Windows 10 Will Eliminate Recovery Partition.

[Geek-9pm]

This topic was published back in March. It might be news to you.

Of curse, Win 10 has yet  to be released, so exactly how it will do recovery is not clear to me. Or maybe it is to you. Here are a few links on this:
No recovery partition in Windows 10
...and
Windows 10 will save disk space and no longer require a recovery partition
Is that the reason?

[soybean]

Based on the links you posted, I can't draw the conclusion that no computers, whether desktop systems, laptops, or smaller portable devices, will have a recovery partition.  The second link you posted points out that "the influx of smaller sized Windows devices that are starting to become the norm. Many of these systems have small disk storage ..."  So, clearly, the idea of eliminating a recovery partition is related to storage space on the device.  Again, I don't interpret your references as authoritative sources regarding whether a recovery partition will be present on no devices running Windows 10, or only on smaller devices with smaller storage capacity.   I've always thought the manufacturers had some latitude in deciding whether to put a recovery partition on a device, as opposed to a dictate from Microsoft.

[patio]

I've always thought the manufacturers had some latitude in deciding whether to put a recovery partition on a device, as opposed to a dictate from Microsoft.

This is an excellent point...i believe it's up to the manuf. to decide...
Afterall do you really think they wanna start getting swamped with Help Desk calls on how to restore Win 10 ? ?

I think not.

[evilfantasy]

I've always thought the manufacturers had some latitude in deciding whether to put a recovery partition on a device, as opposed to a dictate from Microsoft.

This is an excellent point...i believe it's up to the manuf. to decide...

That would be the most logical but there may still be a recovery option just not a recovery partition. There has to be a way similar to mobile devices for end users to revert to factory settings without sending it in for repair as an only option.

[DaveLembke]

If anything Microsoft should make a more user friendly image utility that can create recovery image to USB Flash Drive with the same features that the better computer manufacturers have in their system builds as a way to create a system recovery set on 1 or 2 USB sticks or Burn to say 4 DVD-R's.

No need for a localized space hog of a recovery partition or recovery image etc. And able to recover pretty quickly. That is.... as long as you didn't misplace the recovery media. 

I haven't played with recovery of Windows 10 yet, but I have used the Windows 7 built in system recovery with a USB attached external HDD and its not a very user friendly experience if you have ever used it, so using a 3rd party image creation tool is generally more user friendly like Macrium Reflect and Ghost etc.

This is fine for traditional computers though to use these 3rd party tools, but it could be a problem for small portable computers etc... so Microsoft should make it way easier for users to create images that will boot off the device that they were created onto vs having to boot off of a Windows Repair Media and then Connect a different set of media to recover from.

[evilfantasy]

I'm pretty sure it will be the same or similar to the Windows 8 Update & Recovery option. It may not be called a recovery partition but there is a recovery option. How to Reset Your Windows 8.1 Laptop, Desktop, Tablet or 2-in 1

[BC_Programmer]

If anything Microsoft should make a more user friendly image utility that can create recovery image to USB Flash Drive with the same features that the better computer manufacturers have in their system builds as a way to create a system recovery set on 1 or 2 USB sticks or Burn to say 4 DVD-R's.

The tool provided on prebuilts Computers pretty much always writes already existing data in a provided image file (or sometimes the recovery partition) to a disc/USB. MS probably hasn't created a more generic feature such that you could take any Windows System and create recovery media for it to be returned to the state at which you created that media for a number of reasons. One among them being that imaging software manufacturers may cry foul.

[DaveLembke]

One among them being that imaging software manufacturers may cry foul.

Well MS has created their own programs that serve the same purpose as 3rd party software before... Browsers prior to IE for example. IE vs Netscape. Netscape Navigator came out on 12/15/1994 and IE 1.0 didnt come out until 8/16/1995. Big difference between IE and Imaging Software though.... I suppose it was worth it for them to kick over the bucket of legal worms with IE to compete with other browsers of the time and have an OS that was "Web Ready" at the get go for Windows 95 PLUS! inclusion of IE when Netscape was already out there with their browser.

For an imaging suite bundled into the OS, there is no advantage to kicking over this bucket and paying money out in legal fees for lawsuits I suppose with potential patent infringements etc. Legal costs far outweigh making some computer tech customers such as myself happy.

