How to Prepare for Disk Imaging
- 1). Open "My Computer" by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and clicking on "Computer." Right-click on the main system drive (typically drive C) and choose "Properties." Click on the "Disk Cleanup" button and select all of the available options to remove temporary files from the hard drive.
- 2). Update the anti-virus software if necessary and perform a full system scan to check for and eliminate any virus infections on the computer.
- 3). Remove any unwanted software by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and clicking on "Control Panel." Click on "Programs and Features" and then select the unwanted software by clicking on it. Click on the "Uninstall / Change" button to remove the software from the system, then restart the system if prompted.
- 4). Update the operating system by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and then clicking on "All Programs." Click on "Windows Update" and then on "Check for Updates." Check the boxes next to any available updates, including critical updates, optional updates and driver updates.
- 5). Install the updates and restart the computer if prompted, then repeat the process by checking for updates again after the system has restarted or after the updates have installed. It may be necessary to repeat the process several times in order to get all available updates, as some updates do not appear until others have been installed. Continue to check for updates until no more are available.
- 6). Launch any major software that is used regularly and use the built-in utility to check for software updates, typically located under the "Help" or "Tools" menu. Consult the website of the software manufacturer for the current version and any updates or patches that are available. Check for the currently installed version by clicking on "Help" and then on "About."
- 7). Check for hardware driver issues by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and then clicking on "Control Panel." Click on "Device Manager" and inspect it for any devices that are marked with an exclamation point or question mark. Double-click on marked devices and choose to update the driver. Consult the website of the hardware manufacturer for instructions and updated driver files.
- 8). Perform a file system disk check by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and clicking on "Computer." Right-click on the system drive (typically drive C) and choose "Properties." Click on the "Tools" tab and then click "Check Now" under "Error Checking." Select both check boxes to perform a full system scan and allow the system to restart and complete the scan during boot if prompted.
- 9). Perform a fragmentation check by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and clicking on "Computer." Right-click on the system drive (typically drive C) and choose "Properties." Click on the "Tools" tab and then click "Defragment Now" under "Defragmentation." Click once on the system drive (typically drive C) and choose "Defragment Disk" at the bottom of the window.
- 10
Back up important files by clicking on the "Start" menu (Windows orb) and clicking on "Computer." Right-click on the system drive (typically drive C) and choose "Properties." Click on the "Tools" tab and then click "Back Up Now" under "Backup." Choose "Set Up Backup" to back up important files. Choose "Create a System Image" to begin the disk image creation process.
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