How to backup Windows 7 without third-party programs

Few users of Windows 7 are aware of such a very useful feature, like creating a backup copy of the installed operating system. What is it and how to make a backup copy of Windows 7, we will analyze here and now.

What is this function?

Backup is the function of the operating system, which with the help of the archiving tools can create a backup copy of the information of the user and the OS as a whole. There are a lot of benefits from it, because with its help you can make an image of the OS, through which you can then restore the damaged operating system. This will become a real lifeline if the recovery point is not created and you can not rollback. Of course, the recovery point is also desirable to do in case of damage to the OSes, but there are different situations in which the good old rollback does not help. For example, when the system does not start, but the disk on which Windows 7 is written is not at hand.

Why not rollback?

Unlike rollback (the restore function is different), which simply returns the system to a previously saved state, the backup just saves the user settings and the Windows 7 image as a whole. The benefit of this is enormous. For example, by reinstalling Windows 7, you will be able to restore all user data that was erased during the reinstallation process.

And in case the operating system fails, it can always be restored to the normal state with a backup, in addition, drivers, programs and personal data (save and profiles in games, etc.) will also be restored.

How do I backup Windows 7?

Creating a copy of the operating system is a fairly large number of utilities. In addition, Windows 7 has enough functionality for this. Before creating a backup of Windows 7, you need to do the following moves.

We walk in the Start menu, where in "All Programs" we are looking for the "Maintenance" daddy. In it we find and click on the item "Backup and Restore". There are also a couple of alternative ways to open this function:

• Open the "Start", enter into the search line "Backup and restore" and move on when it appears;
• We pass into the control panel, where the "Backup and Restore" section immediately catches your eye.

It does not matter which method of opening will be chosen, the main thing is that the window with this service is open. There you can use three functions:

• Set up a backup;
• Create an OS image;
• Create a disk designed to return to the normal state of the system.

Perhaps, we'll start with how to create a backup copy of Windows 7, then consider the other two functions.

Backup

To do this, click on the "Backup and Restore" box on the highlighted blue hyperlink "Configure backup". The Backup Settings window appears. At this stage, you will have to wait a little. Patience will be rewarded with the appearance of a window called "Backup settings", where you will be offered to choose the location of saving the copy. Of course, you can create a reserve on disk D, for example. But in the event that all data from the hard drive is deleted or damaged, then there will be no sense from the backup. Therefore, it is best to store the reserve on an external hard drive. In addition, if you connect an external hard drive, the system will offer nothing more than to make a backup copy of the Windows 7 system to it. When the selection is made, proceed with the "Next" button.

In the next window you need to choose, leave the selection of files for Windows archiving or choose which data will be archived (individual files, folders, disks). By the way, this feature can help in how to backup Windows 7 drivers.

If there is no trust to the operating system, and it was decided to distribute the data manually, in the appeared window it is necessary to click "Include disk system image: (C)", so that you can restore the faulty system using the reserve, and note the birds necessary data. By tradition, click on "Next". Before making a backup copy of Windows 7, we check the correctness of all settings. After - "Save and run."

Create an OS image

This time, we click on "Create an image" instead of a fad like how to make a backup copy of the Windows 7 disk. In this case, an image is created that includes the disks necessary for normal operation of the OS. We are in the window for selecting the location of the future image. It is best to choose a portable (that is, external) hard drive, since the image can weigh several tens, and even hundreds of gigabytes. Next, select the disks from which the image will be created. In the next window, we check again the disks that will be in the image, then click "Archive".

Create Recovery Disk

This is done there, instead of such an item as making a backup copy of Windows 7, only it is located next to the image creation button. However, this step is not necessary for those who have Windows 7 on the disk, and who can use it to return the system to its normal state. For those who do not have such a disk, it is useful to go through this procedure, since in case of serious damage to the OS, it will be necessary to restore it.

To do this, you will need an empty DVD or CD-ROM, since the files for recovery will weigh approximately 150 MB. In the "Backup and Restore" window, click "Create System Disk". We insert the disk into the drive, select it from the list and click on the "Create disk" button. We are waiting for the disk creation process to come to an end, after which we take out the disk.

Now this disk can be used in case the operating system orders to live for a long time, and it will not be possible to enter it from the safe mode.