VM's snapshots vs Windows restore points

[tankman1989]

I have been using VM's much more in the last few months and I have been backing up my machine by making clones and snapshots. I realize that this is basically just like the system restore and shadow copy of Windows OS.

The difference is that I actually use the cloning and snapshot feature vs using the system restore feature in Windows. I am trying to figure out if I inadvertently don't trust MS solutions to work or why I don't use or trust them more. I also see some other people who tend to do the same and and wondering if there is some general consensus or just ignorance.?

When comparing sequential snapshots to the Windows restore is there anything that is fundamentally different?

 

[vdub12]

I have been using VM's much more in the last few months and I have been backing up my machine by making clones and snapshots. I realize that this is basically just like the system restore and shadow copy of Windows OS.

The difference is that I actually use the cloning and snapshot feature vs using the system restore feature in Windows. I am trying to figure out if I inadvertently don't trust MS solutions to work or why I don't use or trust them more. I also see some other people who tend to do the same and and wondering if there is some general consensus or just ignorance.?

When comparing sequential snapshots to the Windows restore is there anything that is fundamentally different?

Restore files can be corrupted by viruses. I personally turn system restore off once I clean an infection to delete all old restore points because they could be infected.

 

[MobileTechie]

VM snapshots take the machine back to precisely how it was. They are the equivalent to taking an incremental image backup or something like Comodo Time Machine.

Windows System Restore does not back up user files or passwords and a host of other things, by design. It only backs up the registry and some system files. It's designed to take the system state back not to roll back the entire system.

You can see the list of files SR monitors here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa378870(VS.85).aspx As you can see it misses out all common user data files types and any file types created by s/w authors. So you cannot roll back say an accounts package if it stores it's files in a non monitored extension.

The other difference is that snapshots are controlled by the host application which is outside of the OS and its files. Therefore they are immune to system problems. Whereas system restore is part of Windows and subject to system problems and corruptions.

 

[vdub12]

I have had situations to where system restore affected the my documents folder.

I had a customer that used system restore and lost a very important document. I had to restore the system back to before system restore was ran and recover the document before restoring the system back to the state the customer wanted.

This was way back in XP SP 2 days, has MS changed this.

 

[ATTech]

I have had situations to where system restore affected the my documents folder.

I had a customer that used system restore and lost a very important document. I had to restore the system back to before system restore was ran and recover the document before restoring the system back to the state the customer wanted.

This was way back in XP SP 2 days, has MS changed this.

Windows system restore functions by recording all changes since the previous restore point was created. If the document did not exist prior to the restore point (or perhaps it was stored elsewhere at the time), then performing a system restore would in fact remove it (if at least from that location).

I believe VM screen shots actually take an image of the drive, rather than just recording the changes, but I may be mistaken.

 

[MobileTechie]

Windows system restore functions by recording all changes since the previous restore point was created. If the document did not exist prior to the restore point (or perhaps it was stored elsewhere at the time), then performing a system restore would in fact remove it (if at least from that location).

That's not true. If you read the link I posted earlier you'll see it does not monitor document files. It also does not monitor anything inside My Documents. This is designed to prevent the loss of user data.

 

[ATTech]

That's not true. If you read the link I posted earlier you'll see it does not monitor document files. It also does not monitor anything inside My Documents. This is designed to prevent the loss of user data.

My mistake, my use of the word document was general and not meant to refer to .doc files; I suppose that I should have said file. He was talking about it affecting the My Documents folder, which system restore does.

 

[MobileTechie]

It does not touch the My Documents folder. In fact MS recommend ensuring files are in My Docs in order to protect them from the effects of SR. See here: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/expert/russel_sysrestore.mspx

 

[ATTech]

It does not touch the My Documents folder. In fact MS recommend ensuring files are in My Docs in order to protect them from the effects of SR. See here: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/expert/russel_sysrestore.mspx

Tested it a while back on one of my Virtual Machines. A few of the files were removed that were in My Documents. Not all of the files that were created since the restore, but some. Not sure if this is done indirectly or not, but I call BS on the claim that everything in My Documents is "safe."