Full Restore? Will it delete the backup partition?

The restore feature you speak of is a "disc image" and it will blow everything away (on that particular hard drive) when you use this utility. It will restore the PC to exactly the condition when you first opened the box.

 

"Disc image definition:A disk image is a computer file containing the complete contents and structure of a data storage medium or device"

 

structure is the key word, in other words it will wipe out any partitions that are present before the imaging process.

The rule of thumb is you ALWAYS back up any data you cannot afford to lose when working on a PC.

"If I want to restore my PC back to its original state, as in  Ctrl + F11
will my data on the Backup Partition (D:) be erased?"

 

No, not if it was set up properly, unaltered, and works correctly. (The image is a partition image, not a disk image. In this case, the image is automatically restored to the C: partition, and everything there will be effectively replaced.)

"Also, can I make my own Recovery CD, or do I need one from Dell? (original state)"

 

Dell provides INSTALLATION CDs for the operating system and other software whose distribution is controlled in that manner, plus free downloads for additional drivers, utilities, patches and such that are necessary or preferable following the installation of the operating system, but not a Restore CD.

 

Recovery by RESTORATION of an image is the essence of the Dell PC Restore feature but as designed it presents unnecessary compatibility and reliability issues, in part because it is "tied" to the original hard drive. Dell doesn't offer instructions or tools to back it up, relocate it, or replace it, but you can do all three.

 

Imaging software is the key to creation and restoration of images, an absolutely accurate and much faster alternative to recovery by reinstalling everything from "scratch", but it not a replacement for the ability to perform a clean installation, which allows configuration design options rather than being restricted to selecting from images of a previous state. Both capabilities are invaluable and complimentary.

To provide an alternative to the Dell PC Restore feature and provide the capability to capture additional, updated images as the system configuration evolves over time, obtain imaging software, save an image of your current C: partition, run Dell PC Restore, save another image of the C: partition, then restore the first image of the C: partition. The second image saved is of the original state of the C: partition, restorable by booting the imaging software (not the operating system), and instructing it to restore the selected image (previously saved elsewhere) to the selected partition. completely independant of the Dell PC Restore feature.

This article provides a procedure for copying and relocating the restore utility and the as-shipped image used by the Dell PC Restore feature to a DVD, restorable without need of the Dell PC Restore feature. It requires some technical proficiency, but read the entire article for insight on the feature and see the section titled "Saving a Copy of the Ghost Image" by fololowing the "Restoring the Ghost Image" link. This provides an indirect backup and/or replacement for the Dell PC Restore feature. This is the RESTORE CD you may be seeking, without the need for additional imaging software.

http://www.goodells.net/dellrestore/index.htm

 

 

GM