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HP Pavilion Slimline s3400f Desktop PC Troubleshooting

Backing Up Your Files (Windows Vista)

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This document pertains to all HP and Compaq PCs with Windows Vista.
Unfortunately, most people think to back up their files after it is too late. There are many ways that the information on your computer can be unintentionally lost. A child accidentally removing programs or data, a power surge, natural disasters. It is recommended to regularly make backup copies of your files and keep them in a separate place. Doing so helps replace some, if not all, of your information back in the event something occurs to the originals on your computer.

Backing up files using Windows Vista native CD burning

Use Windows Vista to back up your important files onto a CD. Use the steps in this section to create a backup disc.

Before you Begin

Before backing up your files, make a list of the important files that cannot be easily replaced. Use the list to keep track of files while creating the disc and to retrieve files later if needed. Here are some file suggestions to get you started when creating a list:
  • Documents folder
  • Digital photographs
  • Bank records and other financial information
  • Your e-mail address book
  • Your Internet bookmarks

Creating the backup disc

Now that a list of backup files has been made, you are ready to begin. Follow these steps to back up your files using Windows Vista:
NOTE:CDs can hold about 700 MBs of information depending on the type of writable CD used. If the collection of files you want to copy is greater than the CD is capable of holding, repeat this process using more CDs. You cannot use this process to copy single files larger than a CD is capable of holding.
  1. Place a blank CD-R or CD-RW disc in the CD or DVD writable drive. CD-RW discs can be used many times and can have files rewritten or deleted in a later session.
    A window for the writable drive opens automatically. If a window does not open, click Start , Computer , and then click the writable drive. Then skip to step 3.
    Figure 1: AutoPlay window
  2. Click Burn files to disc .
  3. In the next window, enter a disc title and then click Next .
    Figure 2: Prepare the disc window
  4. In the next window, click Yes to format the disc.
    NOTE:Formatting the disc takes time. Do not shut down the computer until the format is complete.
    When formatting is complete, the disc drive window opens.
    Figure 3: Disc drive window
  5. Open the Computer window or Windows Explorer and browse to the files.
  6. Click the files from other windows or from Windows Explorer. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the files into the window for the CD or DVD drive. Release the left mouse button to drop the files and burn to disc. As you drag files into the disc drive folder, Windows Vista automatically burns files to CD.
    Continue copying files until all files are in the disc drive folder window and have been copied to the CD.
You have now created a backup CD in case anything occurs to the original files. Create a backup copy of these files on a regular basis to prevent loss of important information.
Label the CD with a descriptive name and store in a safe place. To restore the files from the CD, insert the CD into the disc drive and move the files to the hard disk drive.
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Using the Windows Back Up Files wizard

The Windows Back Up Files wizard enables you to create backup copies of files and folders. You can also set the wizard to automatically back up new and modified files on a regular basis.
NOTE:You cannot set up automatic backups in Windows Vista Starter and Windows Vista Home Basic.
If the computer has Windows Vista Ultimate or Windows Vista Business, use Windows Complete PC Backup to create an image of the entire computer. This image can be used to recover from a hardware failure. For more information, see Using Windows Complete PC Backup .
Follow these steps to use Windows Back Up Files wizard to back up your files
  1. Click Start , and then click Control Panel .
  2. Under System and Maintenance , click Back up your computer .
    The Backup and Restore Center opens.
    Figure 4: Backup and Restore Center
  3. In Windows Vista Home Basic:
    Click Change settings under Back up files .
    The Backup Status and Configuration window opens.
    Figure 5: Backup Status and Configuration window
    Click Run a file backup now .
    In all other versions of Windows Vista, click Back up files in the Backup and Restore Center window.
  4. Choose the location to save the backup, either On a hard disk, CD, or DVD or On a network .
    WARNING:Do not save the backup to the recovery partition: FACTORY_IMAGE or Recovery . Doing so corrupts the HP Recovery information.
    Figure 6: Back Up Files Wizard
  5. If you choose to save on a hard disk, CD, or DVD, select the drive from the drop-down menu.
    If you choose to save on a network, click Browse to navigate to the network location.
  6. Click Next .
  7. Choose the hard disk drives to back up and click Next .
    Figure 7: Hard disk drive selection window
  8. Make sure a check is in the check box next to all of the file types you want to back up and then click Next .
    Figure 8: File type selection window
    Place the mouse cursor over each category name for more information about what types of files are included in that category.
  9. Set the schedule for future automatic backups:
    Figure 9: Backup schedule window
    • How often - choose to create backups Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
    • What day - choose the day of the week to create backups. If you choose to create daily backups, this list is blank.
    • What time - choose the time of day to create backups.
  10. Click Save settings and start backup .
    Windows Back Up Files wizard creates a full backup of the file types you selected. The wizard backs up only new and changed files during future scheduled backups.

