Windows 7: Windows Recovery Environment

Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE) provides you with tools for fixing a non-booting computer. In Windows 7, Windows RE is installed on your PC's system disk, so if there's a problem you can boot into this environment and attempt to fix it.

To access the Windows 7 Recovery Environment, reboot your PC and after the BIOS screen has completed, press and hold the F8 key (you must do this before the "Starting Windows" animation begins). From the system troubleshooting options screen, select the "Repair Your Computer" option.


After a few loading screens you will be asked to log on with an administrator-class account. Finally you will be presented with the System Recovery Options screen.



The System Recovery Options window provides you access to the following repair/recovery tools.

• Startup Repair: Automatically repairs common boot problems that can prevent Windows from starting correctly.
• System Restore: Provides access to the System Restore feature from outside of Windows. Allows you to restores your Windows system files to a previous state.
• System Image Recovery: Restores a previously system image backup.
• Windows Memory Diagnostic: Reboots your computer and loads memory diagnostic utility that scans your computer's RAM for problems.
• Command Prompt: This is an advanced feature that allows system administrators access to a standard Windows command prompt.