Tried of Re-Install Windows
Almost all of us have come to the point where we had to reinstall our operating system whether it be Windows, Linux, or MacOS.
Typically, it would take me about 2 hours on a good day to rebuild a machine by completely reinstalling Windows XP, all drivers, and standard software like Firefox, Office, etc.
Restore In Only 20 Minutes
However, restoring a system using imaging software such as Acronis True Image takes only 20 minutes.
While I don't reinstall often, it is a pain when I have to. This is where making an image of your PC can come in handy; you won't have to manually restore everything because you will be able to restore an image.
Making an "image" basically means taking a snapshot (image) of all of the data on your hard drive and storing it in a file which can be restored at a later date. The image contains your operating system (like Windows XP), all files which were on your computer when you made the image, and all configuration settings like your Windows product key, computer name, etc.
When an image is made, you can choose what to make an image of, whether it be a couple of folders or the whole hard drive.
Typically, the image is compressed to save space
Typically, the image is compressed to save space, and can then be stored anywhere you want. It would be a good idea to store the image file on a separate hard drive, like an external hard drive, in the event that your main hard drive dies. If that happens, you'll still have your image in a safe place.
Once you have reinstalled the operating system on a computer, installed all the drivers, configured your settings, and installed your necessary software, it wouldn't be a bad idea to make an image. Making an image takes roughly 20-30 minutes (or longer depending on how much data) and then takes about the same time to restore.
The imaging software I recommend is the Acronis True Image series. Because of the intuitive backup and restore wizards, the software is extremely easy to use with lots of customization.
Create a boot CD
Another thing I really like about the Acronis True Image products is that it lets you create a boot CD which contains all of the same backup and restore utilities found in the main program.
This means that you won't have to load the software onto the PC being imaged; you can just pop in the boot CD and make an image. The image can then be stored in a variety of places such as a hard drive in the PC, a network share, and USB drive.
When the time comes to restore your image because of say, a virus or corrupted system files, the boot CD can be used to restore the image. Just boot from the CD and use the restore wizard to restore your image to your hard drive.
You'll then have a fully functioning system ready to go, in a fraction of the time it would take you to manually reinstall all of the software! This is a fairly common practice used by many IT companies to cut down on time spent.
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