Methods of dealing with failures that occur when you install updates Windows, mentioned in previous articles (here, here and there) often work; but the number of types of failures, their identifiers and descriptions of relevant errors is quite a lot, and these techniques do not treat some of them. Actually, a subclass of errors when installing updates is a small part in the total mass of Windows failures. They are not harmful to try when the time to repair is limited. If they did not help, you will need more time anyway. But it is desirable to utilize it wisely and not to perform unnecessary actions. So what, should we install the operating system from scratch having lost all settings and programs, and then restore it all over again? Waste a lot of time and efforts? There are more competent ways. They require, of course, certain skills, as well as attentiveness and having more or less time depending on the capacity of your hardware and on the OS version. They also require a pre-arranged resources.

As a matter of fact, you can roll back to a restore point at which the system is not buggy. I personally do not like this method, although sometimes under certain circumstances, I use it. First, the process is started from within an already loaded OS, and hence, in its original form is not suitable for cases where Windows would not start. In such cases, I do it manually by booting from external system such as BartPE or similar and save a new point aside before copying the old one. Second, if the bug is an old one, but the system still somehow worked, it is not easy to determine the point that was saved directly before the glitch had initially arose. Besides, the cure of old failures can cause a few of new ones: old registry and system files might poorly get along with the changes in applications. Thus, this method has the right to exist, but its scope is very limited.

Another way is to regularly make full copies of the system partition or the entire disk - whether in image or clone, as to whom it is more convenient. If there is a fresh backup, you can restore it, saving beforehand the changes made ​​since the backup is created and restoring them after the system is recovered. But what if such a backup is not present, or it is too old, and since then many things have changed on your disk?

There is a settled legend that it is useful to reinstall Windows from scratch almost every six months - they say for such period it accumulates so many errors that the stable functioning becomes impossible. So really happens, but only when the computer users own too playful hands and excessive curiosity along with minimum skills, and operating system itself is not subject to regular cleaning. Since the release of Windows XP and to this day, going through Vista and using Seven for already five years, I was doing a fresh reinstall just a couple of times, and that is because of my own bungling. Modern versions of Windows can run a very long time if properly cared.

But as for reinstalling Windows on top of the existing one (repair installation) - I have done it numerous times, mostly - for clients and friends, but sometimes on some of my home computers. In the case of WinXP there were interesting glitches during the process, for example, the "34 minutes remaining" syndrome. Solution has been always found. Without pretending, as always, on the invention of gunpowder, I will just summarize my own long-term experience on a subject.

The purpose of this article is not a detailed "how-to" on the process of reinstalling the system on top of the existing one. There are wealth of materials on the Internet which are devoted to the nuances of the process. Here I just want to focus your attention on the availability of this method and to encourage you to learn it and to include it into an arsenal of your skills. It is not a panacea for the treatment of the OS glitches, but close to it. And preservation of overwhelming majority of settings and applications makes it quite attractive. Strongly recommended.

In conclusion I would note that there are much more ways of dealing with failures, glitches and bugs of our dearly beloved OS Windows. Many of them are well-described in various manuals that can be found on the Internet. I traditionally described my own subjective, but quite a wide experience in this difficult field.