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#1
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
I've messed up and have to resort to a reformat and fresh install as a last
resort. My question is this: What's the best and most convenient way (i.e, without having to buy other software or harware) to restore the XP system when things go wrong? Here's some background to my question: In Windows 98, I can do a SCANREG from the command prompt whenever I mess up and it's always fixed the problem. But Windows XP doesn't have that feature. Sure it's got Last Known Good but if that doesn't work, you cannot go back to an even earlier day like Win 98 (which saves the last 5 days). Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power (which I've had to do on numerous occasions). I've tried going into Regedit and exporting the system but when I tried importing it in safe mode, it didn't work (something was in use so it couldn't copy all the files - again, I've done this on Win98 in safe mode and it has worked). As for Backup, there was no Backup tab under System tools (I was told XP Home doesn't install it automatically) so I insalled it from the CD. But when I tried backing up my C drive it didn't work. Can I just copy my entire C drive to another folder, say to my E: drive? I have Windows on my C drive and a few essential programs, everything else (including the swap file and other programs) are on other drives. And how do I restore the C drive from a command prompt? I don't want to reformat again, so some good info on this backup/restore issue will help. Thanks. |
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#2
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
"RJ" wrote I've messed up and have to resort to a reformat and fresh install as a last resort. My question is this: What's the best and most convenient way (i.e, without having to buy other software or harware) to restore the XP system when things go wrong? System Restore should be your first choice. All About System Restore in WinXP http://bertk.mvps.org/index.html The next would be a repair install. How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install by Michael Stevens MS-MVP: http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm The last resort would be a clean install, or system recovery. XP Clean Install by Michael Stevens MS-MVP: http://michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html Another option is to use imaging software to backup the entire partition. Acronis True Image is a good choice. http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage Here's some background to my question: In Windows 98, I can do a SCANREG from the command prompt whenever I mess up and it's always fixed the problem. But Windows XP doesn't have that feature. Sure it's got Last Known Good but if that doesn't work, you cannot go back to an even earlier day like Win 98 (which saves the last 5 days). Choosing the Last Known Good Configuration startup option provides a way to recover from problems such as a newly added driver that may be incorrect for your hardware. It does not solve problems caused by corrupted or missing drivers or files. When you choose Last Known Good Configuration, only the information in registry key HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet is restored. Any changes made to other registry keys remain. How to start your computer by using the Last Known Good Configuration feature in WinXP http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;307852 Start the computer using the last known good configuration: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/pro...05d142b25.mspx Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power (which I've had to do on numerous occasions). Shutting down the system with the power switch can certainly cause restore point corruption. I've tried going into Regedit and exporting the system but when I tried importing it in safe mode, it didn't work (something was in use so it couldn't copy all the files - again, I've done this on Win98 in safe mode and it has worked). Export and import within Regedit is *not* a good method of backing up the entire registry. Its value is where you are going to modify a small section - export that section, then if needed delete it and re-import to put things back. First the backups are text mode, largely in Unicode and are enormous. Second there is no proper way to restore it. Import does not replace the current registry but merges the file into it causing the registry to be come severely bloated. Thus unwanted additions made since the export are not removed - which is very often what you want to do. And third when you want to use it may not be practicable, particularly if the system will not boot. System Restore is the built in method of restoring the registry. Or use ERUNT http://www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/ More information on how to backup the Windows XP Registry? http://windowsxp.mvps.org/registry.htm As for Backup, there was no Backup tab under System tools (I was told XP Home doesn't install it automatically) so I insalled it from the CD. But when I tried backing up my C drive it didn't work. Can I just copy my entire C drive to another folder, say to my E: drive? I have Windows on my C drive and a few essential programs, everything else (including the swap file and other programs) are on other drives. And how do I restore the C drive from a command prompt? I don't want to reformat again, so some good info on this backup/restore issue will help. Thanks. Imaging software is the best choice for doing this. Now to the root of the problem. What's causing Windows to be so unstable? Please give us some background on what's occurring with the system that causes the need to turn the power off with the switch. Provide any error messages received. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org |
