Be Careful When You Use System Restore
Lots of people have used System Restore to recover from an issue that caused their computer to go haywire. It can be a life saver.
However, there are a few things that you need to remember when you use System Restore.
First, think about this logically. What is System Restore doing if you restore, say, back to last Tuesday?
Have you uninstalled any software since then? Have you installed any new software since then? Have you updated any software, drivers, or even Windows itself since then?
Any idea what’s going to happen when you do that System Restore back to last Tuesday?
That’s right. Any changes you made to the system, not your data, since last Tuesday will be gone. In some cases you could actually confuse the hell out of the system if there were major changes made.
For instance, if you removed McAfee and installed Avast since last Tuesday, after you do the System Restore, the computer is going to think that McAfee is your anti-virus when it is not even on the computer any more. And, Avast won’t work because part of it’s settings will be missing.
This is a mess to clean up. I know, I just had to do it for a customer.
So, how do get around problems that can be caused when you do a System Restore?
The first thing to do is pay attention to the names given to the restore points when you look at the calendar with the dates they were created. There will be a name of the restore point. Something like “Installed Photoshop” or “Windows Update”. Look at all of the restore points AFTER the date you are going to restore to. They will have to be redone.
As an example, if you have to restore to a date PRIOR to date you installed Photoshop, you will know that you will need to reinstall Photoshop after you do the restore.
Also, System Restore does not protect and work you have done. If you somehow lost a photograph or a document you created, System Restore will NOT bring it back.
System Restore only works for the Windows Operating System. It’s meant as an emergency procedure to get your computer working again if something causes Windows to fail. That’s it.
A good backup routine is much better in many cases than System Restore. It is a last resort.
