What's the Difference between "System Image Recovery" and "System Restore" in Windows 11/10/8/7?

System Image Recovery and System Restore are two distinct methods for restoring a previous version of the Windows operating system. While both aim at system recovery or rollback, they differ significantly. Hence, this article primarily aims to help users understand these differences and choose a better system recovery solution based on their needs.

What is System Image Recovery used for? System Image Recovery is a feature designed primarily to restore a computer to a previous state, in the event of severe hardware failure, virus attacks, or system crashes. A system image is an exact copy of a hard drive or a specific partition, containing the operating system, applications, system settings, and all files. By using System Image Recovery, users can efficiently revert their computer to a known good working condition without having to reinstall everything from scratch. Typically, system image backups are created after significant updates or configuration changes to ensure the safety of important data.

Tools needed: Windows Backup and Restore in Control Panel (Windows 7); Settings on Windows

System Image Recovery is based on a system image. A system image is an exact copy of a disk. By default, Windows creates a system image of your hard drive and saves it in a secure location (usually on an external hard drive or DVDs). If your computer suffers from a major failure, you can use the system image to restore everything on your hard drive – including the operating system, apps, settings, documents, pictures, music, and other user data, as well as all the files – to the state it was in when you created the system image.

What is System Restore used for?

The tool you need: System Protection in System Properties

System Restore automatically creates restore points, which record the state of system files and settings on your computer at a specific time. If your system runs into trouble due to bad drivers, unnecessary changes to system settings, or malware activity, you can use System Restore to revert your system back to an earlier state.

How to Distinguish Between System Image Recovery and System Restore

The main difference between the two is that a system image backup contains everything on your hard drive – the operating system, programs, settings, and all your files – whereas System Restore affects only system files and settings. This means that, if your computer fails catastrophically, you can use a system image to restore everything on your hard drive to the state it was in when you created the system image. By contrast, System Restore rolls back only system files and settings – not personal files – to an earlier point in time.

The other difference is that a system image restore requires a separate bootable medium (either a CD/DVD or a USB drive), whereas System Restore can run directly in Windows.

Lastly, System Restore can use restore points created by Windows or manually created ones, while System Image Recovery can only be used to recover system image backups created with the Windows Backup and Restore feature.

View the comparison chart to learn more about each recovery option:

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How do I determine which System Recovery option is right for me

System Image Recovery is recommended for users who want to create an exact copy of their hard disk drive, including the operating system, programs, settings, and all files. System Restore is recommended for users who want to roll back to a previous point in time without affecting personal files.

Still can't decide? Well, both are safety nets that contribute to the stability of Windows, and both can influence our recovery experience down the road. Considering the time and effort each protection method requires, it's recommended to keep System Restore active on your computer and create system image backups periodically. Here are the final reasons that might help you make up your mind:

Advantages and Disadvantages of System Image Recovery:

• A system image restore requires a large hard drive to store the system image, which is equal to the used space on the system drive, the System Reserved Partition, and the boot drive.
• The entire process of system image recovery is carried out in the Windows Advanced Options, which can be complicated and time-consuming.
• A system image restore can still work even if your computer fails to start, provided that you have a System Repair Disc on a CD/DVD or a USB Recovery Drive.

Pros and Cons of System Restore

• System Restore is easy to use and doesn't require any additional storage space because it only uses restore points, which are snapshots of your system files and settings. You can run System Restore directly from the system drive without using a System Repair Disc or USB Recovery Drive.
• System Restore lets you go back in time without affecting your personal files.
• Your personal files won't be affected by System Restore, but it will remove programs you've installed since the last restore point was created.

From the discussion above, we now know that System Image Recovery and System Restore are two protective measures to back up a stable Windows system. If you want to create an identical copy of your hard drive, System Image Recovery is your choice. If you only want to roll back to a previous point in time without affecting personal files, System Restore is your choice. Regardless of which system recovery method you choose, enabling System Protection and creating backups regularly are always the best ways to prevent data loss.

Guide: How to Set Up System Image Backup

As mentioned earlier, a system image is required to perform a System Image Recovery, so it's crucial to make sure that one or more system images have been created. To make a system image backup, the backup files can be saved to an internal hard drive, external hard drive, CD/DVD discs, or a network drive. Here are the steps to access the System Image Recovery tool in Windows 10 to set up a system backup:

Step 1: Open the Control Panel and locate the “Backup and Restore (Windows 7)” option, then click to open it.

Step 2. Click Create system image on the left-hand menu.

Step 3. Choose a drive that's available and click "Next." Since the drive will be used to save the system image, it should be as large as the used space on your System C drive (usually around 100GB). Therefore, make sure to use a big hard disk of at least 128GB, especially when you want to create a system image on a USB flash drive. Additionally, don't choose a drive located on the same physical disk that you're backing up.

Step 4: Review the default backup selection, which includes all partitions associated with your Microsoft Windows operating system. You can also add additional data drives to the list here. Click Next.

