What is the Recovery file for?

[jyeh74]

I just got a new HP laptop with Windows 7 Home Premium. I notice that there is a D: drive with a file "Recovery". It is about 13.2 BG large! I have a total of 320GB space. There is a separate C drive that has about 282 GB. I dont know why the partitions are spearated into two? It states that the "recovery partition" Warning - this area of you hard drive contains files used to perform a system recovery and do not delete or alter any of these files.

I dont recall having a recovery file this big on my previous brand new computers....especially this large. Any thoughts?

[lowellriggsiam]

It's the back up installation for your Laptop. It is deliberately on a second partition so in the event you need to do a complete reinstall it stays free of the partition needed to be reformated.

[aedipuss]

it's there so they don't have to provide backup dvds of the operating system and programs. you can re-install everything back to the way the computer came at any time, usually it's f12 during boot to get to that menu.

[edDV]

The manual will give instructions for backing up the recovery partition to DVDR discs. You do this in case the hard drive fails completely. Otherwise they will ding you $30 or so to but new recovery discs for that particular laptop.

[jyeh74]

ah, I did notice that they did not provide a Win 7 Home Premium CD, like they used to with Windows XP. So is this why?

What happens if accidentally deleted?

[fritzi93]

you can re-install everything back to the way the computer came at any time.

Yeah, crapware and all.

Jyeh74, make your recovery DVDs. That's what you use if the hard drive goes south and you have to replace it. OTOH, if the OS gets hosed and the hard drive is okay, just re-install from recovery partition.

Many builders have been doing this for a long time, i.e. no install disc. It lowers costs.

[jyeh74]

I am not too familiar with this process. Lets say the recovery partition drive is erased from the hard drive and I dont make a dvd copy, how do I reformat if I need to?

[Ai Haibara]

You can reformat without the recovery partition - you just won't be able to restore the computer to the state it was in when you bought it. That's what the recovery partition (or discs if you create/buy them) is for.

Also, without the recovery partition or discs, you won't have an OS to place on that hard drive if you reformat, unless you have a retail full Windows setup disc.

[edDV]

You can reformat without the recovery partition - you just won't be able to restore the computer to the state it was in when you bought it. That's what the recovery partition (or discs if you create/buy them) is for.

Also, without the recovery partition or discs, you won't have an OS to place on that hard drive if you reformat, unless you have a retail full Windows setup disc.

You would also need to get all the individual laptop drivers and apps from the manufacturer's web site.

[jyeh74]

You can reformat without the recovery partition - you just won't be able to restore the computer to the state it was in when you bought it. That's what the recovery partition (or discs if you create/buy them) is for.

Also, without the recovery partition or discs, you won't have an OS to place on that hard drive if you reformat, unless you have a retail full Windows setup disc.

What I dont understand is how I would reinstall my Windows 7 home premium. It didnt come with a cd. So are you saying if I accidentally delete my recovery partition, I am basically screwed? No way to reformat and reinstall the OS from a F12/F8 boot?

[Ai Haibara]

Not unless you've created (or bought) those recovery discs or have a full Windows 7 setup disc, no.

[jyeh74]

Wow, I wonder how customers who accidentally mess up their HD and dont have a cd (most OEMs dont give a cd these days) reformat their computer and re-install the OS?

[Ai Haibara]

They pay to have someone fix it, do it themselves (after buying a full retail Windows setup package), or buy a new computer.

[edDV]

What I do with a new laptop computer is uninstall/delete all the crapware and then create my own c: partition disc image. Then I can swap that in when I need to reinstall and don't need to deal with the crapware.

Then I install all my needed core apps then make a second partion image. Now I have a choice of backup points.

[jyeh74]

How do I backup the partition from the hard drive? I am using Nero DVD ROM (UDF) but when I try to select the D drive where the partition is on, it is 13GB. (too large)

[Jim44]

Either back it up to another hard drive, or use a disk imaging tool (like Acronis or Macrium Reflect) that can save the partition into separate pieces that will each fit onto a DVD. I've done this with Acronis, and I believe the free version of Reflect has this capability as well (I've just switched over to using Reflect, so am not fully familiar with it's capabilities yet).

[fritzi93]

Are you sure there is no utility on the computer for making restore discs? The last computer I bought (admittedly, it was in 2003 :P ) had a restore partition and, IIRC, a startup menu entry for creating restore discs.

