Using Zip Disks

 

NOTE: A Zip 750MB disk cannot be used in a Zip 250MB drive; the drive will automatically reject a 750MB disk if one is inserted. You can use Zip 250MB and 100MB disks with your Zip 250 drive. See Compatibility with Zip 100MB Disks for additional information.

 

Backing Up with Zip Disks

It's important to always keep current backups of your valuable data— whether the primary data is stored on your hard drive or Zip disks! You can use Zip disks to back up both. See Copying Zip Disks for information on how to make backup copies of your Zip disks.

The easiest way to back up important data files stored on your hard drive is to use your system's standard procedures to copy them to your Zip drive. For example, if your operating system is Windows®, you can use My Computer or Windows Explorer to select files or folders from your hard drive and drag-and-drop them to your Zip drive. One advantage of copying files directly to your Zip drive is that you can access them easily any time you need them without having to run a restore procedure.


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Copying Zip Disks

The simplest way to copy your Zip disks is with the Iomega CopyDisk tool. This tool will duplicate Zip disks using a single Zip drive.

  1. Insert the disk you want to copy into your Zip drive.

  2. Right click the Zip drive icon in My Computer or Windows Explorer.

  3. Select Copy Disk from the drive shortcut menu.

  4. Select the drive and directory you want to copy information to and from.

    NOTE: CopyDisk erases any files on the target disk if the capacity of the source disk is the same as the capacity of the target disk. CopyDisk adds a folder to the target disk if the capacity of the source disk is smaller than the capacity of the target disk.

  5. Click the Start button.

    NOTE: The Iomega CopyDisk tool cannot copy files that are open or in use at the time the copy is made.

    If you do not want to use CopyDisk, duplicate a Zip disk by following these steps:

    1. Copy the contents of your Zip disk to a folder on your computer's hard drive (C:).

    2. Eject your Zip disk.

    3. Insert a new Zip disk.

    4. Copy your files from the hard drive onto the new Zip disk.


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Formatting Zip Disks

Zip disks are available preformatted. You can format your Zip disks to quickly erase all of the files on the disk, change the format type (Mac or PC), or to repair a disk that has developed errors.

CAUTION! Formatting a disk erases all data on the disk. Do not format any disk that contains information you want to keep!

Windows PC Users

  1. Insert the disk you want to format into your Zip drive.

  2. Open My Computer or Windows Explorer and right click the Zip drive icon.

  3. Select Format from the drive shortcut menu.

  4. Select the format type:

    • Use Short Format to quickly erase all data on a disk so you can reuse it.

    • Use Long Format to repair a disk that has developed errors, or to format a disk where you have forgotten the password.

    • Use either option to change the format type from Mac to PC.

  5. Click Start to start formatting the Zip disk.


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Read/Write Protecting Zip Disks

IomegaWare software includes a special read/write protect feature that allows you to:

  • Write protect a disk through software instead of with a mechanical write-protect switch.

  • Write protect a disk and assign a password so that no one can add, edit, or delete files without entering the password first.

  • Read/Write protect a disk so that it cannot be read from, or written to, unless the user enters the password you assign.

Setting Zip Disk Protection under Windows

  1. Insert the disk you want to protect into your Zip drive.

  2. Open My Computer or Windows Explorer and right click the Zip drive icon.

  3. Select Protect from the drive shortcut menu.

  4. Select the protection option you want to use. Click the Help button if you need information on any of the options.


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Using Zip Disks Cross-Platform

Mac OS and Windows PC systems use different disk formats. You can select to use the same disk format type (fat16) on Linux PC systems as is used for Windows PC systems.

If you use a Zip drive on both PC and Mac systems, here are some important points you need to know:

Mac OS Systems

  • You can use PC-formatted disks on a Mac OS system that has File Exchange 3.0 or higher installed. It is recommended that you use PC-formatted Zip disks for file transfer only. File resource information may be lost if files used on a Mac OS system are stored on a PC-formatted disk.

  • You can change a PC-formatted disk to a Mac-formatted disk by using the Iomega Tools application on a Mac OS system to erase the disk.

    CAUTION! Formatting a disk erases all data on the disk. Do not format any disk that contains information you want to keep!

Windows PC Systems

  • PC systems cannot read a Mac-formatted Zip disk unless special software is installed on the system. If you try to use a Mac-formatted Zip disk on a PC that does not have disk exchange software installed, you will see a message indicating that the disk is not formatted.

  • You can change a Mac-formatted disk to a PC-formatted disk by using IomegaWare software on a PC to format the disk.

    CAUTION! Formatting a disk erases all data on the disk. Do not format any disk that contains information you want to keep!

Transferring Files Between PC and Mac

If you need to transfer files between a PC and a Mac, you can use a PC-formatted Zip disk if File Exchange 3.0 or higher is loaded on the Mac. You can use a Mac-formatted Zip disk if the PC has disk exchange software installed.


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