System Restore
System Restore takes snapshots of system files, installed programs, drivers and the registry, called restore points, and can return Windows to one of them. It undoes changes such as a bad driver or update without touching personal files. It works only on drives where System Protection is turned on.
1What a restore point covers
A restore point covers Windows system files, registry settings, drivers and installed programs. Documents, photos and other personal files are not changed. Programs installed after the restore point are removed, and ones removed after it may come back.
2When restore points are created
Windows creates restore points before some updates and driver installations, and you can create one by hand at any time. The space they may use is set per drive in System Protection; old points are deleted when the space is full.
3Restoring when Windows does not start
System Restore is also available in the Windows Recovery Environment under Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore, which helps when Windows no longer starts.
How to create a restore point
- Press Win+R, type sysdm.cpl and press Enter, then open the System Protection tab.
- If protection for the system drive is Off, select it, choose Configure and turn on system protection.
- Select Create, type a name and select Create again.
- To go back later, select System Restore on the same tab (or run rstrui.exe) and choose a restore point.
Cautions
- System Restore is not a backup: it does not protect personal files.
- Restore points can be deleted by Windows when space runs low, so a point you expect may be missing.
- Turning System Protection off deletes all restore points on that drive.
Related articles
- Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE)What WinRE is, how to open it, what tools it offers, and how to check it with reagentc /info.
- Device ManagerHow to use Device Manager to find devices without drivers, read error codes, update, roll back or uninstall a driver.
- Driver Store (DriverStore\FileRepository)What the Windows Driver Store is, why it grows, and how to list and remove old driver packages safely with pnputil.
Sources
- System Protection (Microsoft Support) support.microsoft.com
- Recovery options in Windows (Microsoft Support) support.microsoft.com
Note: Rain Cleaner makes a restore point and a copy of the current drivers before it installs a driver.
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