Returning your Computer to Happier Times with System Restore
Ever dragged yourself into bed after a particularly disastrous day, wishing you could wake up the next morning and find everything back to normal?
Although things usually remain the same when we wake up, that doesn't have to be the case with Windows XP and its built-in System Restore feature.
System Restore (also built into Windows Me) provides Windows XP with an easy way to bring peace back into a troubled world. Every so often, the System Restore program takes a "snapshot" of Windows XP's key internal settings and saves them by date, known as a "Restore Point". When Windows XP is behaving badly on your system, call up System Restore, and tell it to return to a Restore Point when everything was working correctly.
Windows XP quickly loads the settings it used on that Restore Point's date, and when Windows XP restarts, it works just as well as it did on that day in the past.
If you choose a Restore Point that somehow makes things even worse than they were, head back to System Restore and chose Undo my last restoration. System Restore promptly discards those settings, restarts, and lets you choose a different Restore Point.
Since everything System Restore does is reversible, there's rarely much to lose in giving it a try. Here are a few tips for using System Restore to its full potential.
Finding the System Restore Program
For some reason, Microsoft hid the darn thing. To locate System Restore, put on your wading boots and click your Start menu. Point to All Programs, then Accessories, then System tools and, finally, click on System Restore. (You'll also find System Restore hidden in the Control Panel under Performance and Maintenance.)
Making your own Restore Points
System Restore normally takes a snapshot of your computer's settings on a daily basis. It often usually takes another automatic snapshot when you install a new computer part - just in case the newcomer causes problems. But Windows XP simply slaps the date onto these System Restore points. How can you remember which Restore Point to use? For better control over your Restore Points, feel free to create your own Restore Points when everything's running smoothly: Just call up System Restore and choose Create a restore point.
Windows will ask you to describe your new Restore Point. The description is just something to help you remember why you made the Restore Point. Type something like, "Created just before installing the Eggplant Toss game." That way, if the Eggplant Toss game messes up your computer, you know which Restore Point will bring the computer back to sanity. (The Restore Points that Windows XP creates automatically have the boring, non-descript name "System Checkpoint.")
You don't need to include the date in your description, as Windows automatically gives each one a date stamp. But when you create your own Restore Point with a descriptive name, you'll know immediately which one to try first should things go bad.
Tip: Be sure to create a new Restore Point every few weeks when things are going well. That ensures you'll find a recent working Restore Point in times of need.
Understanding what System Restore does and doesn't do
System Restore won't delete any of your letters, e-mails, or other data files, thank goodness. The files you created yesterday will still be there, even if you use a Restore Point from last month.
Since System Restore only deals with Windows XP's settings, it only helps with Windows XP itself. It can't help you locate deleted e-mails or recover deleted files that are no longer in the Recycle Bin.
Using System Restore to "go back in time" won't disinfect your computer of a newly acquired virus, unfortunately.
If you use a Restore Point from two weeks ago, then any programs installed since then might not work. Programs often alter Windows XP's settings as a way of introducing themselves to your computer. When Windows XP "wakes up" with settings from two weeks ago, it won't remember that those programs have been installed. You'll probably have to reinstall them.
System Restore normally takes a "snapshot" of your computer's most treasured settings every day. However, storing all these settings consumes considerable amounts of space. If the available hard disk space on your C drive runs lower than 200MB, System Restore stops working until you clear off more space for it to store its settings.
Also, since System Restore has a limited amount of storage space, it deletes its oldest Restore Points to make room for the newest. That means your "window" of available Restore Points might be as little as two weeks into the past.
System Restore Tips
- When you find yourself humming a happy tune while computing, don't hesitate to create a Restore Point. Just think how happy you'll be down the road if you can return your sick computer to that happy state.
- Make it a habit to create your own Restore Points before you do anything that will change your computer's settings: Installing a new computer part, like a scanner, or adding new software. The important thing is to create the Restore Point before you make the changes. That gives Windows XP something to return to if the changes mess things up.
- When Windows XP is first installed onto your computer, it reserves about 12 percent of your available disk space for System Restore to use. That's usually enough to extend about one month into the past. (Your mileage may vary, depending on the size of your hard disk and how much computing you do.) To change those settings, right-click on My Computer in your Start menu, choose Properties, and click the System Restore tab. (The "status" area should say "monitoring", meaning System Restore is up and running.)
- If your anti-virus program just disinfected your computer of a nasty virus, then quickly use System Restore to create a Restore Point called "Disinfected Computer." Then, never use any Restore Points dated earlier than your newly created "Disinfected Computer" Restore Point. Those older Restore Points might return your computer back to a time when it was infected. (Also, if your anti-virus program discovers an infected Restore Point, you'll need to delete that Restore Point manually; the anti-virus program usually can't do it. You'll find detailed instructions at the end of this page.)
The moral? If everything's going along smoothly as you're reading this, perhaps it's time to create a Restore Point.
Here's how to manually remove Restore Points that might contain a virus:
Follow the steps that apply to your operating system:Windows Me
- Close all open programs.
- Right-click My Computer on the Windows desktop, and then click Properties.
- Click the Performance tab.
- Click File System.
- Click the Troubleshooting tab.
- Check Disable System Restore, click OK, and then click Close.
- Click Yes to restart. This disables the System Restore feature; when you restart your computer, it will remove all the existing Restore Points.
- Download the latest virus definitions from your AntiVirus program's Web site.
- Make sure to scan all files and all drives, and then scan the computer.
- After cleaning the infected files, repeat steps 1 through 7, except in step 6, uncheck Disable System Restore.
Windows XP
- Click Start, and then right-click My Computer.
- Click Properties.
- Click the System Restore tab.
- Check Turn off System Restore.
- Click Apply, and then click OK.
- Restart the computer.
- Download the latest virus definitions from your AntiVirus program's Web site.
- Make sure to scan all files and all drives on your computer, then do a full scan.
- After cleaning the infected files, repeat steps 1 through 6, except in step 4, uncheck Turn Off System Restore.