Logo
programming4us
programming4us
programming4us
programming4us
Home
programming4us
XP
programming4us
Windows Vista
programming4us
Windows 7
programming4us
Windows Azure
programming4us
Windows Server
programming4us
Windows Phone
 
programming4us
Windows 7

File and PC Backup (part 4) - Restoring the Entire PC & Recovering Old Versions of Data Files

- How To Install Windows Server 2012 On VirtualBox
- How To Bypass Torrent Connection Blocking By Your ISP
- How To Install Actual Facebook App On Kindle Fire
9/28/2011 5:43:20 PM

3.5. Restoring the Entire PC

If a catastrophic hardware or software failure has rendered your computer untenable, and you simply want to return to a known good system backup, you can use one of the system images you've previously created. Note, however, that you typically need to boot your PC into the Windows Recovery Environment to make this happen, either using the boot files on your PC or using the system repair disc that you previously created. Note, too, that restoring your PC in this fashion will wipe out all of the data and settings changes you've made since the last system image, so this should not be undertaken lightly.

Follow these steps to restore your entire PC using a system image:

  1. Reboot the computer.

  2. If you are using a system repair disc, boot the PC with that. Otherwise, after your PC has finished its BIOS sequence, hold down the F8 key. Choose Repair Your Computer from the Advanced Boot Options screen (see Figure 20) and tap Enter.

  3. After the Loading files screen, choose the correct language and keyboard input method and then click Next.

  4. If you booted from the hard drive, you will need to choose System Image Recovery from the System Recovery Options window that appears. Otherwise, System Recovery will examine the hard drives attached to your PC and look for Windows installs. When it's done, it will list the install(s) it found and give you the opportunity to use Windows 7's built-in recovery tools to fix problems with Windows or you can restore your PC to an earlier time using a system image. Choose that latter option and click Next.

    Figure 20. Choose the top option to restore your entire PC.
  5. The Re-image your computer wizard begins, as shown in Figure 21. In the first phase of this wizard, you can choose the latest image available (the default) or you can select a different system image. When you've chosen, click Next.

    Figure 21. This wizard will step you through the process of restoring your PC with a system image.
  6. In this step, you can choose to format the PC's hard drive and repartition disks (as Windows 7 Setup would do) to match the layout of the system image. Generally speaking, you should enable this option. Click Next to continue.

  7. In the final phase of the wizard, you can verify your selections and click Finish to continue. Note that restoring an entire PC from a system image can be a time-consuming process.



4. Recovering Old Versions of Data Files

One of the most useful new features for information workers in Windows Server 2003 was Volume Shadow Copy, which silently and automatically created tiny backups, called snapshots, of data files stored on the server every time a user made any changes. In a managed environment like those based on Windows Server, Volume Shadow Copy is a wonderful feature, because users who save documents on the server can easily recover older document versions without having to summon an administrator to restore an old backup from a tape or a hard drive.

With Windows 7, Microsoft has added Volume Shadow Copy to its client operating system as well, renaming it Previous Versions. This means that any Windows 7 user can take advantage of this amazing bit of functionality and recover seemingly lost versions of files they have mistakenly edited. No server operating system is required.

The trade-off, of course, is disk space. Because Windows must store multiple copies of your data files, Previous Versions does eat up a bit of disk space; but because Previous Versions saves only the parts of files that have changed, or what Microsoft calls the delta changes, the disk space loss is not as bad as it would be otherwise. In fact, you probably won't even notice it's happening.

Unlike with Windows Server, you can't really manage how much disk space Volume Shadow Copy uses, or even the drives on which it is enabled. Instead, Microsoft enables the service across all drives, folders, and data files on a Windows 7 PC.

NOTE

Previous Versions is yet another Windows 7 reliability feature that requires certain Windows 7 product editions. Previous Versions is available on Windows 7 Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions only; users with Windows 7 Home Basic and Home Premium need not apply.