Select a backup disk

Step 5: Preview the backup, then click “Start backup.” Your system image should now begin saving to the drive. Since your operating system will continually update and save new files or install new programs, do this regularly.

Click “Start backup” to create the system image.

Guide: How to Enable System Restore in Windows 10

However, System Restore can be set up to run automatically in Windows 10, and the whole process of creating a restore point may be quicker and easier than making a system image backup.

Step 1: Right-click on 'This PC' in Windows 10 and select 'Properties'.

< strong > Step 2. Click System Protection in the left panel.

The System Properties window will open. If you have never set up System Restore before, you will see that the Protection setting for each of your hard disk partitions is set to "Off." To enable System Restore for the C: drive, click on the Configure button associated with it.

4. Under the Recovery section, check the box for “Turn on system protection.” You can set a restore point schedule and adjust the maximum disk space to use for system protection. This is useful for managing the space on your backup drive. Click “Apply” after making your changes.

Hint:  

1. System Restore is not set up for all partitions on your hard drive. To enable it for other drives, repeat these four steps for each drive.

2. Once System Restore has been configured on your drive, Windows will automatically create important restore points for you. That said, you can still opt to create important system restore points manually by clicking the "Create" button under "Configure."

Click “Create” to make a system restore point.

The Ultimate Guide: How to Perform a System Image Restore or System Restore on Your Computer

There are different ways to create system images or system restore points in Windows 10, and there are also different ways to recover from them. In this guide, we'll show you a universal method to access both recovery options from the Advanced Options in the Windows 10 Recovery Environment (WinRE), which can be very useful when you cannot sign in to the operating system.

Step 1: From the login screen, click on Shut Down, then hold down the Shift key and select Restart.

**Step 2:** When Windows RE starts, click on the "Troubleshoot" option under the "Choose an option" menu.

Click on “Troubleshooting” .

Third, go to Advanced options.

Click “Advanced Options”.

Next, you'll see System Restore and System Image Recovery.

5. Click on the option you need, and then follow the wizard to complete the system recovery.

In summary, System Image Recovery and System Restore are two fundamental Windows recovery options that can restore a crashed or misbehaving Windows OS to a working state. Other recovery options we're familiar with include Startup Repair, the Windows Memory Diagnostic tool, and Command Prompt.

The main differences lie in the time and effort required, the ability to restore personal files, and the need for backup disk space. Thus, it's not straightforward to say which system recovery method is better. According to the 3-2-1 backup rule, the best practice for safeguarding a Windows system is to create at least two backups. Therefore, we recommend creating both System Image backups and System Restore points to better protect your operating system and spare yourself the trouble of figuring out how to reinstall Windows 10.

tools Todo Backup: A Tool to Cover Two Recovery Needs

Microsoft does include backup and recovery features in Windows, including File History, System Restore (in versions prior to Windows 7), and System Protection, which creates system restore points. But these are standalone offerings that provide only basic backup capabilities.

For one thing, many users are unaware of the backup tools built into Windows; and, frankly, creating and restoring backups is a complex and time-consuming process that requires some proficiency with computers to boot into the Windows Recovery Environment.

Considering the time cost and learning curve for both System Image Recovery and System Restore, tools Todo Backup is undoubtedly a better alternative to protect your Windows OS. Plus, it's a full backup solution for your files, disks/partitions, emails, OS, and all data on your computer.

Most importantly, it features advanced backup options that can greatly save backup disk space, speed up backup and recovery, and automate backup tasks.

Create a backup:

Step 1: Launch Todo Backup, click "Create Backup" on the main interface, and then click the big question mark to select backup contents.

2. To back up your Windows operating system, click Operating System to begin the backup.

Step 3: System files and all system-related partitions will be selected automatically, so you don't need to make any manual selections. Then, click on the area highlighted in the screenshot below to choose a location to save your system image backup.

**Step 4.** You can choose another local drive on your computer, an external hard drive, a network, cloud storage, or a Network Attached Storage (NAS) device as the backup location. Typically, we recommend using a physical external drive or the cloud to store your system image files.

5. If you're interested, you can also customize settings like enabling daily, weekly, monthly, or event-triggered backups, as well as differential and incremental backups. Click "Options," then click "Backup Now" for the Windows backup process to begin. When it's finished, you'll see the backup tasks listed as cards on the left.

Perform a system restore:

* Please try to recover the system with tools Backup Bootable Disk on the unbootable computer.

1. Launch tools Todo Backup and click "Browse to recover".

Click "Browse to Recover"

**Step 2.** Navigate to the backup destination and select the system backup file you need (the backup files created by Todo Backup are with .pbd extension).

3. Select the recovery disk. Make sure that the partition format of the source disk and the recovery disk are the same.

**Step 4:** You can customize the disk layout as you wish, and then click "Continue" to start the system restore.