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- Restoring Your System Image and Software
Restoring Your System Image and Software
It is very important that you create DVD copies of your Factory Image and Bootable Disc (along with other
applicable media such as application discs) before beginning to use your system. To do so, follow the
instructions in the “Saving Your Factory Image” and “Creating Backup Images of Factory Image and Discs”
sections of this chapter.
Saving and Recovering Your Factory and System Images
Along with instructions on saving your Factory Image, this document outlines several other important procedures,
such as making a system image, restoring your Factory Image and system images, managing your images, and
restoring the partitions on a hard drive.
Saving your Factory Image
When you purchased your new system, a copy of the pre-installed Factory Image was loaded into a hidden partition
on your hard disk drive. Having a copy of the original Factory Image available to you means that in the event of system
failure, you will be able to restore it to its original state.
• IN ORDER TO INSTALL APPLICATIONS AND DRIVERS, MAKE COPIES OF FACTORY AND SYSTEM IMAGES, AND BURN
APPLICATION MEDIA AND BOOTABLE DISCS YOU MUST HAVE AN INTERNAL OR EXTERNALLY CONNECTED WRITABLE
DVD
DRIVE.
• IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT YOU COPY YOUR FACTORY IMAGE TO REMOVABLE MEDIA (E.G., DVD DISCS).
F
AILURE TO DO SO COULD RESULT IN AN INABILITY TO RESTORE THE IMAGE AT A FUTURE DATE.
• WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU USE DVD-R OR DVD+R DISCS FOR YOUR BACKUP, BUT SUPPORTED MEDIA* FOR IMAGE
BACKUPS INCLUDE:
FOR FACTORY IMAGE, APPLICATION DATA, AND BOOTABLE DISC: DVD-R/+R.
FOR USER-CREATED BACKUP IMAGE: DVD-R/+R, DVD-RW/+RW, DVD-DL.
* DEPENDING UPON YOUR OPTICAL DRIVE AND MEDIA FORMAT USED, SOME MEDIA TYPES MAY BE INCOMPATIBLE FOR
CREATING IMAGE BACKUPS.
DUE TO CERTAIN LICENSING REQUIREMENTS, SOME THIRD-PARTY APPLICATIONS WILL NEED TO BE INSTALLED SEPARATELY USING THE APPLICATION
MEDIA BUNDLED WITH YOUR SYSTEM.