Repairing Windows

When you buy your shiny new PC or laptop it comes with Windows already installed on it. This is great, but what if something goes wrong and Windows won't start? How to you repair or recover it?

Once upon a time a computer would come with the Windows disk, which you could use to reload the operating system if necessary, and which also allowed you to boot from something other than the computer's hard disk. Some PCs and laptops come with a recovery partition - part of the disk is put aside for a few emergency files. They won't allow you to completely reinstall Windows, but you can reboot from that if there is a problem.

However for most users your solution is a repair disk. Often when you start up a new computer it will prompt you to do this, but a lot of people skip the option, intending to do it later. And they don't. Or, in some cases, can't.

Windows 7 Disk Creation

In Windows 7 you can generate a repair disk very easily. You just need a blank CD or DVD, and a drive with a writer/rewriter. Just click Start, type repair, and then click Create a System Repair Disc. Put a blank CD or DVD into your drive, then click Create disc. Windows will then create your disk. Once it's done, file it away somewhere safe.

Things are a little trickier for Vista. Some versions do include a tool for creating a recovery disk. To find out if you have it click Start then All Programs then Maintenance then Create a Recovery Disc. Follow the instructions.

Vista's Panel For Creating A Repair Disk

If you don't have that option then you will have to get the recovery files from elsewhere. We use Neosmart; the files will cost you about $10, but it's a worthwhile investment. They do them for both Windows 7 and Vista, in 32-bit and 64-bit versions (and if you're not sure which version you have then the rule of thumb is that you probably have 32-bit).


You will need to download the files, and follow the instructions they give you. Essentially you will get one file with a '.iso' extension. You need to burn this to a CD or DVD as an image file. You may or may not have software that can do this; if you don't then you can download ImgBurn for free, and there are instructions for doing that, then burning the disk at that link.

In all cases you must create the disk before there is a problem; once your computer is failing to boot, it's too late. You can create one on another machine if you have access, of course. If you use Windows to do it then obviously it has to be the same version as yours. If you download the Vista files, though, you can do that on any machine; we created a disk on a Windows 7 PC in order to repair a Vista machine.

Using your repair disk is simple. If your computer won't start because it says there is a problem with Windows due to possible damage, changes or corruption of files, then stick the repair CD/DVD in your drive. Restart your computer, but hit the 'Esc' key, or whichever key will get you to the boot menu; it should say at the bottom of the screen as the computer powers up. A window will appear displaying possible boot devices; normally there will be two, the HDD (Hard Disk Drive), which should be highlighted, and the CD/DVD drive. Use the arrow keys to select the CD/DVD drive, then press 'Enter'. The computer will then try to boot from your repair CD/DVD rather than the main disk. Follow any on-screen instructions. You may be prompted to repair damaged files; just let the computer do its job and all should be well.

Whilst this all seems to be a bit of a fiddle, it's a job worth doing in order to give you peace of mind and make sure that your computer always starts when you need it.