create registry key for system restore (if missing)

this describes how to create registry key for system restore in windows xp.

• go to the registry editor
• go to the key of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\SystemRestore
• then go to the Edit menu, select New, DWORD
  value,
• rename it as '' DisableSR ''
• now set the value to 1 to disable System Restore or 0 to enable System Restore
  

how to enable or disable System Restore

enabling and disabling Windows XP's System Restore feature

step 1 - using registry editor.

• go to the registry editor (in run window - type '' regedit '' press enter)
• locate the key of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SystemRestore
• in the "DisableSR" set the value 1 to disable System Restore or 0 to enable System Restore

to prevent the System Restore service from starting

• Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\sr
• double-click Start, and set the value to 4 to stop the service from starting or to 0 for normal startup

step 2 - using System Control Panel applet

• go to the control panel
• Start the System Control Panel applet (or right click on my computer, click properties)
• click system restore tab
• then uncheck the "Turn off System Restore on all drives" to enable System Restore, and check to disable System Restore.

delete older restore points while leave the system restore turned on

• go to the my computer
• right click the drive you want to clear, and click properties
• click disk cleanup button
• in the more option, select system restore and click cleanup.
  

start system restore using command prompt

Note - you must have a administrator privilege to perform this task.

To start System Restore using the Command prompt, follow these steps

• start your computer, and then press and hold F8 during the initial startup.
• in the menu, select safe mode with a Command prompt.
• If you prompted to select an operating system, use the arrow keys to select the appropriate operating system and press enter.
• log on as an administrator or with an account that has administrator privilege.
  
• at the command prompt, type %systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe, and then press ENTER
• now follow the instruction in screen to restore your computer to a functional state.

important - If you have not previously set a restore point in System Restore, you cannot restore your computer to a previous state

turn on hibernation in windows xp

normally hibernation is active and you can find hibernation tab in power option (in control panel) in there you can enable and disable this feature, but the tab only appears if the hibernation facility is enabled.you can turn on or turn off this feature using following commands.

• first go to the command prompt
• to turn on hibernation type this command powercfg.exe /H ON and press enter
  
• to turn off hibernation use this command powercfg.exe /H OFF and press enter
  

Office 2007 encountered an error during installation

when you using windows xp, you might want to install office 2007, but how many times your office 2007 installation has been roll backed, displaying series error message looks like below.

"Microsoft Office 2007 encountered an error during setup. The Windows Installer service cannot update one or more protected Windows files"

you know there is a solution for you, this one is a quick method and results are guaranteed.please do as follows.

• first insert your windows installation CD to CD-ROM
  
• go to the I386 folder and locate the Cab file named FP40EXT.CAB
• copy the cab file to the hard disk
• now extract the cab file
• in the extracted folder find the fp4autl.dll file
• now copy this file to the following location
• C:\program files\common files\microsoft shared\web server extensions\40\bin\
• that's it, now restart your office 2007 installation.
  

restoring data by using the restore wizard

1. select start - programs - accessories - system tools - backup
2. in the backup dialog box, click the restore wizard button
3. the restore wizard starts, click next
4. in the what to restore screen, select the check boxes next to the drives, files, or folders you want to restore. click next.
   

scheduling a backup

1. select start - programs - accessories - system tools - backup
2. in the backup dialog box, click schedule jobs tab
3. the schedule jobs tab appears, notice that no jobs appear yet on the schedule. if you have already schedule jobs, you can view them on this schedule. to add a job to the schedule, click add job
4. the backup wizard starts. follow the instructions presented on screen to schedule one or more periodic backups.
5. once you have schedule one or more backups, these jobs appear on the schedule jobs tab, close backup.
   

perform a backup by using the backup wizard

1. select start - programs - accessories - system tools - backup
2. the backup dialog box appears, notice the three buttons in this dialog box: backup wizard, restore wizard, and emergency repair disk. click button next to backup wizard.
3. the backup wizard starts, click next
   

selecting the type of backup operation

the backup utility provides five types of backup operations that define what data is backed up, such as only those files that have changed since the last backup.

some backup types use backup markers also known as archive attributes, which mark file as having changed. when file changes, an attribute is set on the file that indicates that the file has changed since the last backup. when you backup the file, this clears or resets the attributes.

Normal

during a normal backup, all selected files and folders are backed up. a normal backup does not rely on markers to determine which files to backup. during a normal backup any existing marks are cleared and each file is marked as having been backed up. normal backups spped up the restore process because the backup files are the most current and you do not need to restore multiple backup jobs.

Copy

during a copy backup, all selected files and folders are backed up. it neither looks for no clears markers. if you do not want to clear markers and effect other backup types, use a copy backup, for example use a copy backup between a normal and an incremental backup to create an archival snapshot of network data.

Incremental

during incremental backup, only selected files and folders that have a marker are backed up, and then the backup clears markers. because an incremental backup clears markers, if you did two consecutive incremental backups on a file and nothing changed in the file, the file would not be backed up the second time.

Differential

during a differential backup, only selected files and folders that have a marker are backed up, but the backup does not clear markers. because a differential backup does not clear markers, if you did two consecutive differential backups on a file and nothing changed in the file, the entire file would be backed up each time.

Daily

during a daily backup, all selected files and folders that have changed during the day are backed up. this backup neither looks for nor clears markers. if you want to backup all files and folders that change during the day, use daily backup.

System state data

system state data includes various critical operating system files, folders and databases. for all windows 2003 computers, system state data includes the operating system boot files, the registry, and the COM+ class registration database. on a windows 2003 server computer that has certificate services installed, system state data also includes the certificate serivces database.

finally on a windows 2003 server that is a domain controller, system state data also includes the active directory data store and the contents of the SYSVOL folder.

The archive attribute

the archive attribute is a marker that the operating system automatically assigns to all files and folders when they are first installed created. depending on the backup type, backup programs remove the archive attribute from a file or folder to indicate that the file or folder has been backed up. if a file or folder is modified after it is backed up, the operating system reassigns the archive attribute to it.

Using backup to perform a backup

windows 2003 ships with a backup program called backup. backup is a basic tape backup program that gives you full capability to backup and restore a windows 2003 computer, including user data on local and network drives, and system state data on the local computer.

introducing the backup utility in windows xp

windows xp professional provides backup or restore wizard, which allows you to easily backup data. to access the backup or restore wizard, on the start menu, point to all programs, point to accessories, point to system tools, and then click backup.alternatively on the start menu you can click run and type ntbackup and then click ok. you can use the backup or restore wizard to backup data manually or to shedule unattended backup jobs on a regular basis. you can backup data to a file or to a tape. files can be stored on hard disks, removable disks (such as Iomega Zip and Jaz drives), and recordable compact disks and optical drives.

after open backup and restore wizard page, click next. the backup or restore page allows you to specify whether you want to backup files and settings or restore files and settings.

to successfully backup and restore data on a computer running windows xp professional, you must have appropriate permissions and user rights, as described below.

• all users can backup their own files and folders. they can also backup files for which they have the read, read and execute, modify, or full control permission.
• all users can restore files and folders for which they have the write, modify, or full control permission.
• members of the administrators and backup operators groups can backup and restore all files (regardless of the assigned permissions) by default.members of these groups have the backup files and directories and restore files and directories user rights.