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If I am about to make changes that might crash my whole operating system, would it be wise to create a Windows 10 restore point, and how would I do this to ensure that the restoration will complete successfully

Sathyajith Bhat
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Darius
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    Yes it would be wise. – Xavierjazz Jan 06 '16 at 22:30
  • Instead of using restore points in your case, I would make an image with e.g. free Macrium. Restore points can be very volatile. Images you control yourself and are a safe bet. – whs Jan 06 '16 at 22:47
  • @whs You don't need a 3rd party tool to make a system image backup [How to create Windows 10 system image backup and restore it](http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/how-create-windows-10-system-image-backup-restore-it-1513321). It's built in. – DavidPostill Jan 06 '16 at 23:11
  • If you use the built-in imaging tool, just make sure it works - because usually it does not. That is the beauty with Macrium - it always works and you control the images. Try to move/relocate an image from the built-in tool and report back what happened. – whs Jan 06 '16 at 23:20
  • Careful of saying always everything (most) fails at some point – Ramhound Jan 07 '16 at 00:00
  • System Restore will not fix every possible thing you could do to damage the OS, I would suggest you make a full system image backup instead....http://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-create-a-system-image-in-windows-10/ – Moab Jan 07 '16 at 00:40
  • @whs statistical claims need to be backed by data. Unless you work for Macrium ofc... – jiggunjer Jan 07 '16 at 01:50
  • Why don't you prove that I am not right. You must be another one of those nitpickers. 60 years in computers tells me when something is right - and yes, I wrote my first program in 1958. – whs Jan 07 '16 at 01:54
  • @Darius I think by default restore points are already created in many cases. See https://superuser.com/questions/242157/ways-of-backup-and-restore-recovery-in-windows-7 for the difference between restore points and backups. – jiggunjer Jan 07 '16 at 02:02
  • @whs backup utilities changed over the last 60 years. I am not making any claims, my stance is "I don't know if A is better than B". You are the one making a claim, in science that means *you* need corroborate that claim somehow. If you say you have a lot of experience with the *modern* Windows backup system, then that helps your case. I'm no nitpicker, I just think people who bash a product need to justify it. – jiggunjer Jan 07 '16 at 02:11
  • @whs - You call it nitpicking. Of course when I read a statement, I expect it to be true factional information, and when I see a word like "always" the scientist in me screams "Warning Warning Will Robinson!!" – Ramhound Jan 07 '16 at 15:01

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To create a restore-point in Win10:

  • In the task-bar search box ("I'm Cortana...)
  • type in "Restore"
  • Popup menu shows "Create a restore point", click to select this
  • The System Properties dialog box show up - System Protection tab displaying
  • Make sure the C drive protection setting is ON.
  • Click on the "Create..." button to create a restore-point. Enter the name of the restore-point and select Create.
  • Done.

To restore to a restore-point (AKA rollback your system) - Same steps as before. - Instead of "Create..", select "System Restore..." button - Select the restore-point you want and restore.

Typically, you should create a restore point before installing any not well-known software, drivers, etc. Any suspicion of malware or ill behaviors (system crashed, slow, etc), you should use the restore-point to rollback the system.

JamesNW
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  • Windows automatically creates a restoration point when software or drivers are installed. – Ramhound Jan 07 '16 at 15:02
  • yes thanks for all the valuable advice, Macrium sounds good but I have to make sure that it is safe and stable.. there might be other good options like Norton's whole system imaging and recovery program, but not Norton but something like that from a major reputable company, I shall look into both those options and any others that I may find. thanks probably firewall and antivirus program companies might offer a backup and recovery program suite. – Darius May 16 '18 at 17:53