Much to the dismay of companies like Acronis and Norton, every single version of Windows 7 comes with a built in system image disk utility.  Hidden away in the Control Panel, under System and Maintenance is a Backup and Restore icon which gives you access to the utility.  The first time you use it you run the Set up backup to create your first image and specify its location, after that the back up is incremental, Windows 7 will back up the changes to your system, not require you to invest the time needed to make a new image.  You can also create a system repair disk from the same menu.  Benchmark Reviews has a walkthrough on using this tool here.

“Very recently Benchmark Reviews published the Microsoft Windows 7 Upgrade and Installation guide, which helps erase the mistakes made by Windows Vista and introduces computer enthusiasts to the newly introduced O/S. Microsoft has enjoyed a successful launch for their Windows 7 Operating System, also referred to at Win7 or W7, and PCs have been made more productive and secure as a result. But like all good things that we receive, it’s in our nature to protect and keep them. The best way to accomplish this is with a solid backup, and luckily Windows 7 offers a built-in Backup and Restore tool for creating System Images. By creating a backup file users can preserve their data, but with a System Image recovering the source disk can be helpful when replacing the drive with another. In this article, Benchmark Reviews guides users on the best practices for protecting and Recovering Windows 7 with System Image Restore Disks.”

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