second USB hard drive. After a pause, with a few progress messages, it failed with the same "comment about an I/O error and that one of the backup files could not be created" ( quote).
It left an empty folder created on the USB drive.

Returning to the previous option I selected both the partial backup and the complete image, but to a different partition on the Sata HDD. This also completed without reported errors and claimed 'Backup completed successfully.'

Later I repeated the first method with the USB HDD, and got the same: Error: 0x8078002A; I/O Device Error: 0x8007045D; ending with: Error Code: 2155348010.

Oddly, it did not give me the option of reporting the failure to Microsoft!

This suggests the problem lies in the way Win7 handles USB devices. I have seen comments from people better informed than I am, that Microsoft still has unresolved issues in that field, despite recent updates supposed to correct them. ( My WLan Adapter is an USB card! )

So make sure you have all the latest Microsoft Updates.

When I Googled: 'Error 0x8078002A', I got three references for Windows 7, and a lot more for Vista, mentioning the same error number, but not all for Backup failures.
So this is not an unknown problem.

Incidently, when I entered that, or 'Backup failures'' , in the search box of this Forum, I got: 'Sorry, No Matches.'!!

Whoops!
I just realised that my failure was the opposite to the one alov1258 reported.

IE. Mine worked to a Sata ( external ) HDD, but not to an USB external drive: His was the reverse.

Sorry if I created a confusion. Only Tryin To Help!

Have an HP desk top with a 1tb hard drive and an external HP3tb back up drive. Was never able to complete a back up with the win 7. Sent an e-mail to Microsoft but they seemed to send me everywhere esle rather than trying to solve the problem. Called tec support at HP which made the problem even worse. They said it had to do with the difference between the main drive and the backup drive with a little processor problem thrown in for good measure. No way could I do a system image with windows 7. My solution to the problem cost $34.00 to buy Acronis True Image Home 2012. All problems were solved. Not mabey the purest solution but it works.

Re: back up issues with Windows7/Seagate 3T external hardrive. had same problem. called Seagate and they sent me a new one (thinking USB adapter was corrupted). received and hook up ready to go complete back up with no I/O device error codes??? not that lucking! Tried three times and no luck. I install Bounced Back internal backup and routed back up to Seagate and it worked beautifully!!!! This lead me to think that it is not the Seagate 3T external hard drive but Windows7... They need to respond their customer's needs. Bad, bad PR.

It is my understanding that the issue with W7 back-up and the 3TB drives has to do with the way huge drives are laid out with 4K sectors rather than 512byte ... this is not supported. Use 2TB drives or smaller, or as EJF did, use a different product.

singe, Seagate actually offers a free version of Acronis for their drives called Seagate Discwizard; see the link HERE.