Recovery Image For Windows

In this article I will discuss Windows recovery images (aka system images) for your desktop or laptop computer. If you take the time to generate one then in the event of a serious problem any experienced computer technician should be able to recovery your computer using the image subject to obvious limiting factors.

So that you fully understand what can and cannot be done with the recovery image I will explain further.

What A Recovery Image Contains:

The recovery image contains all of your data, programs, and the operating system as of the date it was created. Thus if you created your system/recovery image today and next week decided you wanted to restore it then the entire computer image would be rolled back to today. Any new programs installed, any files you changed, deleted or added locally since the backup was created would be lost. Data stored on the cloud would not be affected. However! If a competent computer technician did the job they would ensure that prior to using the image they secured the files and they would not be lost.

Recovery images are not the solution to backing up your data as you need a different process to achieve this.

Windows only allows one recovery image to be stored on a given backup device. (some fancy foot work can bypass this limitation but you need to be familiar with the process to do so)

What A Recovery Image Cannot Fix.

A recovery image cannot repair a hardware problem. Thus a faulty hard drive, faulty memory or faults with the motherboard will NOT be repaired by using your recovery image. Obviously this means if your computer suddenly stops working you should consult a computer technician and NOT rush into using the recovery image.

There is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that if you have created the image you are in a much better position than if you have not.

Caution: There is no way back once you recover your computer with the recovery image so exercise caution on using it.

What Hardware is Needed

A recovery image requires an external hard drive (it may be possible to use a large memory stick but I’ve never tried it) and a working DVD drive. The DVD drive is an optional part of the process and a computer technician will have their own bootable recovery media. 

Creating The Image

The following Youtube links provide instructional videos on how to create a recovery image for windows 7, Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 10.

Windows 7 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7Uu0eFqauM

windows 8/8.1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULzQClXFcB4

windows 10 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtPrM3-k0jQ

Safeguard Your Data –Part 3

If you missed part 1 & 2 of this article you will find them on this Blog.

Photos

The loss of photos can be heartbreaking so taking some time to ensure they are backed up securely is a good investment of your time. The problems I see most often with customers are: Lack of a clear understanding of Cloud backup options and/or lack of understanding on how to effectively backup to either the Cloud or a local device. The other issue of course is finding the time in busy schedules.

As we can all be accused of being a bit snap happy it is not unusual to accumulate a large amount of photos consuming a good whack of space. 

YouTube contains a myriad of HOW TO tutorials on how to backup data from a variety of devices.

This YouTube tutorial  https://youtu.be/Iw-EvM6gLBA explaining how to backup your windows 10 computer to a local device was easy to understand and follow.

If you just want to backup your photos, and providing your photos don’t take up more than 64 gigabytes, you can use a usb memory stick. After 64 gigabyte usb memory stick prices start to creep nearer the cost of a 1 Terabyte usb hard drive. If you want to backup your entire computer then an external usb drive is the recommended option. 

There are a myriad of free and buyable backup apps that allow you to store multiple copies of you data on different devices or locations. At the bottom of this article I’ve listed prices for backup devices from a few Irish sources.

The Two Copy Rule

 2019 marks my 38^th year in technology. During those years I’ve seen countless examples where technicians including myself fell victim to the three monkeys of disaster (hubris, arrogance, and assumption). It’s nothing new and as we all know part of the human condition. In 2019 I must unfortunately report the three monkeys continue to prosper. Facebook has just admitted to storing hundreds of millions of passwords in plain text but has assured us that they were not accessible by anyone outside of Facebook except for some 2,000 engineers and developers. As of January 2018 facebook employed some 35,587 people.  If you wish to defend yourself from becoming a victim always maintain at least two independent copies of your valuable data on two independent devices AND ensure these devices are securely stored. Take ownership of backing up your data and hopefully you will never need to use it.

Backup Device Prices

Usb Memory Sticks

Argos -SanDisk Ultra Fit 130MB/s USB 3.1 Flash Drive - 64GB  -  €18.99

Harvey Norman Verbatim USB 2.0 Store N Go Slider 64GB Black  €19.95 

MemoryC Online retailer with offices in Celbridge Co Kildare

64GB Kingston DataTraveler USB3.1 Flash Drive €14.75 plus shipping

Usb Hard Drives

Argos Maxtor M3 1TB External Portable Hard Drive €59.99

Harvey Norman ADATA HV300 Hard Drive | 1TB | Black € 59.90

MemoryC 1TB AData HV620S USB3.1 Portable Hard Drive Black €58.43 plus shipping.