How to make a windows 7 image

Computer users from time to time are faced with a situation where operating system fails to boot or runs erratically with constant errors and lags. The reasons for this state can count a lot. And this is the result of incorrect installation of programs, and poorly selected driver, and the consequences of virus attacks or error of the user. To quickly restore the health will help pre-prepared operating system image.

How to create a Windows 7 image with standard tools

If the computer is running Windows 7 to create system image without installing additional software. You can use the "Backup and restore data".

For this you need to connect it to your computer external drive or USB flash drive, formatted as NTFS, and then go to "control Panel" and choose "Backup and restore". Dialog box opens, in the left part which you want to select "Create system image".

Now you have to answer the question "Where to save the files?". To use a local hard is not recommended. When attacking a virus or illiterate user actions to restore the system from it is often impossible. It is better to choose in advance connected to the computer the external drive. You can use DVDs, but it is less convenient.

Under no circumstances, you cannot edit the resulting backup. Any change to the data will cause the system to recover from this backup file will be impossible.

Now you need to select the disks that will be backed up. If the external drive has enough space, and you have a lot of free time, it is better to check all local drives. Then you can be sure that all your data will be restored. Otherwise, choose to backup the system drive C.

In the next dialog box to confirm the settings you have to press the button "Archive". This will start the archive process of the system and in the dialog box you will see a green traffic sign "save archive". It shows at what stage is the process.

When creating a system image runs to completion, there will be another window of the program with a proposal to create a "system repair Disc". If you have not done it previously, it is necessary to agree and click "Yes". After all, if the operating system does not boot without this disk to restore the created image will be impossible.

When the backup is finished, the window "Create a system image" will appear in the notification "Backup completed successfully". Click "Close" to complete the program.

How to create operating system image using Acronis True Image

Compared with the standard archiver application has enhanced capabilities. Run the program and in the main window, click on "Create archive". Now you must select which of the partitions is saved. To create the copy of Windows you need to click on the menu item "My computer" and select the hard disk on which Windows is installed. Typically, this disk is drive C.

To the archives with the latest state of the operating system was always on hand in the program settings, it is recommended to set the schedule of automatic backups.

In the following dialog box will be a description of the various archives that you can create with Acronis. Just check out the program offerings and click "Next". Now you need to specify where to save the future of the archive. Take care of creating the folder for the backup files. As in the previous method, the optimal solution would be to record the files to external media.

Next you need to select one of the types of archiving that was in the previous window. The best option is "full backup" because it is fully Autonomous and does not depend on the remaining copies. In the dialog "backup Settings", select the first option "Use default settings" and click "Next".

Over time you can build up different Windows images. For example, you can create a backup of the OS with drivers or without drivers, "clean" image or with already installed software. Therefore, in the next step, make a description of the archive, in order not to confuse it with others. Click "Next" and Acronis will begin the assignment.