Restoring files using the Windows Back Up Files wizard

Use the Windows Backup Files wizard to restore all of the files that you backed up using the wizard. Follow these steps to restore your backup files:
  1. If the backup files are on a CD or DVD, insert the CD or DVD into the disc drive.
    If the files are on an external hard disk drive, connect the hard disk drive to the computer.
  2. Click Start , and then click Control Panel .
  3. Under System and Maintenance , click Back up your computer .
    The Backup and Restore Center opens.
  4. Click Restore Files .
    The Restore Files window opens.
    Figure 10: Restore Files window
  5. Choose to restore Files from the latest backup or Files from an older backup , and then click Next .
    If you choose to restore files from an older backup, select the date and time of the backup and then click Next .
    Figure 11: Select files and folders window
  6. Select files and folders to restore by clicking Add files , Add folders , or Search .
  7. When done adding files and folders, click Next .
    Figure 12: Restore location window
  8. Choose to save the restored files In the original location or In the following location .
    If you choose to save the restored files in a different location, click Browse to save to another location.
  9. Click Start restore .
    The Windows Back Up Files wizard now restores the files.
  10. When the wizard has finished restoring the files, click Finish on the verification screen.
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Using Windows Complete PC Backup (Windows Vista Ultimate and Windows Vista Business only)

If your computer has Windows Vista Ultimate or Windows Vista Business, use Windows Complete PC Backup to create an image of the entire computer. This image can be used to recover from a hardware failure.
Follow these steps to use Windows Complete PC Backup:
  1. Click Start , and then click Control Panel .
  2. Under System and Maintenance , click Back up your computer .
    The Backup and Restore Center opens.
    Figure 13: Backup and Restore Center
  3. Click Back up computer .
    The Windows Complete PC Backup window opens.
    Figure 14: Windows Complete PC Backup
  4. Choose the location to save your backup, either On a hard disk or On one or more DVDs , and then click Next .
    WARNING:Do not save the backup to the recovery partition: FACTORY_IMAGE or Recovery . Doing so corrupts the HP Recovery information.
  5. If you selected On a hard disk in step 4, continue to step 6.
    If you selected On one or more DVDs in step 4, select the check boxes next to each of the hard disk drives to include in the backup. Click Next when finished.
    Figure 15: Hard disk drive selection window
  6. Make sure the backup settings are correct and then click Start backup .
    Windows Complete PC Backup creates an image of your entire computer. This image can be used to recover from a hardware failure.

Restoring the computer from a Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore image

Windows Complete PC Backup allows you to restore your computer in case of a hardware failure. Follow these steps to restore the computer from a Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore image:
  1. If the backup image is on DVDs, insert the first DVD into the disc drive.
    If the image is on an external hard disk drive, connect the hard disk drive to the computer.
  2. Restart the computer.
  3. Press the F8 key repeatedly when the first screen appears, about once every second, until a menu appears.
  4. Use the Up Arrow or Down Arrow keys to select Restore Your Computer , and then press the Enter key.
  5. Select a language and keyboard layout and then click Next .
  6. Select your user name, enter your password, and then click OK .
    The System Recovery Options window opens.
    Figure 16: System Recovery Options window
  7. Click Windows Complete PC Restore .
    The Windows Complete PC Restore window opens.
    Figure 17: Windows Complete PC Restore window
  8. Select Restore the following backup (recommended) to restore the latest backup or select Restore a different backup to select a different backup to restore, and then click Next .
    If you choose to restore a different backup, select the backup you wish to restore and then click Next .
    The confirmation window opens.
    Figure 18: Confirmation window
  9. If desired, place a check in the box next to Format and repartition disks to format and repartition the hard disk drives to match the layout of the backup.
  10. Click Finish to restore the computer.
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