using usb as a recovery disk

[alaninline]

I have been following the instructions i found on this site but when i type "cd c:\recovery" I get the message the system cannot find the path specified.

Thanks

 

[samuria]

Welcome to the forum it's two cmds

C:
Cd\recovery

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
You're better off using macrium reflect free for the winpe usb recovery media and also to create a real system image too
Imaging with free Macrium - Windows 7 Help Forums

Backup and Restore with Macrium Reflect Windows 10 Backup Restore Tutorials

 

[alaninline]

using usb

Thank you both for your replies.

Perhaps I need to tell the whole story. My current hard disk has a fault and I need to change it. I have already purchased a new disk and am going to try and install it following the instructions given in Microsoft Community (answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-windows_install/how-to-transfer-windows-7-to-a-new-hard-drive/d36881a5-1a9d-41ce-aa5f-419a50cd8d83?auth=1).

I have backed up my current system image to an external hard drive and only need a recovery disk. Since the DVD drive on my laptop is no longer working I am trying to use a USB instead. I have found several web pages giving me instructions how I can do that, but all of them instruct me to find a file (C:Recovery486aab42-cf02-11de-be22-c44fb1debe9dwinre.wim) on C: recovery. I am unable to find any folder on my computer named "recovery". I have unchecked "hide protected system files".

Thank you for any advice.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Unless the drive is already dead you'd be wise to start over with free macrium reflect which is tried and true to work
I've never had any success with windows images or recovery.
Good luck
Cheers.

 

[alaninline]

Thanks Thrash

I have downloaded M Reflec. But when I try to clone my hard disk I get this message:
macrium reflect read failed - 22 - invalid argument - 32.

I have tried to get help with this and read several articles, but unfortunately my tech knowhow is, well, beginners. Any help or suggestions you can offer, much appreciated.

Thanks

alan

 

[mrjimphelps]

Use Macrium to make an image backup, not a clone backup. A clone backup will likely contain any errors that currently exist on the disk.

And be sure to make an emergency recovery disk to a flash drive. And make sure that the USB drivers are installed to the recovery disk. (I'm sure that they will be, since your recovery disk will be a flash drive; but I'd double-check just to make sure.)

Once you have done both of those, you should be able to successfully install the new drive, boot from the flash drive into Macrium, and do a restore of your Macrium image.

 

[ThrashZone]

HI,
Yes I agree make a system image not a clone
If you made the winpe recovery cd or flash drive you can create an image after restarting and booting to it
Create another partition on the older hard drive hopefully it will fit.
Afterwards connect the new hdd with the same sata cable the old one is in
Connect the older one using usb or another sata port
Restart and boot to the recovery media and point reflect to the image you created and then point it to the new drive.

 

[alaninline]

Thank you both for your advice.

In the end I was able to make a DVD copy of the reflect recovery disk, and an image backup to an external hard disk. (At the same time I made a windows 7 recovery disk to a DVD and a system image to another external hard)

After installing my new internal hard, I was unable to boot the computer using the reflect recovery disk and so used the windows 7 recovery disk and system image.

I won't say it went smoothly, but it's certainly seems to have done the job.

Any ideas why the reflect recovery disk was not seen by my computer, (dell inspirion 5100)?

Anyway, thank you very much for your time and assistance.

alan

 

[RolandJS]

"...Any ideas why the reflect recovery disk was not seen by my computer..."
My computers now and then fail to recognize either a USB or a DVD boot, I make both a USB and a DVD boot, so when one fails for some reason, the other item usually works.
And, I also have no idea why a USB or DVD doesn't boot now and then.

 

[mrjimphelps]

Any ideas why the reflect recovery disk was not seen by my computer, (dell inspirion 5100)?

Did you set your computer's BIOS to be able to boot from the flash drive? And did you put both the USB boot and the DVD boot earlier in the boot order than the internal hard drive?

 

[Ranger4]

When using the Reflect recovery Boot disc you need to give it a few minutes to actually start. I have found it does take a while to actually open, so don't expect instant results.