RESTORE - Bill Gates Lied

  • Thread starter Thread starter Smart Alex
  • Start date Start date
S

Smart Alex

When using System RESTORE the "Welcome" screen clearly states the SYSTEM
will be restored to an earlier time without causing you to lose saved work,
such as documents, e-mail, etc.

This is a lie. I restored and lost hundreds of Corel and Adobe files. Now in
a panic I REVERSED the restore and lost MORE files. Entire folders were
missing.

This is not a request for help but a statement that the Windows XP RESTORE
function cannot be trusted to retain files and folders. BACK UP EVERYTHING
before you restore. (which we should do anyway).

I would be happy to see how someone might want to explain this away.

(not so)Smart-Alex
 
If a program was installed after the restore point that you are restoring
to was created, the program might be uninstalled as part of the restoration
process. Data files that are created with the program are not lost. However,
in order to open the files again, you must reinstall the associated program.

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Smart Alex" (e-mail address removed) wrote in message:

| When using System RESTORE the "Welcome" screen clearly states the SYSTEM
| will be restored to an earlier time without causing you to lose saved work,
| such as documents, e-mail, etc.
|
| This is a lie. I restored and lost hundreds of Corel and Adobe files. Now in
| a panic I REVERSED the restore and lost MORE files. Entire folders were
| missing.
|
| This is not a request for help but a statement that the Windows XP RESTORE
| function cannot be trusted to retain files and folders. BACK UP EVERYTHING
| before you restore. (which we should do anyway).
|
| I would be happy to see how someone might want to explain this away.
|
| (not so)Smart-Alex
|
|
 
What was the path to your lost data files? If you had them in My
Documents you would not have lost them. If you had them in with
program files or in a folder such as c:\docs then I think XP does not
consider them as user data files

John Allen
 
When using System RESTORE the "Welcome" screen clearly states the SYSTEM
will be restored to an earlier time without causing you to lose saved work,
such as documents, e-mail, etc.

This is a lie. I restored and lost hundreds of Corel and Adobe files. Now in
a panic I REVERSED the restore and lost MORE files. Entire folders were
missing.

This is not a request for help but a statement that the Windows XP RESTORE
function cannot be trusted to retain files and folders. BACK UP EVERYTHING
before you restore. (which we should do anyway).

I would be happy to see how someone might want to explain this away.

(not so)Smart-Alex
Click to expand...

System Restore Tip: If you are in the habit of storing data files on the
desktop, move them to the My Documents folder for safekeeping before
reverting to a restore point.
 
When using System RESTORE the "Welcome" screen clearly states the SYSTEM
will be restored to an earlier time without causing you to lose saved work,
such as documents, e-mail, etc.

This is a lie. I restored and lost hundreds of Corel and Adobe files. Now in
a panic I REVERSED the restore and lost MORE files. Entire folders were
missing.

This is not a request for help but a statement that the Windows XP RESTORE
function cannot be trusted to retain files and folders. BACK UP EVERYTHING
before you restore. (which we should do anyway).

I would be happy to see how someone might want to explain this away.

(not so)Smart-Alex
Click to expand...

System Restore Tip #2: If you have multiple drives, disable System Restore
on all but the Windows drive and optionally on whatever drive you install
programs to.
 
Some good comments here...but I maintain that Microsoft is still liable and
needs to be, at minimum, clearer with instructions regarding these issues
brought up in the replies.

(1) First of all, I did take care to choose a restore point that was AFTER I
had installed the program that created the files. (If this is indeed will
cause on to lose those files, then XP ought to point that out. It simply
asserts that you will not lose files. PERIOD.

(2) Good point about keeping files in My Documents. The lost files in
question were in two folders on the C drive, not under My Documents and
Settings. Once again, if this will cause you to lose files, then XP ought to
point that out as an exception to the statement "you will retain files".

(3) I only had one drive on this computer so that wasn't an issue but ONCE
AGAIN...if that WAS an issue Microsoft is liable because it did not tell me
that they would not be protected.

(4) I did look at the link that Will Denny suggested. I had done in-depth
homework on System Restore in HELP and then on the Microsoft site and found
nothing regarding the suggestion that only files in My Documents would be
saved or any other assistance that helped find the lost files.

I have however learned a valuable lesson. Backup! backup! backup! The ironic
part is that I needed to restore because I had screwed up the Networking and
no matter what I did, I could not get it to work. My CD burner was on a
network computer! By the way, networking DOES work now. At least I have
that.

Alex
 
Some good comments here...but I maintain that Microsoft is still liable and
needs to be, at minimum, clearer with instructions regarding these issues
brought up in the replies.
Click to expand...

Oh, I agree with you. I have read the documents for System Restore many
times. And, like you, have also run into having an odd file go missing here
and there. The two tips I responded with are what I use to avoid little
surprises -- those tips and regular backups of important data files.

The documentation says that no personal data files will be touched but I've
had documents that were in the Recycle Bin reappear after a system restore.
Where is the line drawn in that situation? I don't want that deleted
document back but Recycle Bin is a system folder and the files re-appear
anyhow.

Since I have used WinME where System Restore was first introduced, I was
already accustomed to ditching items into My Documents for safekeeping
before using system Restore. There seems to be a blurry line where some
folders are concerned but My Documents can be counted on as a Safe Zone.
That little strategy could probably be emphasized a bit more in the XP
System Restore documents.
 
Back
Top