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Recovering your VAIO system

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Recovering your VAIO system

This section describes how to recover your computer system. 

Before starting the recovery process

What is a system recovery?

A system recovery is to restore your computer to its factory state. Perform a 
system recovery in the following cases:

Your computer has been infected with a computer virus.

Your computer has been unstable.

Your computer system is experiencing problems which cannot be solved 
through troubleshooting.

You have formatted the C drive on your computer by mistake.

You can recover your computer system from the hard disk drive (recovery 
partition) or recovery discs. You can also create your own recovery discs.

What is a recovery partition?

A recovery partition contains data for a system recovery and an application 
recovery on the hard disk. Normally, you cannot modify or delete the data on 
this partition. You can, however, modify or delete the data with commercially 
available software applications designed to modify partition information. The 
data modification or deletion may disable a system recovery.

Recovering your computer system can restore the preinstalled software only (except 
certain software). It cannot restore software applications that were installed on your own 
or the data you created after purchase.

Recovering your computer system cannot restore only the Windows operating system.

Certain preinstalled software applications include options to uninstall or install them. Note 

that the software applications installed or uninstalled by using such options may not work 
properly on your computer.

Installing a software application to modify partition sizes may disable a system recovery or 

recovery disc creation. Be sure to create recovery discs immediately after the computer is 
ready for use. See

 

“Creating your own recovery discs” on page 16

.

Note that recovering your computer system will delete all the data on the hard disk even if 

the hard disk is encrypted with the 

Windows

 

BitLocker Drive Encryption

 (

BitLocker

feature.

Summary of Contents for VGC-LM1E

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Page 2: ...http www vaio link com It is strongly recommended to create recovery discs immediately after your computer is ready for use because there are no recovery discs provided with the computer For instructions on how to create the recovery discs see Creating your own recovery discs on page 16 Important Printed Documentation Quick Start Guide Describes the process from unpacking to starting up your VAIO ...

Page 3: ...or software stops responding 10 What should I do if the battery indicator is flashing and my computer does not start 10 What should I do if a message window notifying of incompatibility or improper installation of the battery pack appears and my computer enters Hibernate mode 11 What should I do if Windows does not start showing a message when I start my computer 11 What should I do if I cannot re...

Page 4: ...computer malfunctions 30 If your computer does not work properly 30 If Windows starts 31 If Windows does not start 32 Recovering your VAIO system 33 Before starting the recovery process 33 Recovering your VAIO system when you can start Windows 35 To restore the C drive 35 To restore your entire computer system 36 Recovering your VAIO system when you cannot start Windows 37 Changing the partition s...

Page 5: ...sive resource for practical advice tutorials and demonstrations to help you learn to use your computer Use the Search feature Index or table of contents to view all Windows Help resources including those that are on the Internet To access Windows Help and Support click Start and Help and Support Or go to Windows Help and Support by pressing and holding the Microsoft Windows key and pressing the F1...

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Page 7: ...Troubleshooting ...

Page 8: ...s plugged into a power source and turned on Make sure the brightness and contrast controls are adjusted correctly See the manual that came with your display for more information Disconnect the AC adapter and remove the battery pack Wait three to five minutes Reinstall the battery pack reconnect the AC adapter and then press the power button to turn on your computer Condensation may cause your comp...

Page 9: ... the Enter key At the confirmation prompt press the Enter key Your computer restarts If this occurs frequently contact VAIO Link On VGC RM series models if the message Press F1 to resume F2 to setup appears at the bottom of the screen follow these steps 1 Press the F2 key The BIOS setup screen appears If not restart the computer and press the F2 key several times when the VAIO logo appears 2 Set t...

Page 10: ...turn off press the Ctrl Alt Delete keys and click the arrow next to the Shut down button and Shut Down If the Windows Security window appears click Shut Down Turning off your computer with the Ctrl Alt Delete keys or the power button may cause loss of unsaved data If your computer still does not turn off press and hold the power button until the computer turns off Remove the AC adapter and battery...

Page 11: ...en I start my computer If you enter a wrong power on password three times consecutively the Enter Onetime Password or Password Check failed message appears If you enter a wrong power on password three times consecutively again the System Disabled message appears and Windows will not start Press and hold the power button for more than four seconds to check that the power indicator goes off Wait for...