Anyway, I still have that computer for email, etc. Still have the restore discs too that I made. The only original parts left in that computer are the case, mobo, and CPU.

[jyeh74]

Nope, I dont see anything to burn it. I am using Nero 9 burning rom, but yet 13GB is still too large to burn onto a disc.

[Ai Haibara]

Did the system come with any documentation? You might check that - or, with the exact model number of the computer in mind, check the manufacturer's website.

If it has a message on the BIOS screen like F7: Restore, or something like that (I'm not saying that's the key it'll use), you might also try running it to see if it gives you an option to burn restore discs (you might need DVD blanks, though). (I don't know if there are any systems out there that automatically begin the Restore process when you hit the key on the BIOS screen. I doubt it, but I'm also paranoid. )

[jyeh74]

I dont know how to split the recovery file. It is located on my D drive. When I click on it, it doesnt show any files, just has a warning sign not to delete any of the files.

[jyeh74]

I just bought a external hard drive. When I try to drag the 13GB recovery file onto my 500 GB external hard drive, it gives me a message

"the file base.wim is too large for the destination file system"

SKIP or CANCEL

What does this mean?

[Jim44]

Could be that the external drive is formatted FAT32 and the "base.wim" file is bigger than 2GB? If so, change the external drive to NTFS and it should copy.

[TJohns]

Go to a command prompt and type

CONVERT X: /FS:NTFS

where X: is the external drive letter

Trevor

[jyeh74]

Hi guys, I just checked my Western Digital 500 GB hard drive and it is FAT32. If I change the format of the hard drive to NTFS, will it erase everything I have? I currently have half of it full.

Is NTFS better than FAT32? I wonder why the drive was FAT32 when I bought it......

[Jim44]

If I change the format of the hard drive to NTFS, will it erase everything I have? I currently have half of it full.

Wasn't this discussed already somewhere else?

Changing from FAT32 to NTFS should NOT affect the data on the disc, but the wise person backs stuff up before doing ANY disc management. Things can and do go wrong on occasion.

Is NTFS better than FAT32?

NTFS allows for larger file sizes. "Better" is a subjective assessment only you can make.

I wonder why the drive was FAT32 when I bought it......

Some older PCs and non-PC devices (like some set-top boxes and DVD players that have USB ports) may only recognize FAT32-formatted drives. So they are more compatible out of the box. At least that's my guess - all my external drives are NTFS.

[jyeh74]

When I do this, it asks me to "enter current volume label for drive E:"
What does that mean?

Go to a command prompt and type

CONVERT X: /FS:NTFS

where X: is the external drive letter

Trevor

[Jim44]

At a command prompt, type:

dir e:

The first line in the response should be the volume label for the E: drive - that would be what you enter. If it has no label, you can probably just hit "enter".

[jyeh74]

Jim44,

It determines that I have enough space for file conversion. But when it tries to convert file system, I get the error message below:
Data error (cyclical redundancy check)

What is that mean?

At a command prompt, type:

dir e:

The first line in the response should be the volume label for the E: drive - that would be what you enter. If it has no label, you can probably just hit "enter".

[jyeh74]

I try to convert to NTFS on my other Western Digital external hard drive, I get this error message:

"This drive is dirty and cannot be converted. You will need to clear the dirty bit on this drive by running CHKDSK / F or allowing AUTOCHK to run on it the next time you reboot. The conversion failed."

So I reboot and in the command prompt I type CHKDSK /F

but I get "Access denied as you do not have sufficient privileges. You have to invoke this utlitlity running in elevated mode"

So next time I right click on CMD, and "run as administrator". It says
"The type of file system is NTFS.
Cannot lock the current drive."

"Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another process. Would you like to schedule this volume to be chekced the nexy time the system restarts?"

I select Y but when I restart Windows, it checks the C; drive, not my F: drive. I checked my external via explorer and it states that it still is FAT 32. Why did CMD say it is NTFS if windows explorer still says it is FAT32? I am confused.
My WD external is brand new.

[Bjs]

http://h20331.www2.hp.com/Hpsub/cache/312352-0-0-225-121.html

"HP Backup and Recovery Manager is quick and user-friendly. To run, simply go to All Programs > HP Backup & Recovery > HP Backup and Recovery Manager."

Ah ... CHKDSK /F ... nope, this will not do ... you should have CHKDSK ?:/F ... ? is drive letter required

MS Link about chkdsk usage

To format the drive try swissknife