Restoring from system image


  1. SteveH123
    Posts : 4
    Windows 10
       New #1

    Restoring from system image


    Hi there,

    My hard disk(1Tb capacity) recently died and nothing was recoverable. It was replaced by a SSD (500 Gb) capacity. There was about 800Gb available on the old drive so space wasn't a problem. The old drive had a C: and D: partition.


    I supplied the technicians with a system image backup (Windows 10) on a USB drive which they could not recover onto the SSD.

    I then bought a 1Tb USB external hard drive and would like to try restoring the system image onto that external drive so I can boot up from it with my old system and data , as well as from the SSD with the new Windows installation.

    Is it possible to do this (I would prefer not using commercial software but will do it if there are no Windows options).

    Any advice appreciated.

    thanks,

    SteveH123
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

  3. dalchina
    Posts : 42,984
    Win 10 Pro (22H2) (2nd PC is 22H2)
       New #2

    Hi, did you follow this (or at least the process described) in creating your system image?
    Create System Image in Windows 10

    You mention a D: partition.

    A system image is an exact copy of all system disks which can be used to restore your PC to the state it was in at the time the image was made. By default, a system image only includes the drives that Windows requires to run, including Windows 10 itself, your system settings, programs, and files. You may also include any other drive in the image if you wish.
    Did you include D: when you created ths image?

    Please note that Windows 7 (Backup and Restore) is retained for legacy only, and MS recommends people use 3rd party solutions. Time and again, Macrium Reflect is recommended here, although there are others of course.
      My Computers
    Quote Quote

  4. SteveH123
    Posts : 4
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       New #3

    Hello, yes I included the D: drive as well, would this cause a problem ?
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

  6. dalchina
    Posts : 42,984
    Win 10 Pro (22H2) (2nd PC is 22H2)
       New #4

    To use your system image to restore your PC, open up the new Windows 10 Settings menu and go to Update & recovery. Under Recovery, find the Advanced startup section, and click Restart now. When your PC restarts, go to Troubleshoot, Advanced Options, and then choose System image recovery.
    Assuming that fits with 1903 (I've not checked) how far do you get?
    I'd also expect you should be restoring to an internal disk... be careful as to what happens. I've not used it.

    There isn't a tutorial for restoring an image as far as I can see... few people use this as there are far better options.

    Your ambition of booting from an external disk may be stretching things. Win 10 can be installed to an external disk, but I have never tried what you're attempting.

    I was just checking you had included D:

    Hopefully someone who has used Win 10's system imaging will be along to advise.
      My Computers
    Quote Quote

  7. SteveH123
    Posts : 4
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       New #5

    I did the above and it prompts me to create a recovery disk first. My fear is that is sees the C: drive and wants to recover to that and won't prompt to select the drive the system goes on to.

    What are the better backup options you mention ?
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

  8. dalchina
    Posts : 42,984
    Win 10 Pro (22H2) (2nd PC is 22H2)
       New #6

    Create Recovery Drive in Windows 10

    That's what's on a recovery drive.

    What are the better backup options you mention ?
    Post #2 - italics

    This explanation for recovering a system image to a new drive may help:
    YouTube
      My Computers
    Quote Quote

  9. CraigS26
    Posts : 23
    Win 10 22H2
       New #7

    Confluence Mobile - Macrium Reflect Knowledgebase

    The above from the Macrium Imaging Software I use for routine backups talks of Updated or New Drivers needed WHEN NEW HARDWARE is involved. I'm an amateur but maybe the info in this link will infer to you or your techs what different steps are required. My C:\ Drives have always had a Windows partition and Separate Partitions for (requd) Boot Mgr data , Day-1 Recovery, etc., and Sometimes people leave off the Boot Mgr Partition when Imaging & moving to New Hardware (Drives), so Win never loads. C: for me is an SDD with 4-Partitions and D:\ is a separate HDD for data storage. Not sure what your D: is.......

    As stated you Restore the Image to the New SDD and THEN Run Redeploy to Search/Install required Drivers. That's where it gets sticky for my expertise but it's done all the time. Hope this Helps.
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

  10. SteveH123
    Posts : 4
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       New #8

    I found this article very helpful. It doesn't do what I said I wanted in the original post, but it gets a lot of my data back.

    How to access a system image and restore individual files using Windows 10's native VHD support - TechRepublic

    So thanks to those who replied, I don't think I need any more advice on this one.
      My Computer
    Quote Quote

 

  Related Discussions
Let's say i imaged my laptop using a disk imaging solution and 3 months later found the need to restore the same during which time i have made plenty of changes to the files in my One drive local folder and to one drive files uploaded to the cloud....
A year ago, I bought a new PC and there was pre-installed on the HDD Windows 10 1709. Then I added from within Windows 10 the Safe Mode option to the boot menu. So I could see 2 options in the boot menu -- 1 for the routine boot and 1 for the Safe...
System Image not Restoring.
in Backup and Restore

Hi guys, so i reset my Toshiba laptop to its original factory settings and it came with windows 10 home. Then i had to clean install the windows on my laptop again because i was having some trouble with the touchpad drivers, so i wiped C. drive...
I try to keep my system as clean as possible by restoring when problems occur that could potentially corrupt files. My question is: how do you determine when it is worth restoring a system image vs. other options that don’t require a restore? What...
Hi All Lately been having minor system issues, know if I do restore my image, it's basically doing a clean install correct? only problem last time I restored the image, desktop wouldn't activate, as it somehow pickup my Windows 8.1 key in bios,...
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 10 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 10" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

 © Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:43.
Find Us




Windows 10 Forums