Selecting an archive image of the Windows 10 system. Specifications: hardware selection

Losing valuable files and programs stored on your computer is unpleasant. Especially after you find out that Windows has many ways to save a backup. We will talk about the most popular of them today. Windows 10 keeps file history, allows you to create system backups on external media, and can copy valuable files to the cloud.

File History first appeared in Windows 8, but it is also available in Windows 10. You can configure it through the Settings system application: Update & Security > Backup Service. Click on the "Add disk" button and select an external drive - all files from standard libraries (Music, Video, Photos, Documents, etc.) will be automatically copied to it. If the system disk breaks or something happens to the files on it, files copied to the media can be restored. This feature also allows you to recover deleted files and roll back to their older versions.

In the same "Settings" section, the "Backup and Restore" function is available, which was transferred to Windows 10 from Windows 7. It allows you to configure archiving of the operating system and all files stored on the computer, periodically copying them to external media or to a remote server on the network . The backup will require as much space as Windows and all your files take up. The backup is made quietly in the background, and you can restore the last saved point at any time, even after reinstalling the operating system.

OneDrive is built into Windows 10 and is used to store operating system settings, as well as apps and games installed through the Windows Store. In addition, it allows you to save valuable files to the cloud. Similarly, you can use other cloud services like Dropxbox or Google Drive to archive files, but they don't store Windows settings.

You can periodically create an image or disk to restore the system. With this function, you can create an ISO image or burn discs that will allow you to roll back to a point when the operating system was working fine. Such a backup will come in handy if Windows at some point becomes capricious and refuses to boot. The image or disks will store the operating system, its settings, applications, and some files. The more files you have, the larger the backup will be.

Best way

The easiest and most reliable way to back up and restore data is to create a cloud storage of about the same size as a hard drive and set up automatic copying of all necessary files and programs to this cloud. In case of any failure, you will be able to restore this data, in addition, you will have a cloud recycle bin, with which you can return mistakenly deleted files. Restoring Windows settings and Modern applications can be trusted with the operating system - it does a great job of doing this after reinstalling or resetting to factory settings.

Read how to use the built-in tools and functions in Windows to create and restore a backup copy of files and folders, a disk or a system. Windows 10 is equipped with many different backup tools. In addition to bringing back the old System Restore tool (Windows Backup), which was removed from Windows 8.1, Microsoft also has a File History tool. But this is just the tip of the iceberg.

The latest version of Windows also has the ability to back up a system image (System Image Backup feature), reset your computer to default settings, save files online, and create recovery discs that you can use in case of an emergency.

File History

File History, which was introduced in Windows 8, hasn't gone away in Windows 10 either. It's still the recommended recovery method. That's why File History is integrated into both the new Settings app and the old Control Panel. While the recovery and backup tools in Windows 7 are present only in the Control Panel. This feature is more limited and only backs up files in your user account's library. If you need to recover documents that were stored in other folders, then you will need to create these folders in Explorer and add them to libraries or create new libraries.

After this is done, Windows will be able to automatically back up files. This feature can be used to recover all files ever lost, recover a single file, or roll back a file to an older version.

System backup and restore

This tool will help you restore any Windows 7 backup to your Windows 10. But it can also be used to restore a Windows 10 computer. Unlike File History, Windows Backup makes it much easier to back up almost everything on your hard drive.

This tool can be found in the Control Panel under Recovery. However, backup does not provide 100% protection against data loss.

OneDrive

In the traditional sense, OneDrive is not a true recovery tool, but for now it is fully integrated into Windows. Files saved to OneDrive will be saved to your OneDrive user account, and you can use these files from any of your other devices.

Even if you reinstall Windows or use Windows on a different device, you just need to sign in to your Microsoft account and all your files that were previously saved to OneDrive will be available to you.

Instead of relying on a System Image Backup, most people prefer to use the Reset PC feature to restore the system to factory settings. It also makes it possible to forget about such a phenomenon as reinstalling Windows using a boot disk or USB device - just set the task of Windows to restore the computer to its original state, and it returns to the "factory" settings.

Windows 8 had two features: Refresh your PC and Reset your PC. Windows 10 only has the Reset this PC option.

Open the Settings app, select Update & Security, then select Recovery and click Get Started, under the Reset this PC section.

