Computer repairs and maintenance has been made all the more easy in modern times thanks to the use of system restore software, data recovery software and backup utilities. In this article, we look at how these three types of utilities can be used in different circumstances to retrieve data and restore system files.
1: Data Recovery Software
File recovery software is generally used when documents have been deleted by accident or the drive has been formatted. They work by scanning the drive looking for data clusters belonging to lost documents. The key to using these tools is to try and use them as promptly as possible after a document has been lost, as any continued usage of the PC will result in new documents overwriting the old.
Some of the best data recovery software options are:
- Remo Undelete: FAT/NTFS support, Windows; Free trial scan.
- Restore My Files Data Recovery: Windows XP/Me/98/2000; Free trial scan.
2: System Restore Software
Restore software utilities are focused on making repairs to operating system programs/files that have become corrupted or faulty due to virus damage, application changes or a variety of other potential causes.
Windows provides its own System Restore utility (accessories/system tools) which maintains backup copies of your OS and registry files and allows you to reload these programs/files using a date stamped working version. This is often a last resort option used when all efforts to fix a computer error have failed.
In contrast, many commercial system restore software utilities and registry cleaners will actually analyze and scan the registry/system files, looking for faults that can be repaired and detecting non-optimized settings. Tools such as Reimage can even complete a missing DLL fix and download updates for out-of-date DLL files or other system programs from their online repository and automatically install them for you.
Suggested tools:
- Reimage: A web-based computer repair service that fixes registry problems and file system issues (device drivers, the operating system and third-party applications). More info & free scan.. | Reimage Review
- XP Repair Pro: Registry and system repair and optimization that scans for over 60,000 common computer errors. More info & free scan.. | XP Repair Pro Review
3: Backup Software
Using backup software for restoring the system or lost documents is one of the more traditional approaches used in PC maintenance. By maintaining backup copies of your critical data, you don’t have to worry about accidentally deleting files or using file recovery software. Modern synchronization tools have made it possible to backup large amounts of data to external hard drives, and even allow you to backup operating system files or do a complete ghost image of the PC if you want to do a full operating system restoration.
Suggested tools:
- Final Sync – Backup solution that allows you to copy/sync files between multiple pieces of hardware (laptop <-> external drives <-> USB memory sticks).
- iDrive/My Live Drive
iDrive – Provides 2GB of space for a full laptop backup. Data is stored online so doesn’t require external hard drives to store the backup data.
In conclusion
These three types of computer repairs and maintenance utilities are best used by always maintaining backup copies of your critical data, keeping the best data recovery software utility you can find installed on your PC (for those times when you accidentally delete a document) and use restore software for those instances when all attempts at repairing computer faults to the operating system have failed.
Related posts:
- System Security virus removal techniques.