#3
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
RJ wrote:
I've messed up and have to resort to a reformat and fresh install as a last resort. In my view, that's very seldom true. I recommend that you first tell us what your problems are and see if someone here can help before you resort to such a drastic measure. My question is this: What's the best and most convenient way (i.e, without having to buy other software or harware) to restore the XP system when things go wrong? You mean for the future, not for the immediate problems? The best way, by far, in my opinion, isn't free. It's to buy an external hard drive, and use a program like Acronis True Image to make a periodic clone or image of it. Even better, buy two external hard drives, and alternate using them. Any backup you do to an internal drive (or worse, a second partition on your only drive) leaves you susceptible to simultaneous loss of the original and backup to many of the most common dangers: severe power glitches, nearby lightning strikes, virus attacks, even theft of the computer( and head crashes, if it's a second partition). -- Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User Please reply to the newsgroup Here's some background to my question: In Windows 98, I can do a SCANREG from the command prompt whenever I mess up and it's always fixed the problem. But Windows XP doesn't have that feature. Sure it's got Last Known Good but if that doesn't work, you cannot go back to an even earlier day like Win 98 (which saves the last 5 days). Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power (which I've had to do on numerous occasions). I've tried going into Regedit and exporting the system but when I tried importing it in safe mode, it didn't work (something was in use so it couldn't copy all the files - again, I've done this on Win98 in safe mode and it has worked). As for Backup, there was no Backup tab under System tools (I was told XP Home doesn't install it automatically) so I insalled it from the CD. But when I tried backing up my C drive it didn't work. Can I just copy my entire C drive to another folder, say to my E: drive? I have Windows on my C drive and a few essential programs, everything else (including the swap file and other programs) are on other drives. And how do I restore the C drive from a command prompt? I don't want to reformat again, so some good info on this backup/restore issue will help. Thanks. |
#4
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the
restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear RJ wrote: I've messed up and have to resort to a reformat and fresh install as a last resort. My question is this: What's the best and most convenient way (i.e, without having to buy other software or harware) to restore the XP system when things go wrong? Here's some background to my question: In Windows 98, I can do a SCANREG from the command prompt whenever I mess up and it's always fixed the problem. But Windows XP doesn't have that feature. Sure it's got Last Known Good but if that doesn't work, you cannot go back to an even earlier day like Win 98 (which saves the last 5 days). Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power (which I've had to do on numerous occasions). I've tried going into Regedit and exporting the system but when I tried importing it in safe mode, it didn't work (something was in use so it couldn't copy all the files - again, I've done this on Win98 in safe mode and it has worked). As for Backup, there was no Backup tab under System tools (I was told XP Home doesn't install it automatically) so I insalled it from the CD. But when I tried backing up my C drive it didn't work. Can I just copy my entire C drive to another folder, say to my E: drive? I have Windows on my C drive and a few essential programs, everything else (including the swap file and other programs) are on other drives. And how do I restore the C drive from a command prompt? I don't want to reformat again, so some good info on this backup/restore issue will help. Thanks. |
#5
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
"PA Bear" wrote in message ... Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. RJ wrote: I've messed up and have to resort to a reformat and fresh install as a last resort. My question is this: What's the best and most convenient way (i.e, without having to buy other software or harware) to restore the XP system when things go wrong? Here's some background to my question: In Windows 98, I can do a SCANREG from the command prompt whenever I mess up and it's always fixed the problem. But Windows XP doesn't have that feature. Sure it's got Last Known Good but if that doesn't work, you cannot go back to an even earlier day like Win 98 (which saves the last 5 days). Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power (which I've had to do on numerous occasions). I've tried going into Regedit and exporting the system but when I tried importing it in safe mode, it didn't work (something was in use so it couldn't copy all the files - again, I've done this on Win98 in safe mode and it has worked). As for Backup, there was no Backup tab under System tools (I was told XP Home doesn't install it automatically) so I insalled it from the CD. But when I tried backing up my C drive it didn't work. Can I just copy my entire C drive to another folder, say to my E: drive? I have Windows on my C drive and a few essential programs, everything else (including the swap file and other programs) are on other drives. And how do I restore the C drive from a command prompt? I don't want to reformat again, so some good info on this backup/restore issue will help. Thanks. |
#6
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points.
-- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#7
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get
erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote in message ... Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#8
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
Erunt is a good tool for backing up the registry, but it does not
monitor and backup system files and setting as System Restore does. Now that a clean install has been performed and the system is running correctly test System Restore to make sure it's functioning correctly. Create a new restore point named TEST. Create a new shortcut on the desktop and point it to My Computer or any other file of your choice and name it TEST. Now restore to the Test restore point. The system will now reboot, and you will receive a message if the restore was successful, and the Test shortcut on the desktop will be gone. The next time applications are installed, or system setting are being altered, create a restore point prier to the changes. All About System Restore in WinXP http://bertk.mvps.org/index.html -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "RJ" wrote Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#9
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
RJ. You shouldn't have to use the power switch on the back of the computer.
Often the "front of the case" power switch simply needs to be held in for about 4-5 seconds to shutdown a computer manually. -- Harry Ohrn MS-MVP [Shell\User] www.webtree.ca/windowsxp "RJ" wrote in message ... Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote in message ... Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#10
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
thanks for the tip, I thought something was wrong with the switch.
"Harry Ohrn" wrote in message ... RJ. You shouldn't have to use the power switch on the back of the computer. Often the "front of the case" power switch simply needs to be held in for about 4-5 seconds to shutdown a computer manually. -- Harry Ohrn MS-MVP [Shell\User] www.webtree.ca/windowsxp "RJ" wrote in message ... Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote in message ... Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#11
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
Can I schedule a Backup of Drive C: everyday using Scheduled Task? I tried
scheduling things on Win98 but it never worked. Wonder if it's the same on XP. Does the computer need to be on all the time for it to work? "Bert Kinney" wrote in message ... Erunt is a good tool for backing up the registry, but it does not monitor and backup system files and setting as System Restore does. Now that a clean install has been performed and the system is running correctly test System Restore to make sure it's functioning correctly. Create a new restore point named TEST. Create a new shortcut on the desktop and point it to My Computer or any other file of your choice and name it TEST. Now restore to the Test restore point. The system will now reboot, and you will receive a message if the restore was successful, and the Test shortcut on the desktop will be gone. The next time applications are installed, or system setting are being altered, create a restore point prier to the changes. All About System Restore in WinXP http://bertk.mvps.org/index.html -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "RJ" wrote Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
#12
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Restoring WinXP Home Edition
I think you can, but I am not absolutely sure.
I would suggest using System Restore to fix problem that are a week or less old. Imaging software such as Acronis True Image is the way to go for restoring longer than a week or so. Acronis True Image http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "RJ" wrote Can I schedule a Backup of Drive C: everyday using Scheduled Task? I tried scheduling things on Win98 but it never worked. Wonder if it's the same on XP. Does the computer need to be on all the time for it to work? "Bert Kinney" wrote Erunt is a good tool for backing up the registry, but it does not monitor and backup system files and setting as System Restore does. Now that a clean install has been performed and the system is running correctly test System Restore to make sure it's functioning correctly. Create a new restore point named TEST. Create a new shortcut on the desktop and point it to My Computer or any other file of your choice and name it TEST. Now restore to the Test restore point. The system will now reboot, and you will receive a message if the restore was successful, and the Test shortcut on the desktop will be gone. The next time applications are installed, or system setting are being altered, create a restore point prier to the changes. All About System Restore in WinXP http://bertk.mvps.org/index.html -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "RJ" wrote Bert, thx for the ERUNT tip, I'll check it out. My restore points did get erased and I thought it was because I turned the switch at the back of the computer off (I could not turn off the power switch in front as nothing would happen and the computer wouldn't do turn off.) I normally click Start/Shut Down but then I used to get a msg Its now safe to turn off your computer. A lot of other things also got messed up. It probably started when I uninstalled programs from C; and reinstalled on another drive, also deleted some files which maybe I shouldn't have. I tried an overinstall but I used to get file copy errors. Ran mtest, everything was fine. The guy at the shop said it's a software problem, not hardware. Guess what? He was right...I did a reformat and fresh install, everything's ok now. I do have a question about the wpa.dbl file which I'll address in another thread. "Bert Kinney" wrote Shutting down Windows correctly will not harm restore points. -- Regards, Bert Kinney MS-MVP Shell/User http://bertk.mvps.org Member: http://dts-l.org "Andrew Murray" wrote Now I know WinXP has the System Restore feature but all the restore points get wiped out when you turn off the power That's news to me, RJ. -- ~PA Bear Exactly. There's no point having system restore if the restore points get erased when the PC is powered off. |
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