SYSTEM RESTORE

System Restore is a handy Windows feature that will help you roll back your computer to a previous state. It's very useful in case of minor faults like incorrect software installations and driver conflicts. However, you must understand that System Restore does not actually back up your computer and doesn't monitor your personal files. This means that you should never rely on it alone.

Now, some people claim that disabling System Restore will boost computer performance. That's not true. System Restore only kicks in when your system is idle, which means it can't slow you down. However, System Restore can and does waste disk space. Like a lot of things in Windows, the default System Restore configuration is not ideal for most users and takes up too much space. So, if you have better plans for your gigabytes, you should configure System Restore to eat up less space.

Windows 7 users:

The Windows System Restore function got immensely improved since the days of XP. The Windows 7 version of System Restore is filed under System Protection and does a lot more thorough job at protecting you from data loss by using Shadow Copy features. Basically, this means that Windows can create snapshots of your drive and backs up your files even when they are in use. This makes the Windows 7 System Restore a lot more effective and improves your chances of successful recovery.

All the configuration tips that I recommend for XP apply to Windows 7 as well. To configure System Restore in Windows 7 do the following:

1. Go to Start and right-click on Computer. Go to Properties
2. Click on the System Protection link on the left-hand side
3. Click on Configure to manage System Restore settings and the amount of disk space it uses

Now let me show you how to manually create restore points in

Windows 7:

1. Click on Start and right-click on Computer. Go to Properties
2. Now click on the System Protection link on the left-hand side
3. Click on the Create button to set a new restore point
4. Type in a description that will help you identify this restore point
5. Click Create and you're done!

Windows XP users:

The XP version of System Restore is pretty basic and quite often pretty useless. For a start, it's slow (big surprise) and it often doesn't do what you want it to do. It's still worth having it enabled, though, just in case. To check whether System Restore is enabled, press the Windows key + the Pause/Break key to open the System Properties window and go to the System Restore tab. There you'll see the list of your disks and partitions, as well as System Restore status.

If you use a third-party restore program, you can disable the Windows one altogether.

This will free up heaps of space without putting you at risk. You can disable System Re- store by checking the relevant check-box.

If you have more than one disk or a couple of partitions on your computer, then you don't need System Restore to be monitoring all of them; it's enough to monitor the drive or partition where the OS is installed. Usually it's drive (C:). To disable System Restore on all other drives, highlight them one by one, click on Settings and check the relevant check-box.

It's a good idea to restrict the amount of space System Restore can use for its purposes.

To do this, simply go to the System Restore tab, click on Settings, and adjust the slider.

Set it to something like 5% and you'll be fine.

Sometimes you might want to create a restore point manually, especially before tweaking or installing unknown applications. It might prove handy - you never know. Creating a restore point is dead easy:

1. Click on Start - All Programs - Accessories - System tools and then click on System Restore
2. Select Create a restore point and click Next
3. Describe your restore point, so that you can easily find it in case you need it
4. Click on Create to create the restore point.

Right, now you know how to use and configure System Restore.