I'd be happy if they even cut a deal with a 3rd party Imaging company to bundle their imaging utility with the OS though. What imaging company would turn down such a large deal even if only getting $5 per license of Windows sold they would make a killing compared to trying to sell the software on their own at say $40 a copy.   Microsoft has cut deals in the past with 3rd parties to use their software rights. Example:  Spyglass therefore created its own Mosaic codebase in which most source code and all features were shared between platforms. "Spyglass Mosaic's codebase was then licensed to Microsoft and became the basis for their Internet Explorer."     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spyglass,_Inc.

Well I know that Microsoft will likely not bother with adding a user friendly image utility, but one could dream. Until then though the 3rd party image software works ok for the most part. 

[patio]

Seagate for example cut a similar deal with Acronis True Image....the CD ships with every retail HDD...

I'm thinkin both firms did well on this exchange...

[BC_Programmer]

Well MS has created their own programs that serve the same purpose as 3rd party software before... Browsers prior to IE for example. IE vs Netscape. Netscape Navigator came out on 12/15/1994 and IE 1.0 didnt come out until 8/16/1995.

Internet Explorer was (originally) effectively NCSA Mosaic rebranded on a license from Spyglass. Furthermore, It was also not included in Windows until 2.0, (PLUS! being an add-on pack for Windows) when it was included in OEM OSR2 installs. It was the inclusion in the OS that caused the kerfuffle about Anti-trust, which is why MS would be hesitant to do the same thing.

I'd be happy if they even cut a deal with a 3rd party Imaging company to bundle their imaging utility with the OS though. What imaging company would turn down such a large deal even if only getting $5 per license of Windows sold they would make a killing compared to trying to sell the software on their own at say $40 a copy.   Microsoft has cut deals in the past with 3rd parties to use their software rights.

This would make the most sense. The disk defragmenter is a stripped-down, licensed version of Diskeeper in the same sense.

[Salmon Trout]

I'm a bit puzzled. I make regular Windows 7 partition image backups using the Windows 7 disk imaging tool, to my NAS, to an external USB drive, and an internal (second) hard drive. I can restore them using either a Windows 7 recovery disk, created from Windows 7, or else my Windows 7 install disk has the same functionality. I have done it multiple times. Is this not, effectively a built-in feature? Why would I need an 3rd party product?

[Geek-9pm]

For what its worth, here is a video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL9M7CsP4qo

Recovery options in Windows 10
Robert McMillen
Published on Oct 1, 2014
Author, teacher, and talk show host Robert McMillen shows you recovery options in Windows 10

This video is about six months old and might not represent the final product due out in July.

[BC_Programmer]

I'm a bit puzzled. I make regular Windows 7 partition image backups using the Windows 7 disk imaging tool, to my NAS, to an external USB drive, and an internal (second) hard drive. I can restore them using either a Windows 7 recovery disk, created from Windows 7, or else my Windows 7 install disk has the same functionality. I have done it multiple times. Is this not, effectively a built-in feature? Why would I need an 3rd party product?

Interesting, I didn't know about that capability. I think that feature was removed from Windows 8 for some reason- I think they claim it was replaced with the "Refresh System" capability, which is hardly the case.

[Salmon Trout]

Interesting, I didn't know about that capability. I think that feature was removed from Windows 8 for some reason- I think they claim it was replaced with the "Refresh System" capability, which is hardly the case.

Microsoft introduced the system image utility in Windows 7, and then tried to hide it in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1. I don't know what version of Windows 8 have the system image option natively; in Windows 7 it was only included in the Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions. I don't have a Windows 8.x system myself but according to lots of web sources, it's in 8.x.  In whatever Windows 8.x versions that support it, it's found in Windows 8 under Recovery, (called "Windows 7 File Recovery") and in 8.1 it's in File History (called System Image Backup.) It seems to be in that place in Windows 10 as well, at least in the Technical Previews.

[camerongray]

With the advent of UEFI I'd really like to see PC manufacturers implementing what Apple currently does where there is no recovery partition (therefore no wasted disk space and no issues if the drive needs replaced).  Instead the EFI has a feature where it will download the OS image from a remote server and then start the installer without needing any information from the hard drive.