The System Restore tool in Windows is one of the more helpful utilities available to you and is usually a great first step when you're trying to fix a major problem in Windows.
In a nutshell, what the Windows System Restore tool lets you do is revert to a previous software, registry, and driver configuration called a restore point. It's like 'undoing' the last major change to Windows, taking your computer back to the way it was when the restore point was created.
Since a majority of Windows problems involve issues with at least one of those aspects of your operating system, System Restore is a great tool to use early in the troubleshooting process. It also helps that it's really simple to do.
Follow these easy steps to return Windows to a previous, hopefully working, state using System Restore:
Time Required: Using the System Restore tool to undo/reverse changes in Windows usually takes anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, at least in most cases.
How you access System Restore differs between Windows versions. Below are three separate procedures: one for Windows 10, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1, one for Windows 7 or Windows Vista, and one for Windows XP. See What Version of Windows Do I Have? if you're not sure.
How to Use System Restore in Windows 10, 8, or 8.1
If System Restore did not correct the problem, you can either a) repeat the steps above, choosing an even older restore point, assuming one is available, or b) continue troubleshooting the problem.
If this System Restore caused an additional problem, you can undo it, assuming it wasn't completed from Safe Mode (see the Important call-out in Step 10). To undo a System Restore in Windows, repeat steps 1 through 6 above and choose Undo System Restore.
How to Use System Restore in Windows 7 or Windows Vista
How to Use System Restore in Windows XP
More About System Restore & Restore Points
The Windows System Restore utility will not in any way affect your non-system files like documents, music, video, emails, etc. If you were hoping that Windows System Restore would, in fact, restore or 'undelete' any deleted non-system files, try a file recovery program instead.
Restore points don't usually need to be created manually. Assuming System Restore is enabled and working properly, Windows, as well as other programs, should regularly create restore points at critical junctures like prior to a patch being applied, before a new program is installed, etc.
See What Is a Restore Point? for a bigger discussion on restore points and how they work.
System Restore can also be started in any version of Windows by executing rstrui.exe, which might be helpful in certain situations, like when you need to run it from Safe Mode or another limited-access situation.
See How to Start System Restore From the Command Prompt if you need help doing that.
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How to Backup and Restore Device Drivers in Windows 10
If you clean install Windows, you will need to install drivers for each device in the system. Some of these device drivers may no longer be available from the manufacturer, or you misplaced a backup of the driver installation file from the manufacturer. It would be a good idea to back up your device drivers before doing a clean install to make it easy to restore any of these drivers as needed afterwards. This tutorial will show you how to back up and restore all 3rd party device drivers on your Windows 10 PC. You must be signed in as an administrator to be able to backup and restore drivers. CONTENTS:
To Back Up All Device Drivers in Command Prompt
For more usage details about the dism /export-driver command, see: DISM Driver Servicing (.inf) Command-Line Options - Microsoft MSDN 1. Open an elevated command prompt. 2. Enter the command below into the elevated command prompt, and press Enter. (see screenshot below) dism /online /export-driver /destination:'full path of folder'
Substitute full path of folder in the command above with the actual full path of the folder (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') you want to export all 3rd party device drivers into. If this folder doesn't currently exist, you will need to create it first before running the command. For example: dism /online /export-driver /destination:'F:Drivers Backup' 3. When exporting has finished, you can close the elevated command prompt if you like. 4. The device drivers will now be exported into the specified folder location (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') as your backup. (see screenshot below) Remove Driver Restore Windows 10
To Back Up All Device Drivers in PowerShell
For more usage details about the Export-WindowsDriver command, see: Export-WindowsDriver - Microsoft TechNet 1. Open an elevated PowerShell. 2. Enter the command below into the elevated PowerShell, and press Enter. (see screenshots below) Export-WindowsDriver -Online -Destination 'full path of folder' ![]()
Substitute full path of folder in the command above with the actual full path of the folder (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') you want to export all 3rd party device drivers into. If this folder doesn't currently exist, you will need to create it first before running the command. For example: Export-WindowsDriver -Online -Destination 'F:Drivers Backup' 3. When exporting has finished, you can close the elevated PowerShell if you like. 4. The device drivers will now be exported into the specified folder location (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') as your backup. (see screenshot below)
To Restore a Device Driver Backup in Device Manager
1. Open Device Manager. 2. Right click or press and hold on the device (ex: 'Intel(R) RealSense(TM) 3D Camera (Front F200) Depth') you want to restore a driver backup for, and click/tap on Update driver. (see screenshot below) 3. Click/tap on Manually install a driver. (see screenshot below) 4. Follow the steps below to select the folder (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') containing the backup of your device drivers from Option One or Option Two above. (see screenshots below) 1) Click/tap on the Browse button. 2) Navigate to and select the folder (ex: 'F:Drivers Backup') containing the backup of device drivers. 3) Click/tap on OK. 4) Check the Include subfolders box. 5) Click/tap on Next. 5. Device Manager will now search for and install the device driver if it's newer than what is currently installed. (see screenshot below) 6. When you have finished restoring driver backups, you can close Device Manager if you like. That's it, Shawn
Hi,
It is not recommended that you get Drivers though Windows Updates, unless they are for Microsoft's Hardware.
Sometimes Microsoft gives you Updates for 3rd Party Hardware: Graphics, Network Adaptors, etc.
You should only obtain the latest Drivers for them from the actual Computer/Laptop Hardware Manufacturer's website, as Microsoft normally does nor have those latest Drivers available as Microsoft relies of the 3rd Party Hardware Manufacturer to supply them.
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To get rid of those popups about Drivers, scan for Malware:
Download, install, update and scan your System with the free version of Malwarebytes Antimalware:
Ths is a very good Program to scan your System to remove Adware, etc:
AdwCleaner is a program that searches for and deletes Adware, Toolbars, Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUP), and browser Hijackers from your computer. By using AdwCleaner you can easily remove many of these types of programs for a better user experience on your computer and while browsing the web.
Cheers.
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