What’s the difference between a System Recovery disc and Windows 7′s System Repair disc?
Q: What’s the difference between a “System Recovery” disc and a “System Repair” disc?
A: Your computer’s System Recovery Discs and Windows 7′s System Repair Disc are both designed for getting you out of emergencies by fixing your PC’s problems. However, the two types of discs accomplish this in very different ways. (They’re also both completely different from a System Image disc.)
System Recovery Discs
Added as a menu option on many new PCs, System Recovery Discs come straight from your PC’s manufacturer. The manufacturer often provides an option to create these discs the first time you turn on your computer. When you click the ”Create System Recovery Discs” option, you end up feeding blank CDs or DVDs into your PC. Eventually, you’ll end up with a set of discs that restore your PC to its original purchased condition.
On the good side, System Recovery Discs come in handy in an emergency. Just feed your PC the System Recovery Discs, and your PC regresses into the same machine you originally brought home from the store.
On the bad side, however, you’ll lose every program, photo, and file you’ve stored on that PC since you bought it. System Recovery Discs only care about returning your PC to its original, first-purchased, condition. Everything else is swept away.
Gateway, Dell, Hewlett Packard, and other vendors offer more information about their System Recovery Discs on their web sites. Most also offer ways to purchase a set of System Recovery Discs, if you’re having trouble creating them.
System Repair Disc
Microsoft built a System Repair Disc option into Windows 7 that works quite differently from your PC manufacturer’s System Recovery Discs. When your PC no longer runs properly, insert Windows 7′s System Repair Disc into your PC, and flip your PC’s On switch. Instead of returning your PC to its original condition, the System Repair Disc offers several menu options:
- Startup Repair. This examines Windows 7′s most integral files, then repairs any missing or damaged files that may be keeping Windows 7 from starting.
- System Restore. Just like the normal System Restore option, this restores your PC’s system files to an earlier point in time, hopefully fixing any recently developed problems. It doesn’t affect your personal files, like e‑mail, documents, or photos. There’s one key difference between this version of System Restore, though: When run from the System Repair Disc menu, System Restore doesn’t have an undo option. (However, you can run System Restore again and choose a different restore point, if one exists.)
- System Image Recovery. If you’ve created a “System Image” in Windows 7′s backup options, this option returns your PC to the condition it was in when you made the System Image backup. It’s truly a lifesaver, but only if you create System Image disks regularly.
- Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool. Designed to ferret out hardware problems, this examines your PC’s memory for errors.
- Command Prompt. This lets techies dig deep into Windows’ internal crevices. It’s designed for people comfortable typing in commands, not moving around a mouse.
In short, the System Recovery discs return your PC to the state it was when first purchased, scrapping all your data while along the way. The System Repair disc, by contrast, offers tools to help bring your ailing PC back to life, keeping all your valuable files safe.
When in trouble, always try your System Repair disc first, as it may solve your problem. Only use the System Recovery Discs as a last resort, as they wipe out everything you’ve created since buying your PC.
Posted: December 21st, 2009 under Windows 7.
Tags: back-up, backup, recovery discs, system recovery, system repair, system repair disc
Comments
Comment from KamalAryal
Time March 28, 2011 at 7:58 pm
Thank’s for help.
Comment from Craig
Time November 19, 2011 at 5:12 am
!st time someone has explained it clearly – thanks – I am in need of reformatting my hard drive and trying ti figure out how to reinstall Windows 7 and other needed programs. I have back up my docs and pics – guess I need to move my programs to my external hard drive as well. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated – thanks again
Comment from Andy Rathbone
Time November 19, 2011 at 4:13 pm
Craig, make a System Image before reformatting your hard drive. Then, after the drive’s reformatted, restore your PC with the System Image, and you’ll be back where you started, with Windows, your programs, and all your files waiting for you.
If you’re reformatting to wipe out a virus, though, then don’t use a System Image, as it might contain an infected version of Windows. Instead, use the System Recovery disc that came with your PC. That restores your PC to its purchased condition. You’ll still have to reinstall any new programs from their original installation discs, and restore your personal files from a backup.
Comment from Hugh Valentine
Time December 7, 2011 at 7:08 am
Clear concise and informative for those of who dont know much about computer language. Thanks.
I’m trying to replace a failing Laptop HD.
My computer is HP Pavillion I bought in 2009, Vista O/S that came with an upgrade to Win7. I obtained the upgrade disks and performed the upgrade to Win7, no problems, making System Recovery disks in Vista and a Win 7 Recovery disk as directed.
I can’t get it to recover to Win7. Will I have to buy a Win 7 since this is a Hybrid, i.e. Original Vista, upgraded to Win7?
Puzzled and frustrated and ready to hit it with a Sledge Hammer.
Any advice appreciated, or am I wasting time???
Comment from Andy Rathbone
Time December 7, 2011 at 10:53 am
Hugh — If I understand your post correctly, your laptop came with Windows Vista, and you upgraded it with the Windows 7 Upgrade disc. Then you made a Windows 7 System Repair Disk.
Your Windows 7 disc can only upgrade Windows Vista to Windows 7. So, you’ll need to do this:
1. Use your Windows Vista System Recovery Discs to install Vista onto your laptop’s new hard drive.
2. Use your Windows 7 Upgrade Disc to upgrade Vista to Windows 7, just as you did originally.
Yes, it’s a lot of extra work. But that should do the trick.
Comment from Netzian
Time January 30, 2012 at 12:38 am
I thought of backing up the whole of my hard disk on an external USB portable hard disk BUT I discoverd that I won’t be able to access that USB portable HD while on the System Repair CD, if I ever needed to restore my HD.
Is there a way I can backup all of my hard disk on an external USB hard disk so that I can restore from there?
Comment from Andy Rathbone
Time January 30, 2012 at 11:53 am
Netzian, you can save a System Image to USB portable hard drive. The System Repair disc also lets you restore a System Image from a USB portable hard drive. Why do you think you won’t be able to access it from the System Repair CD?
Comment from Andy Rathbone
Time February 6, 2012 at 9:44 pm
Carls, a Recovery Disk will wipe out everything — even personal data on another partition — and return your computer to its purchased state. If you want to save a partition containing your data, you should back it up. Since that partition only contains personal data, you can probably just copy all of its folders to a portable hard drive. (Or you can use a partition copying program like Easus Todo Backup Free).
Later, after using the Recovery Disk, you copy that partition’s data from your portable hard drive backup over to your restored PC.
Comment from Renee West
Time February 6, 2011 at 3:37 pm
Well, that was very helpful.. Thanks!