And in this case, the choice of action must be approached with full responsibility, because if you select the Delete everything function, then along with your programs and settings, user accounts and, most importantly, files will also be deleted.

Of course, this only applies to the drive where Windows is installed (usually drive C). But on drive C there are files from the desktop, as well as folders Documents, Downloads, Pictures, Videos, Music, etc.

It will no longer be possible to return files deleted in this way using standard Windows tools. Although it is quite possible with the help of specialized programs for data recovery.

One such program is Hetman Partition Recovery, a universal tool used by data recovery specialists. It analyzes the hard drive for file signatures and parts of the file system. Such pieces will be detected and added to the list of volumes available for recovery.

First and foremost, turn off your computer and remove the drive. You don't need to run Windows on the same drive that you want to recover files from. This disk must be connected to another computer as an additional one and scanned using the program.

Microsoft removed the system image backup feature in the initial versions of Windows 8.1, but due to numerous requests from users, this feature was returned. It is also present in Windows 10.

It can be found in the Backup and Restore panel (Windows 7). Simply click "Create System Image" on the left side of the window, or open the File History panel and select "System Image".

Unlike other solutions, this feature allows you to create a complete image of your current Windows system, including the operating system, installed programs, settings, and user files. This backup can be saved to an external hard drive, multiple DVDs, or a network share. And if you ever need to restore your computer, you can do it by deploying a previously saved backup.

In reality, most people do not use this feature. You can also restore the operating system to its original state using the Reset your computer and restore individual files feature by manually reinstalling all programs. In this case, the backups will be much smaller in size and you can set them up to be created automatically on a regular basis.

But such a function exists and is popular. And if you need to create a system image, then there is no need to use third-party applications.

Windows 10 special boot options work the same way as they do in Windows 8. To access them, open the Settings app, select Update and security, then Recovery, and in the Special boot options submenu, click Restart now. You can also use this function by pressing "Restart" while holding the Shift key in the Start menu.

You can create a recovery USB drive that will give you access to special boot options even if your Windows 10 installation is completely corrupted and you don't have access to this menu.

To create it, open the Control Panel and select "Recovery". Click on the "Restore" icon and you will see a list of recovery tools.

To create a USB recovery drive, click Create Recovery Drive. To access this tool directly, you can open the Start menu, type RecoveryDrive.exe and press Enter.

Windows 10 no longer has a separate recovery partition, therefore this tool will no longer allow you to remove the recovery partition from your computer. It is no longer needed, by default we use free disk space.

Windows 10 includes other troubleshooting features that were provided in previous versions of Windows. If your computer is unstable, you can use System Restore to return it to a healthy state. For those users who have not used the standard features of Windows, it will be useful

A System Image can be used to restore a PC in the event of a failed hard drive or computer.

System Image is not a new term for many of you. This is a backup of your PC in a specific state that contains all your data. Just as we create a system restore point by saving system data, installed programs, and user files, a System Image works on the same principle. Both recovery options can be used for backup purposes and to restore Windows 10 to some earlier point when your system was running smoothly.

This is indispensable if your system, hard drive fails or you get any other hardware failure and you need to get your computer back up and running quickly. The created system image will include the root directory of the system drive on which Windows is installed, as well as other necessary information, such as the System Reserved Partition, which, when restored, will be required for the correct operation of your PC.

You can create a system image in Windows 10 using the user interface (UI) or the command line, both methods are described below.

How to create a system image in Windows 10

Method 1 - Using UI / Control Panel

1. Click on the button " Start" and type on the keyboard "Control Panel".

4. This will launch the Image Creation Wizard. In the window shown below, select where the system image archive will be stored. When you select the hard drive volume where Windows is installed, you will receive a warning message. If you select another drive, such as a USB drive or any other portable hard drive, the warning will disappear. When choosing a backup location, please note that the previously created image will be overwritten by the new one. After you have made your choice of location, click the button "Further".

5. Then review the system image backup options and approximate size and click the button Archive .

6. After a few minutes, Windows 10 will create a system image and notify you:

Method 2 - Using Command Prompt

1. Open command line on behalf of the Administrator.

2. In the command prompt window, type the following command and press Enter:

wbadmin start backup -backuptarget:D: -include:C: -quiet -allCritical

* Replace C: your system drive and drive D : the letter of the backup drive where you want to save the image.

