System Restore-is it of real value?

[tape]

It took me MANY hours to get my PC back to normal yesterday. I tried to hook up a DVI cable (btw-I couldn't get my Radeon to send out any signal to my monitor) I had updated my drivers, etc and when all failed, I uninstalled and it just made a mess of things. When things began to look normal, i tried to do a restore to an earlier time, but for each of the 6 tries, I keep getting the messge that my PC was unable to restore to an earlier time. This has happened in the past, too. What good does this tool do if when it is needed, it doesn't work? Should I turn it off, turn it on for all my partitions & 2nd HD, or selectively turn it on?

[shadowpr]

I personally turn it off. I don't find a real need for it on my computer.

[EzyStvy]

It's saved my bacon a couple of times.

[TwoRails]

System Restore has been a great tool for me, too: I don't install or change anything without a SR point. One of the biggest problems is that you're drive needs to be in good "chkdsk" health. If there are file system problems, that's when I've seen trouble. Also, if you do more than one thing at at time, a new / different SR point for each also saves potential problems.

[Lespaul20]

I've used it several times as well to get out of a pickle.

[Negeva]

Originally Posted by tape What good does this tool do if when it is needed, it doesn't work? Should I turn it off, turn it on for all my partitions & 2nd HD, or selectively turn it on?

I have four hard-drives (hdd) with one partitioned into three: Windows, Data and Backup. System Restore is disabled on all drives and partitions expect the Windows partition. Reason being there is no use using System Restore to backup data drives/partitions; waste of disk space and resources.

My main source of disaster protection comes in the form of Acronis True Image. The Windows partition is backed up every two to four weeks: depending on number of Windows updates and new application installations.

Have used System Restore on numerous occasions with varying degrees of success. The most recent success was to recover the license key from a machine. It has it's uses, but I wouldn't recommend it as my sole backup/recovery option.

[TwoRails]

Agreed that System Restore is not a backup / recovery option for disaster, and that is not it's intent, but it is a very useful tool for assistance for a program install gone bad, driver updates, and the like. I'm not going to do a full backup just to test out a new program or the like, but I never do it without a SR point

[Ghidrah]

Not sure how or why it would matter, but there have been a few times I've tried using restore and it didn't work.
I wonder if it had anything to do with the external HDD not being connected and or off when a RP was made?