How to reinstall dsk image from USB HD

[tape]

I am at a loss in trying to reinstall Win 7 from a disk image I created & saved to backup hard drive (usb). I've reinstalled a previous disk image in the past, but can't seem to be able to do so now. I know I am having a mental block and need someone to jog my memory cells. What i wanted to do was reinstall the factory system (DELL) but use the saved disk image that had gotten rid of all the junk Dell included. I finally did the f8 reboot and installed the factory fresh setup from the internal hard drive and then spend time to delete the junk and then update a year's + updates to windows. So what did I need to do that would allow me to access the disk image I created using the built in imager from windows? Thanks

[jdeb]

If you created a repair disc, then follow the procedures (Restoring a Backup Image) in the article linked below.

Maximum PC | Windows 7 Feature Focus

[strollin]

Note that if you didn't create a repair disk before, not a problem, you can create one now (as long as your system is bootable). You can also use one created on another machine, just make sure it's a repair disk for 32-bit or 64-bit, whichever your system is.

[jdeb]

Originally Posted by strollin Note that if you didn't create a repair disk before, not a problem, you can create one now (as long as your system is bootable). You can also use one created on another machine, just make sure it's a repair disk for 32-bit or 64-bit, whichever your system is.

Thanks for adding that strollin

[glc]

Be careful when imaging and restoring a Dell - it has multiple partitions - main, diagnostic, recovery, and some have Media Direct.

[tape]

Initial problem was that tapping f8 while rebooting did not bring up the window to reinstall disk image. Repeated attempts allowed we and I reinstalled factory setup from the recovery partition on internal HD. Took days to get junk from Dell off and new software installed and windows updated but now I have just the basic programs installed and am ready to create disk image for this setup. I failed to used the repair disk I had created a year ago and will not make same mistake. Thanks for all the advice.

[jdeb]

Welcome | The PC Decrapifier

Little late but it does work well to remove the bloat.

[strollin]

Good to hear you have everything working.

For the future, F8 is used to access Windows Safe Mode, to access the Dell recovery partition I believe it is Ctrl-F11. However, if you have your system image and repair disk you may never need that info.