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Windows 7 System Repair VS System Image disks
- Thread starter JerryC
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Solution
Check these links for the Answers
How to Create a System Image in Windows 7
How to Create a System Image in Windows 7 | eHow.com
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How to Create a System Image in Windows 7
How to Create a System Image in Windows 7 | eHow.com
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Wots the difference
There is a number of similar terms which are often confused but which actually mean very different things:
System Repair typically involves replacing a limited number of files or parameters which are essential to system startup or operation and which have become damaged or deleted. System repair will have no effect on user data and is only of use in specific circumstances to deal with specific issues.
System Restore involves reversing the effect of some update which has taken place installing a Microsoft update, hardware driver installation or update etc. It restores the system to the state it was in before the update but has no effect on user data files.
System recovery involves overwriting the entire system drive wih a system image created by the computer manufacturer. It will reset everything back to "factory settings" leaving the system disk exactly as it was when first purchased. All user installed programs on the system drive, any user data stored there, any updates which have been installed and all user configuration will be overwritten.
System Imaging is something which can be done by the user. It involves using a commercial package such as Acronis True Image to create an image of the system drive to be stored on another hard drive or on optical storage. These images can be used in the same way as the manufacturer's system recovery disks with the big difference that instead of taking the system drive back to factory settings they recover it back to the state (including user data files and applications) which were on the drive at the time the image was created.
There is a number of similar terms which are often confused but which actually mean very different things:
System Repair typically involves replacing a limited number of files or parameters which are essential to system startup or operation and which have become damaged or deleted. System repair will have no effect on user data and is only of use in specific circumstances to deal with specific issues.
System Restore involves reversing the effect of some update which has taken place installing a Microsoft update, hardware driver installation or update etc. It restores the system to the state it was in before the update but has no effect on user data files.
System recovery involves overwriting the entire system drive wih a system image created by the computer manufacturer. It will reset everything back to "factory settings" leaving the system disk exactly as it was when first purchased. All user installed programs on the system drive, any user data stored there, any updates which have been installed and all user configuration will be overwritten.
System Imaging is something which can be done by the user. It involves using a commercial package such as Acronis True Image to create an image of the system drive to be stored on another hard drive or on optical storage. These images can be used in the same way as the manufacturer's system recovery disks with the big difference that instead of taking the system drive back to factory settings they recover it back to the state (including user data files and applications) which were on the drive at the time the image was created.
OldTimer
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WOW! That's the best explanation I've ever heard. (Thank YOu! )
Why has no-one posted here in two months? Thank You's don't cost a thing.
I don't know how many times I've wanted to use the System Restore function on a customers computer to go back a few days and restore the registry, to eliminate a problem, only to find that some #$^@& has turned System Restore OFF. What ever were they thinking?
That feature in ME didn't work worth a darn, but in XP it did work and saved my bacon more times than I can even recount.
I value a fresh system restore point so much that I wrote a script to force a system restore point and I put the script in my startup folder, just to make darn sure that I get at least one new restore point every time I reboot my PC. When working on a customer's PC, I made certain that the System Restore feature is turned ON and working.
Because I download so many programs that have the opportunity to trash my PC (maybe not on purpose, but by accident) I make a complete Backup Image File of my C drive at least once a week and store it on a second HD or burn it to DVD.
I really get more complicated than that, but that's enough for one post.
Cheers!
Why has no-one posted here in two months? Thank You's don't cost a thing.
I don't know how many times I've wanted to use the System Restore function on a customers computer to go back a few days and restore the registry, to eliminate a problem, only to find that some #$^@& has turned System Restore OFF. What ever were they thinking?
That feature in ME didn't work worth a darn, but in XP it did work and saved my bacon more times than I can even recount.
I value a fresh system restore point so much that I wrote a script to force a system restore point and I put the script in my startup folder, just to make darn sure that I get at least one new restore point every time I reboot my PC. When working on a customer's PC, I made certain that the System Restore feature is turned ON and working.
Because I download so many programs that have the opportunity to trash my PC (maybe not on purpose, but by accident) I make a complete Backup Image File of my C drive at least once a week and store it on a second HD or burn it to DVD.
I really get more complicated than that, but that's enough for one post.
Cheers!
- Joined
- May 16, 2010
- Messages
- 5,703
OldTimer
Banned
- Joined
- Jul 19, 2010
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- 805
I can't believe all the added software that people buy, to just keep their documents and pictures backed up.
First of all, you need a safe place to put things, like backups. A second HD or external HD is a great place.
Your main drive, even a second partition, is NOT SAFE. When that drive crashes (not even IF, but WHEN) you loose everything.
I made a folder on my second HD called "My Documents" (sound familiar?) then I copied my entire My Documents folder
and all its sub-folders to my second drive using Windows Explorer. Then I wrote a simple little batch file that copies all files and folders that have been updated or newly created since the last backup. I use the old reliable DOS command XCOPY to do the grunt work. I put a shortcut to this batch file on my desktop and I can run it any time I want to, to update my backup.
It takes only a few seconds, to back up any new files or update files that may have been changed.
Life gets so much simpler, when you know and use DOS.
Just a thought......
First of all, you need a safe place to put things, like backups. A second HD or external HD is a great place.
Your main drive, even a second partition, is NOT SAFE. When that drive crashes (not even IF, but WHEN) you loose everything.
I made a folder on my second HD called "My Documents" (sound familiar?) then I copied my entire My Documents folder
and all its sub-folders to my second drive using Windows Explorer. Then I wrote a simple little batch file that copies all files and folders that have been updated or newly created since the last backup. I use the old reliable DOS command XCOPY to do the grunt work. I put a shortcut to this batch file on my desktop and I can run it any time I want to, to update my backup.
It takes only a few seconds, to back up any new files or update files that may have been changed.
Life gets so much simpler, when you know and use DOS.
Just a thought......
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- May 25, 2009
- Messages
- 6,637
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