Restoring Your System from a Restore Point
Sometimes, installing software or device drivers has an adverse impact on your system. Setting a Restore Point prior to an installation allows you to reset your system to its previous state in case you discover that installing the new software wasn't such a good idea. (How to set a Restore Point is covered in another tip.) Assuming you had set a Restore Point, you can revert your system back to its previous condition by doing a system restore.
To do a system restore follow these steps if you are using Windows 8:
- Move the mouse pointer into the very bottom-left corner of the screen and right-click. You should see a Context menu appear.
- Choose the System option. Windows displays the System area of the Control Panel. (See Figure 1.)
Figure 1. The System dialog box.
- Click the System Protection link at the left of the dialog box. Windows displays the System Protection tab of the System Properties dialog box. (See Figure 2.)
Figure 2. The System Protection tab of the System Properties dialog box.
- Click the System Restore button. You will then be taken through a wizard that allows you to select what Restore Point you wish to use and then perform the restore.
If you are using Windows 7 the steps are a bit different. (The biggest difference is how you get to the first dialog box.). Follow these steps:
- Click Start, right-click Computer, and select Properties from the resulting Context menu. Windows displays the System area of the Control Panel. (See Figure 3.)
Figure 3. The System dialog box.
- Click the System Protection link at the left of the dialog box. Windows displays the System Protection tab of the System Properties dialog box. (See Figure 4.)
Figure 4. The System Protection tab of the System Properties dialog box.
- Click the System Restore button. You will then be taken through a wizard that allows you to select what Restore Point you wish to use and then perform the restore.
This tip (12212) applies to Windows 7 and 8.
Author Bio
Barry Dysert
Barry has been a computer professional for over 35 years, working in different positions such as technical team leader, project manager, and software developer. He is currently a software engineer with an emphasis on developing custom applications under Microsoft Windows. When not working with Windows or writing Tips, Barry is an amateur writer. His first non-fiction book is titled "A Chronological Commentary of Revelation." Learn more about Barry...
Toggling Delete Confirmation
When you delete a file, Windows typically asks you if you are sure you want to make the deletion. You can control this ...
Discover More
Determining if You Have 32-bit or 64-bit Windows
There are occasions when you may want to know whether you're running the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows. This tip ...
Discover More
Understanding Windows SIDs
This tip presents some information about Windows SIDs (Security Identifiers) and shows you some tools that you can use to ...
Discover More
How To Enable Jump Lists
Jump lists are handy time savers. Some consider them a privacy issue, though. Whichever way you see it, this tip shows ...
Discover More
Draw Where You Want to Go
When you need directions to just get to a certain general area, you can quickly use the Map app to get you there without ...
Discover More
Using Folder Properties to Count the Number of Files or Folders
Would knowing the number of files inside a folder be helpful? You can use the Folder Properties to count the items within ...
Discover More
Comments