To access this feature, find a document that you have changed a lot recently, right-click it, and choose Properties. Then, navigate to the Previous Versions tab. As shown in Figure 22, Windows maintains a number of previous versions, each of which you can restore if needed.

Figure 22. Previous Versions makes it possible to resurrect old versions of data files.

To restore an older version of a file, select the file version you want and click the Restore button. As with any other file copy operation, you are prompted to replace the existing file, keep the existing file, or keep the existing file and rename the newly recovered version.

NOTE

The number of previous versions shown in this dialog depends on a number of factors, including how long your system has been up and running and how many times the document has been edited. In some cases, you may see no previous versions. If so, ensure that the System Restore service is running. We'll show you how in the very next section.

NOTE

What happens when you delete a file or folder, either accidentally or otherwise? Can you use Previous Versions to restore that item? Actually, you can. Here's how: using Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder that contained the deleted item, right-click the containing folder, and choose Restore previous versions. (This method does not work with Libraries.) Then, find a previous version of the containing folder; copy it from the Previous Versions tab of the Properties window for that folder to your desktop or some other location. Then, navigate into the folder structure on the desktop (or wherever) and find the folder or file you are looking for.

Other -----------------
- File and PC Backup (part 2) - Managing Backups & Restoring Files
- Using the Sensor and Location Platform : Obtaining specific sensor information (part 2) - Configuring Geosense for Windows Security & Viewing Location Sensor Activity
- Using the Sensor and Location Platform : Obtaining specific sensor information (part 1)
- Using the Sensor and Location Platform : Obtaining a list of sensors
- Using the Sensor and Location Platform : Defining the sensor and location devices
- Using Parallel Programming in Windows 7 : Writing an application that relies on parallel processing
- Designing a Lite-Touch Deployment (part 3) - Customizing Target Deployments
- Designing a Lite-Touch Deployment (part 2) - Deploying Images to Target Computers
- Designing a Lite-Touch Deployment (part 1) - Understanding Lite-Touch Deployment Requirements
- Designing a Windows 7 Client Deployment Strategy : Choosing a Deployment Method (part 2) - Evaluating the Infrastructure & Scaling the Client Deployment Process
 
 
Top 10
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Adding Structure to Your Diagrams - Finding containers and lists in Visio (part 2) - Wireframes,Legends
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Adding Structure to Your Diagrams - Finding containers and lists in Visio (part 1) - Swimlanes
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Adding Structure to Your Diagrams - Formatting and sizing lists
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Adding Structure to Your Diagrams - Adding shapes to lists
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Adding Structure to Your Diagrams - Sizing containers
- Microsoft Access 2010 : Control Properties and Why to Use Them (part 3) - The Other Properties of a Control
- Microsoft Access 2010 : Control Properties and Why to Use Them (part 2) - The Data Properties of a Control
- Microsoft Access 2010 : Control Properties and Why to Use Them (part 1) - The Format Properties of a Control
- Microsoft Access 2010 : Form Properties and Why Should You Use Them - Working with the Properties Window
- Microsoft Visio 2013 : Using the Organization Chart Wizard with new data
- First look: Apple Watch

- 3 Tips for Maintaining Your Cell Phone Battery (part 1)

- 3 Tips for Maintaining Your Cell Phone Battery (part 2)
programming4us programming4us
Popular tags
Microsoft Access Microsoft Excel Microsoft OneNote Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Project Microsoft Visio Microsoft Word Active Directory Biztalk Exchange Server Microsoft LynC Server Microsoft Dynamic Sharepoint Sql Server Windows Server 2008 Windows Server 2012 Windows 7 Windows 8 windows Phone 7 windows Phone 8
programming4us programming4us
 
programming4us
Natural Miscarriage
programming4us
Windows Vista
programming4us
Windows 7
programming4us
Windows Azure
programming4us
Windows Server
programming4us
Game Trailer