The initial version of the tenth, beloved and adored Windows OS in the form of a preliminary free release of Technical Preview turned out to be completely different from what was expected of it. It was only later that modifications came out like Pro, Home, Education, Enterprise and Ultimate. But all of them, as well as previous "OSes", have the property to "fly off" at the most inopportune moment. Now we will consider a question related to how Windows 10 system recovery is performed in the most elementary ways. This, I think, will not cause difficulties for anyone.
Windows 10: recovery. What you should pay attention to?
Note that the “ten,” no matter how perfect it may seem, has absolute identity with its predecessors. This is due not so much to viruses or malicious codes as to errors of the system itself.
First of all, you need to pay attention to the installed version. If this was the initial Technical Preview OS, intended for familiarization and installation on top of the existing "OS", rollback is not so difficult. By the way, it is worth saying separately that it is very easy to restore the working capacity of the new system provided that the old files are not deleted.
Just note that there will be two Windows folders on the system drive. The first (main) is responsible for the safety of the previous one. The second is the installation directory for the new OS. Unfortunately, not every user will be able to determine what kind of Windows 10 recovery point they need, much less find a backup copy on the disk, not to mention the file itself, which is responsible for this process.
Standard procedure for recovering Windows 10 after installation
A system rollback, as a rule, can be used in two cases: either restoring the “tens” after critical failures, or returning to the operating system on top of which it was installed. Here you need to understand the difference.
In the first version, everything is, in general, simple. The standard Windows Restore service will be enabled anyway. When installed, for example, the "top ten" on top of the "seven" it is the service of the new system has priority.
But with the return to the old OS and its settings, the situation is somewhat more complicated. The fact is that the standard Windows 10 recovery point in this case is not a key point. Here, the image of the previous system plays a paramount role, taking up a lot of space on the hard drive.
Removing it even when using the standard means of cleaning the system disk or partition, when all unnecessary more components are ticked, you can only ensure that the previous "OS" will not be restored, by and large, it will not even be installed again without selecting another partition or formatting an existing one . In addition, you immediately need to pay attention to the fact that restoring Windows 10 makes sense without rolling back to the previous one. But the “ten” itself, which is, so to speak, on priority rights, blocks any other, previously installed OS. The only exception is the bootloader, in which you can select the appropriate component to start.
Prerequisites for uninstalling updates
Another important aspect is the installation of updates. In Windows 10, recovery may be related, oddly enough, to this. The fact is that updates, starting with the "seven", came out quite inoperative. Ultimately, updates are not just installed incorrectly, they generally cause critical failures in the system itself.
To remove packages, you need to use the standard function called from the “Control Panel”. Here you need to take into account the installation date of each update. For sorting, it is worth choosing a change or installation by date. Service packs are generally designated KB. True, for the most part they are more likely related to the installation of additional components of the Windows security system.
To cancel their installation, you just need to use the uninstall line for each update, after which the computer is completely rebooted. In the best case, the Windows 10 recovery disk will help. But these actions are applicable if the OS is restored, so to speak, to the factory state. In addition, you will have to turn off each of them and watch how it affects the system as a whole.
Windows 10 Auto Repair
As for automatic recovery, any OS created today reserves a place on the hard drive, creating its own partition, different from the system one used to save the parameters and settings of the “OS” installed at the moment.
On the other hand, if the system “crashed”, you should restart it first. In some cases (especially when Windows hangs), it is necessary to perform a reboot in forced mode, for example, on laptops this is done by pressing and holding the power button.
After that, a new system boot will occur and a message will appear indicating the possibility of recovery. But this is true more for systems like XP, 7 and 8. In the "top ten" there is nothing like that. In Windows 10, recovery is a bit different. The system does not offer a choice, it restores files by itself. But this only works if there are no critical failures. When the boot files are damaged, you have to think about it.
Bootloader issues
Now we turn to the biggest problems of the system. Restoring Windows 10 boot after a crash is impossible without understanding the process itself, which applies equally to all systems in this series.
The boot sector is the fastest area of ​​the hard drive in terms of access, which contains information about the system files needed to boot the OS. This section has a kind of table that provides for indexing the contents of one or another file involved in the process of loading the OS. If failures are found in it, the system will have to be reinstalled.
Recovery boot operating system
The simplest method by which the Windows 10 boot loader is restored is considered the option that applies to all systems of this type. This type may not work if the download is from a hard disk or a damaged partition. Usually, a Windows 10 recovery disk is used to restore the OS’s performance . This avoids many problems and has the function of calling and managing the so-called console.
This is the Bootrec.exe / FixMbr command, entered at the command line (note, not through the Run menu, but through the cmd line, also entered there). Windows 10 bootloader recovery is performed according to the same principles that were laid down in version 7 and higher. Some commands may not work.
Sequentially, after the first line, the Bootrec.exe / FixBoot command is added (again, provided it is loaded from disk). Further, if it is not possible to restore Windows 10 boot in this way, you will need to check the presence of all operating systems present on this device. This is done simply. But for this, in the same console, you will need to use the Bootrec.exe / ScanOs command. Further, if nothing helped at all, restoring the Windows 10 bootloader can only be continued with a command to completely rewrite the sectors and restore the initial settings. This is the Bootrec.exe / ReBuildBcd command.
Create boot disk
For many users, the easiest solution is to drive. Windows 10 system recovery is performed automatically, but only when the mode of reading data and loading from the corresponding device via the BIOS is turned on (HDD boot device detection must be turned off, and removable CD / DVD media is installed as the first device).
Then the disk image itself is created. To do this, you can use utilities like UltraISO or a standard system tool (of course, if you have the original Windows 10 distribution).
Saving copies of disk images and partitions
Often, file recovery may also be required. Windows 10, like any other “operating system” of this family, can create images of hard drives and logical partitions with user data stored in them.
But for this it is better to use not standard tools, but specialized utilities like Acronis True Image. With the help of such programs, an image of a system, hard disk or logical partition is created in a couple of clicks, and with the help of them it is possible to carry out subsequent restoration of all the necessary information.
Recovery from image
As for the process itself, Windows 10 recovery allows you to either automatically or on demand.
For the on-demand process, use the archiving and update section, which is located in the standard “Control Panel”. In it, you need to go to the advanced recovery methods, and then use the previously created copy of the system image with the location of the file.
Which is better to use?
You can do even easier. In Windows 10, data recovery can be performed using third-party utilities like the aforementioned Acronis True Image program.
Actually, the process itself is very similar to the standard one, but is more optimized for an ordinary user who does not want to get into the jungle of system settings.
As for the recovery of accidentally deleted files, specialized software such as the Recuva program or the very powerful R.Saver package is useful, which allows you to find data on any media and restore it to its original state, while preserving the desired location and even metadata. But this is, as they say, a separate topic.
What do we have in the end?
In general, as can be seen from the above material, the restoration of the "tens", as well as older versions of Windows, is not particularly difficult. The main thing is to be patient, as some processes can be quite lengthy in time. On the other hand, if you start recovery, it’s still better than reinstalling Windows 10 again, especially since reinstalling user files, folders, and programs may be lost.
As for the recovery method or preferred program to be used, here each user must decide for himself. It is clear that you can create not only recovery disks. With the same success, you can use a bootable flash drive. True, you will have to pay special attention to the BIOS settings in order to install a USB device as a source for downloading. And this is done with a flash drive already inserted into the port before turning on the computer or laptop, otherwise the BIOS simply will not detect it. So be careful.