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As you probably know, you should be performing backups of your important files on a regular basis. Many people like to do file level backups while others like to do image backups which backup the operating system, programs and your files. When it comes to restoring backup images, there are a couple of ways to do so. Most of the time, you will use the backup software within Windows to restore the image back to the computer.
But if for some reason you can’t load Windows to restore your backup image, you can boot into the recovery mode of the backup software and restore it that way, assuming the software you are using supports this method. In this video, we will be showing you how to create & restore a Windows backup image in Macrium Reflect using the recovery media option. This way you can restore your computer even if it won’t boot into Windows.
The main thing you need to realize when using this method is that you need to create recovery media before your computer crashes, otherwise you will not have a way to restore your backup image.
Creating a Windows backup image using Macrium Reflect
If you play on making a bootable CD\DVD or flash drive, then you will need to click on Other Tasks and then Create Rescue Media. You will then click on ISO file and choose a name and location where you will have the ISO file created. Then you can burn it to a CD\DVD or create a bootable flash drive using a tool such as Rufus.
There is also an option to add an entry for Macrium Reflect to the Windows boot menu. When you do this, you will have an option to boot into the Macrium Reflect recovery mode when you turn on your computer.
To create the Windows backup image, you can click on the Create Backups tab and choose your Windows drive. There you will see two options for creating a system image. Both the image selected disks on this computer and the create an image of the partitions required to backup and restore Windows work in a similar manner. If you use the image selected disks on this computer option, just be sure to choose all the partitions on your Windows drive.
Once you select your Windows drive and its partitions, you will need to specify where you want to save the backup image and also give it a name. Just be sure to save it on a different drive other than your Windows drive.
Clicking on Advanced Options will allow you to change a variety of settings for your backup job such as the compression level and file size. You can also have your image verified to make sure there is nothing wrong with it. There is even an option to send email notifications when the job is complete.
It is also possible to schedule the backup job if you plan on making backups on a regular basis. If it is not obvious, you should know that your backup will only be as current as the date and time it was made. So if you restore a backup image that is 6 months old, any changes on your computer such as updates, new apps and edited files that have been made since that last backup will be lost.
Once you have everything configured the way you want, you will then be shown a summary screen, and you can then click on the Finish button to start the backup.
You will then be prompted to save your backup settings in a definition file in case you want to run this backup again with the same options. This is an optional step but can come in handy when repeating backup jobs.
The Windows backup image will then be created and should not take that long but the process will vary depending on the size of your hard drive and how many files and folders are on it.
Restoring a Windows backup image using Macrium Reflect
When it comes to restoring a Windows backup image, there are a couple of ways to accomplish this. You can boot your computer to the recovery image you created on a CD or flash drive to get into the Macrium recovery mode.
If you chose the option to add an entry to the Windows boot menu, you can then choose the Macrium Reflect System Recovery option when you start your computer. This is the screen you will see each time you boot your computer, and you can simply click on the Windows option to start your computer normally. If you do not choose an option, it will eventually time out and load Windows.
Either method will get you into the Macrium recovery section as seen in the image below. It will look very similar to the interface you used to create the image.
You will then click on the Existing Backups tab and if you do not see your backup image, you can right click All Folders and browse to the location where you saved the image file. Once you have found the image you want to restore, you can right click on it and choose Restore Image.
Macrium should then show you the source and destination drives which should both be the same drive since you are restoring your backup image over your current Windows installation.
After you click the Next button, you will then be shown a summary screen and at the lower left, there will be a link for Advanced Options where you can customize how the restoration will be performed.
After you click the Next button, you will have to check the box that says All target volume data will be overwritten to continue.
The image restore process will then start and your computer will automatically be rebooted after the process is complete unless you change the option from the dropdown menu next to After Restore. If you chose the option to have the boot menu shown, you will then need to choose Windows rather than Macrium Reflect System Recovery.
Once your computer reboots, you will then be running the version of Windows that was made during the image creation process.
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