Page 12: ... before you can receive updates 1 Connect to the Internet 2 Double click the Windows Security Alerts icon on the taskbar 3 Follow the on screen instructions to set up automatic or scheduled updates How do I keep my antivirus software updated You can keep the Norton Internet Security software program current with the latest updates from Symantec Corporation To download and install the latest securi...

Page 13: ...Recovering your VAIO system ...

Page 14: ...e a CPU memory module hard disk etc Reinstall Programs or Drivers The Reinstall Programs or Drivers program enables you to restore the preinstalled software or software drivers to the original factory condition Restore C Drive The Restore C Drive program enables you to restore the C drive on your computer to the original factory condition Restore Complete System The Restore Complete System program...

Page 15: ...us attacks computer malfunctions or accidental erasure prepare the following in advance 1 Recovery discs It is strongly recommended to create recovery discs immediately after your computer is ready for use because there are no recovery discs provided with the computer For instructions on how to create the recovery discs see Creating your own recovery discs on page 16 2 Backup copy of your data Rec...

Page 16: ...er by mistake Depending on your computer state you may need recovery discs to recover your computer system You may not be able to recover your computer system from the recovery partition in the following cases due to modifications of the recovery partition You have used software to modify the recovery partition You have installed an operating system different from the preinstalled operating system...

Page 17: ... as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Click Create Recovery Discs and Start 4 Follow the on screen instructions You can confirm the number of necessary discs and types of media you can use for recovery disc creation in the Choose your media window Note that you cannot use Blu ray Disc media DVD RAM CD R or CD RW di...

Page 18: ...models with Windows Vista Ultimate or Windows Vista Business only You can make a backup copy of everything on your computer including the programs system settings and files on the computer You can restore your computer system to the state when you made the backup copy For instructions on how to use the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore see To make a backup copy of your file with the Windows C...

Page 19: ...cations to see whether your model is equipped with an analog TV tuner You can also make a backup copy of your data with the Rescue Data software For instructions on how to make a backup copy of your data see To back up your data with Rescue Data on page 26 To make a backup copy of your file with the Back Up Files wizard 1 Click Start All Programs VAIO Recovery Center and VAIO Recovery Center The U...

Page 20: ...enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Windows Backup and Restore and click Start 4 Click Restore files Follow the on screen instructions On models with an analog TV tuner restore the backup data of the Recorded TV folder where the video contents recorded by Windows Media Center are saved to C Users Public manually See the onlin...

Page 21: ...tinue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Windows Backup and Restore and click Start 4 Click Back up computer The User Account Control window appears 5 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue 6 Follow the on screen instructions You cannot select which files to restore when restoring th...

Page 22: ...e boot option window is selected then press the Enter key 4 Select a keyboard layout and click Next 5 Select a user name and enter the password Skip the following steps 2 to 3 2 Select a keyboard layout and click Next 3 Select an operating system and click Next 4 If you have saved a backup copy of your data to an external hard disk drive or discs with an external optical disk drive connect the ext...

Page 23: ...reate a restore point manually 1 Click Start All Programs VAIO Recovery Center and VAIO Recovery Center The User Account Control window appears 2 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Windows Backup and Restore and click Start 4 Click Create a rest...

Page 24: ...strator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Windows Backup and Restore and click Start 4 Click Create a restore point or change settings on the left pane The User Account Control window appears 5 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The System Pr...

Page 25: ...discs To display the window follow these steps 1 Turn on your computer 2 Press the F8 key when the VAIO logo appears 3 Make sure the option to restore the computer which is listed on the top of the boot option window is selected then press the Enter key 4 Select a keyboard layout and click Next 5 Select a user name and enter the password Skip the following steps 2 to 3 2 Select a keyboard layout a...

Page 26: ...rescued files with care to protect from unauthorized access Keep recovery discs in a secure place to protect from unauthorized copying of your data on the hard disk because the Rescue Data software can be launched from the recovery discs Rescued files which are not encrypted on the hard disk can be easily accessed by unauthorized users using recovery discs To protect rescued files from unauthorize...

