The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    System Recovery Options

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by PC Rek, Jul 15, 2008.

  1. PC Rek

    PC Rek Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    23
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello Everyone:
    What is the difference between the following Gateway System Recovery options:

    Microsoft System Restore
    Recovery with automatic data backup
    Full factory recovery
    Advance options

    I need to reformat/restore my laptop and don't mind losing the little amount of data on the HD. I just want the system to startup again.

    Thank you for your help.
    PCR
     
    PC Rek, Jul 15, 2008
    #1
  2. booboo12

    booboo12 Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    4,062
    Messages:
    4,272
    Likes Received:
    93
    Trophy Points:
    116
    Here's a rundown for ya:

    Microsoft System Restore-Windows periodically creates system "restore" points containing settings and other information. Some programs may also create restore points for you before they install. If something happens, and you need to restore, you can pick a date on a calendar that you know the computer worked correctly and Windows will attempt to restore the system to that state. None of your documents are affected (although it's always a good idea to back up just in case) This may or may not work in your situation...doesn't hurt to try.

    Recovery with automatic data backup- Saves all your hard disk data to a folder called My Backup then installs Windows XP/Vista. You'll need to install all applications you added since you bought your notebook

    Full Factory Recovery-Installs Windows XP/Vista without backing up your files. You'll need to both install all applications you added and all your documents.

    Have you tried booting in safemode? If you can do that, try to back up your data and try system restore from within Windows first.

    Good Luck :)
     
    booboo12, Jul 15, 2008
    #2
  3. ravenmorpheus

    ravenmorpheus Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    26
    Messages:
    846
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Full factory recovery is the one you want it should restore the system from a backup partition on the disk. See my post in your other thread. ;)
     
    ravenmorpheus, Jul 15, 2008
    #3
  4. PC Rek

    PC Rek Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    23
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Booboo and Ravenmorpheus:
    Thank you both for responding. I performed the full factory restore and everything is back in working order!
    PCR

    PS: Ravenmorpheus, thanks for taking so much of your time to respond to my noob questions. Obviously, PCs are not my forte, hence my name.
     
    PC Rek, Jul 15, 2008
    #4
  5. ravenmorpheus

    ravenmorpheus Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    26
    Messages:
    846
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    No probs. I work a night shift on a BlackBerry 24hr helpdesk so I have plenty of time ;)

    We've all been there, or somewhere similar, I had to "factory re-install" my OS a couple of times due to problems, mainly due to me tweaking it too much and hardware conflicts. But I always view it as a last resort and then I use my backups I made using the Vista Complete Backup function (and if I can't use that it's a clean install as I've got rid of the backup partition to put XP on as a dual boot OS, so I have no factory restore option, probably for the best, it is an Acer after :eek:)...
     
    ravenmorpheus, Jul 15, 2008
    #5