True image is the best for non tech heads, intel use there migration tool and package with all retails ssd's its that good.
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing...mage/#overview I use to backup my system's after a fresh install and just restore the image when i broke xp installs. Ghost wasn't bad in the day though i hate nortans bloatware these days.
For drive issues smart covers that
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.M.A.R.T. , though if your got real important data run a mirror raid and never fear losing data from a dieing drive again. AVG for your virus if you want something free, though i tend to use trend and its being one of the nicest iv'e used so far in terms of gui, looks, function and use of hardware resources alround, though there are better ones which are lighter weight, they just have a bland gui and arn't so user friendly.