Make Windows 7 Pro Recovery Disk / USB Drive?
 

Yes, I'm stupid, but the new Dell Windows 7 Pro [64] I'm configuring doesn't seem to have a command to make a recovery disk/USB. It has a command for "Backup" but that doesn't sound like a recovery disk/USB to me.

As an ultimate fall-back, I have a legal* Windows 7 Pro SP1 installation DVD, but I'd rather produce a working recovery disk/USB from the present running system.

I've Giggled and find many suggestions, some of which conflict. Do the experts here have any suggestions / pointers?

Thank you,
seacue

* Techsoup is great, if your organization qualifies.

Do you mean Start/All Programmes/Maintenace/Create a System Repair Disk?

I don't think USB is viable for this, but I'm sure some clever chap (like Hiren) has produced something.

When I've made bootable USB sticks for Windows installers in the past, you've needed a bootable Windows install optical disk to create them anyway.

The only time in recent years that I've done a recovery in anger, was for a friend who'd lost her entire photo collection. So without any form of backups was she, that I booted in Ubuntu and only after hours of slow copying to DVDs tried MY recovery discs for my Sony's Vista boot. (dual boot with W7)

To my astonishment, it worked. It took several minutes, but then her machine, was as far as I could see, completely back to square one. If I'd gambled with her three years of photos, I could have saved a day. :ugh:

I still have this Asus shard of metal with no DVD. I've been distracted, but need to get a workable system with full recovery available by the time I leave for the UK. I have taken off all internal recovery since the Solid State disc was only left with 67gig. I've copied W8.1 to a USB stick for a clean reinstall but I'd really like to recovery everything working as in the case above. Is it cast in stone that I'll have to have a USB DVD with me at all times? The thing is, will it work without drivers?

Maybe something like G4L on a bootable USB memory stick, and a USB external hard drive. And use G4L to clone the internal SSD to the external disk at regular(ish) intervals.

I can imagine it won't be a very quick process though.

BOAC,

What you suggested gets me a response that the program to write the Recovery Disk is broken. I eventually talked for a half-hour with someone at Dell ... he spoken with a very thick Spanish accent. Even though the system is less than a week old, he wanted $100 to fix the problem. I don't intend to pay $100 for listening a person whose English I can't understand. He claimed that there was a virus ... but McAfee doesn't find one. At least I have a legal Win 7 Pro installation disk .... maybe it has a "Repair" mode which will preserve the drivers. Rolling back time to an early Restore Point hasn't helped. Back to cogitating.

At least the rest of the system seems to work ok.

Are you sure you were actually talking to Dell?


Does your system have Dell Datasafe?

I am sure I was talking to the Dell number.

I haven't tried Datasafe.

One of the Datasafe options is to create recovery disks: see My Dell Computer Did Not Come With Disks | Dell US.


I've never used it, don't know if it applies to you, E&OE, etc etc. The reason I wondered if it was a genuine Dell number is that fixing viruses for cash is a well-known scam.

Change the settings to unhide any hidden files and folders and see if you have a Recover Partition. If you do then inside it should be a WIM file (unless Dell use Ghost). If there is a WIM file you can copy that to a USB (make it bootable and Google DISM, Deployment Image Servicing and Management. It is a Microsoft tool that can be used to "write" the WIM file back to the HDD and return it to Factory Condition).

Alternatively, obtain some Dell media (eBay) and use the Windows 7 key that should be stuck to your machine. If it's a laptop look in the battery well. (They seem to have stopped putting the key sticker on Win 8 installs now) Another possible option is to get a copy of the same version of your operating system and install that but use YOUR key from your machine though I have found this a bit hit and miss.

Thank you all. It is after the hour I dare do system things. I'll try tomorrow morning.

Yes I know about scams to "fix" false viruses. I surely hope I haven't fallen for one of them.

seacue

Well, good luck with that one. :*

While battling with Asus, I heard a rumor. Dell allow its customers to obtain that key. Don't know if it's true.

It's OUR BLOO&DY KEY! We paid for it, and MS should not have to subsidize* the repair of our machines because we have to do a clean instal.

*MS in Canada sent me a full 8.1 clean instal disc for about half the price of the cheapest net download. It means the computer has the key for the rest of its life . . . or, I can keep the software and still hack at Asus to do the decent thing. :E

LR, you have Belarc. Belarc will give you the key. You've already been told in another thread where you can get media from.

Thank you all, especially bushfiva. His suggestions seem to be what I need. ... but I'm a little "out of it" at the moment and expect to get back to the PC in a few days.

Thanks again,

seacue

Bush, I formed the opinion that Belarc finds the key in existing software very well. I think it was during very helpful support from them that I learned of Dell's intention to make the key available when hidden in the machine. There was a moment when it was suggested that if there was no key anywhere, their utility might find it in the firmware, but how do you run Belarc during that OS-less phase?

I got as far as this thread and Mr Badger's post. I fear tearing the door - and its frame - out of my home in order to sell it, all while learning to fettle watches has been rather demanding.:eek: One's mind is rarely on one subject for very long, but as a matter of principle, I would still like to extract that code from the machine. Indeed, it's only a matter of weeks before I uproot yet again, and really need a reliable laptop. Very stressful times.

http://www.pprune.org/computer-inter...ml#post8254178