Page 27: ...ess has not completed within 64 hours To resume the process follow the steps 1 to 5 click to select the Resume canceled process check box and Next Do not disconnect an external hard disk drive or optical disc drive during the rescue process You may need to install a software driver if you select removal media such as a Memory Stick media an SD memory card or a USB flash drive as a location to save...

Page 28: ... Data Restore Tool and VAIO Data Restore Tool The User Account Control window appears 2 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Data Restore Tool window appears For instructions on how to use the software see the help file on the VAIO Data Restore Tool software If necessary move the restor...

Page 29: ... factory condition 1 Click Start All Programs VAIO Recovery Center and VAIO Recovery Center The User Account Control window appears 2 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Reinstall Programs or Drivers and click Start 4 Read the information about s...

Page 30: ...your computer system in case of computer malfunctions If your computer does not work properly Your computer may become unstable or slow in the following cases Your computer has been infected with a computer virus You have changed the Windows settings You have installed software or a software driver which is not compatible with your computer ...

Page 31: ...omputer was working normally see page 24 Uninstall software or software drivers which are not compatible with your computer if you have installed such software or software drivers or restore the preinstalled software or software drivers to the originally factory condition see page 29 Restore your data from the backup copy made with the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore feature available on mo...

Page 32: ...s which you have changed or created after the backup If you have such files and want to restore them make backup copies of them with the Rescue Data software For instructions on how to use the Rescue Data software see To back up your data with Rescue Data on page 26 2 Make backup copies of your files with the Rescue Data software if you have not yet made them see page 26 3 Examine your computer ha...

Page 33: ...r delete the data with commercially available software applications designed to modify partition information The data modification or deletion may disable a system recovery Recovering your computer system can restore the preinstalled software only except certain software It cannot restore software applications that were installed on your own or the data you created after purchase Recovering your c...

Page 34: ... the recovery process without entering the password Be sure to write down the password not to forget the password If you have forgotten the password contact VAIO Link to reset it A reset fee will be charged Aborting the system recovery process Before the actual recovery process starts VAIO Recovery Center makes it easy to cancel any settings you may have made Most screens remind you about the loss...

Page 35: ...w appears 2 Click Continue If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user enter an administrator name and password and click Continue The VAIO Recovery Center window appears 3 Select Restore C Drive and click Start 4 Read the information about software or features to resolve the problems select Skip if you have already tried all of them and click Next 5 Read the warnings thoroug...

Page 36: ...ears 3 Select Restore Complete System and click Start 4 Read the information about software or features to resolve the problems select Skip if you have already tried all of them and click Next 5 If you have not yet created the recovery discs select Create Recovery Discs click Next and follow the on screen instructions If you have created the recovery discs select Skip click Next and follow the on ...

Page 37: ...10 key when the VAIO logo appears If the Edit Boot Options window is displayed press the Enter key 3 Skip the following steps 2 to 4 2 Select a keyboard layout and click Next 3 Select an operating system and click Next 4 Select VAIO Recovery Center 5 Follow the steps after step 2 in To restore the C drive on page 35 or To restore your entire computer system on page 36 depending on your computer st...

Page 38: ...r your computer system but use the Windows feature to repartition the hard disk For information on how to create a partition see Creating a hard disk partition described below You can also change the partition sizes using recovery discs Creating a hard disk partition The steps described here take as an example the hard disk partitioning to change the size of the C drive and create another partitio...

Page 39: ...nt the hard disk click Start All Programs Accessories System Tools and Disk Defragmenter 5 Right click Unallocated and select New Simple Volume The New Simple Volume Wizard window appears 6 Follow the on screen instructions To create a partition with recovery discs 1 Insert a recovery disc to the drive while the computer is on turn off your computer and turn on the computer again The System Recove...

Page 40: ... your computer restarts if the process has not completed within 71 hours The process will resume after the computer restarts Be sure to connect and use the AC adapter to power your computer when using the Wipe and Erase Data software 1 Make backup copies of your valuable files Make a backup copy of your data using the Back Up Files wizard if you can start Windows Make a backup copy of your data wi...

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