After a few moments, the system image will be created. You can use the created system image during system crashes and failures to restore it.

In this article, we will look at how to back up Windows 10 of the entire operating system at the moment with all programs installed. If suddenly the computer stopped working normally and you decided to reinstall the OS, the system will provide the opportunity to reset the settings to their original state.

A system reset is essentially a rollback to the state that was immediately after installing Windows 10. If we have a backup copy of Windows 10 with all the programs installed, then we literally get a working computer in a few minutes, and we will not need to install the programs again.

In order to back up Windows 10, go to Control Panel >> Update and Security>> Backup Service>> Backup and Restore (Windows 7)

In the window that opens, on the left side, click "Create a system image"

Next, at this stage, you need to choose a place where we will store a copy of the system image. By default, the system itself suggested the desired partition for storage. But other options are also available for saving a backup. As we can see, in addition to saving information on the hard drive, it is possible to save to a DVD drive and to a network folder, if available.

Wait until the end of the process, archiving will last 15-20 minutes. The Windows 10 backup will be saved to "Local Disk D" named WindowsImageBackup. Now we have the opportunity to restore the entire Windows 10 system to a working state of the computer.

As you can see, we didn’t do anything complicated, so after installing Windows, after installing all the drivers, all the necessary programs, be sure to create a backup copy of Windows 10 so that in case of problems you can quickly roll back the system.

Windows 10 backup with Aomei Backupper Standard

Perhaps the easiest way to backup Windows 10 is to use a special free program to create a backup or restore the AOMEI Backupper Standard system.

After you launch the program, go to the "Backup" tab. Here are 4 options for backup:

• System backup
• Backing up hard drives to an image file;
• Backup partitions and dynamic volumes to an image file;
• Backup files and folders to an image file.

As you already understood, we need to select the first option "System backup". Next, specify a name for the backup and specify where the copy of the Windows 10 system will be saved. The program itself can choose a suitable location, but you can also set it yourself by specifying the path to save in "Step 2". It can be a folder, drive, or network drive. Click "Start".

The AOMEI Backupper Standart program can be downloaded from the official website for free:

Many PC users mistakenly overlook the importance of backing up a Windows image. they think that nothing terrible will happen to their operating system and it will work stably and reliably for a long time to come. But then rainy day X comes and the system, due to certain reasons (virus attack, etc.), stopped responding to commands or did not load at all.

No matter what is done, nothing helps and all that remains is reinstalling the OS, followed by the tedious process of searching and installing, configuring the old programs. And everything could be much easier with a backup copy. It would take a few minutes to restore full functionality and all applications would be in place.

In the article, we will consider a simple instruction on how to backup Windows 10 with a built-in, regular tool. A backup copy means a complete image of the system with all programs and settings installed at the time the copy was created. Those. after a potential failure and restoration of the system from the image, the user receives the state of the operating system at the time the copy was created.

How to back up Windows 10 using a regular backup tool

To get to the desired function, right-click on the Start menu, then go to the following path Control Panel - System and Security - Backup and Restore. There is another alternative path Start - Settings - Update and Security - Backup Service - Go to the "Backup and Restore" section.

In the new window, click on the "Creating a system image" tab.

Then you should choose the place where the system image will be stored. In my case, an external HDD is selected.

In the next window, specify which disks will be included in the backup. System drive C will be backed up by default.

As you can see, the required space for saving this archive is quite large and it will take some time to create the image.

Upon completion of the procedure, you will be prompted to create a system recovery disc.

If there is no free disk at hand, then this offer should be rejected.

How to start Windows 10 recovery

There are several ways to restore a system from a backup image: from the recovery environment of a working operating system and using a boot device (if the system does not boot).

If you have problems with Windows 10, but this does not affect its ability to boot, you can enter the recovery environment through the Settings application. You should sequentially go through the following path Start - Settings - Update and Security - Recovery. In the "Special boot options" section, click on "Restart now".

If Windows 10 does not boot, then you can get into the recovery environment from the installation media, for example, from bootable flash drive. After opening the recovery partition, we are looking for a window with additional parameters, and then we restore the system using the image.