I have a notsocheap software here sitting on a really cheap usb stick and I don't really trust this stick especially because it's in every days use an many changing machines. The software on the stick is in two versions for OS X and for Win, the stick is formated in FAt32. The software itself is "portable" and runs directly from the stick or from anywhere but uses the stick as a kind of dongle; maybe the serial number or the vendor is checked, I have no clue.
Is it possible to make a kind of "usb stick vm" where everything from the original hardware is kept so there is no need to get the cheapo stick around all day? This would be great!
72 Answers
It is easy enough to copy a disk sector-by-sector.
On Linux you can use the dd command, and on Windows a utility such asAOMEI Backupper Freeware.
If by "serial number" you mean the disk label, this is easy to set. In Windows you would use Explorer, right-click the disk, select Properties, and set the label in the General tab.
However, the vendor of the software might have used any number of protection schemes which a sector-by-sector copy will not duplicate correctly. If the key employs such a scheme then the above will not work.
I would make a backup of the USB stick as an ISO file. This is possible using applications such as ImgBurn. Convert USB to ISOSaid ISO file can then be loaded virtually using windows explorer, or loaded on another USB flash drive.
I highly doubt the application uses the USB serial number. This is impractical on a large scale usually. I'd create an ISO, burn it to another USB stick and check the program for functionality.
