Windows 10: Need help with using backup recovery usb to new blank hard drive.

Hello, and thank you to anyone who is able to help me. I will start this by saying I am a older person and am not all that computer savvy when it comes to technical stuff so hopefully this won't go over my head. That said I have several times over the years had to replace a hard drive and reinstall windows from a backup source. However, my sister's computer had her hard drive die and I made a backup USB drive from my windows on my computer. I have tried to use it to put windows on the new blank drive, it gets to around 26% and just stalls for an hour or so then gives me a message saying it

:)

 

Data backup and recovery help thread

We get heaps of threads on this, so lets make a nice organised list of programs people can use for backing up, restoring, and recovering data.




For a quick start to this, some pointers.

1. If you formatted a drive and did NOT write to it, recovery is possible. If you installed any data over it (such as windows, or copying files to it) then you need to restore a backup, or accept that you will have lost some, most, or all of your data.

2. Backups are not perfect - for example, a virus that killed your machine could also be in your backup. try and backup your important data first, not your operating system and useless files - and store it in more than one place if possible (for example, an external hard drive AND on DVD)




Now to the programs:

Free Data recovery software
Piriform Recuva - Highly recommended by TPU users, myself included.


The following were listed by 95viper in another thread, i dont know if he's reccomending them or just listed them.
Roadkil's Unstoppable Copier A nice one.*Smile
UNDELETE 360
Free File Recovery 1.1
Glary Undelete
UndeletePlus[/QUOTE]

Paid Data recovery software



Free backup/restore software


Paid backup/restore software
Acronis True Image Home
Paragon Hard Disk Manager Suite 2011 (Paid)[/QUOTE]


please people, help me fill in the blanks so i can request this to get stickied. *Smile

 

Recovery drive from USB

Hello,teddyboyfromoz

Thanks for raising your concerns in Microsoft Community.

Creating a recovery drive on a USB can be a helpful step to have a backup option in case of emergencies or system failures. Let's address your concerns:

• Warning about erasing files:
  
  

When you create a recovery drive using the method you described, the USB drive will indeed be formatted, erasing all the existing files on it. The warning is there to inform you about this fact. However, this process only affects the USB drive you selected for creating the recovery drive, not your internal drive or any other external drives. So, if you have any important files on the USB drive, make sure to back them up to another location before proceeding with the recovery drive creation.

• Risk of data loss due to USB failure:
  
  

If the USB drive you used to create the recovery drive fails, it might prevent you from using the recovery drive to restore your system in the future. However, it does not mean that your files are erased forever from your computer's internal drive or your external Seagate backup drive. The recovery drive is just an additional option to help you repair or reinstall Windows in case of major system issues.



To ensure better data redundancy and protection against a single point of failure, it's recommended to have multiple backup options. In your case, you already have an external backup drive (Seagate), which is a great step for safeguarding your important files.



In summary, creating a recovery drive won't affect your internal drive or Seagate external backup drive. It only formats the USB drive selected for the recovery drive creation. If the USB drive fails in the future, you can still rely on your Seagate backup to restore your important files.

Hope it helps! If any update, welcome to share with us.

Best regards,



Chandy |Microsoft Community Support Specialist

 

Recovery drive from USB

Hi Chandy,

Thank You for your reply and assistance.

Your explanation was perfect, I understood what you weer informing me of, and the way you have done this makes it easy for me to understand it. I was worried, but all good now, and at 74 years old, I do try very hard to get to grips with computing.

Again Thank you very much.

Kind regards