Learn how to create backup with the best free bootable backup software. You can also create a recovery USB to start a faulty computer and perform system recovery in WinPE.
Bootable backup software, also known as disk cloning or imaging software, allows you to create a complete and exact copy of your computer's operating system, applications, files, and settings onto an external storage device, such as an external hard drive or a USB flash drive.
The key feature of bootable backup software is system backup. Different from a simple file-level backup, the created bootable backup can be used to restore your computer to an earlier working state in case of a system failure, data corruption, malware attack, etc. With it, you can get back to work quickly without having to reinstall the operating system and applications from scratch.
If you want to create this kind of bootable backup to secure your OS and data, you may need the help of bootable backup software. Here in this article, I will introduce some free options in Windows system, and illustrate some of the basic operations for your reference.
Here are some free tools allow you to create a bootable backup of your comptuer, which can be very useful in case of system failures or data loss.
1. Clonezilla (Download):
Clonezilla is a powerful open-source backup and cloning software that offers various imaging options for system backups and disk cloning. It's known for its customization features and compatibility with multiple file systems.
2. AOMEI Backupper Standard (Download):
AOMEI Backupper Standard is a user-friendly backup software suitable for beginners. It offers file and disk imaging options, along with data migration and scheduled backups.
3. Veeam Agent for Windows Community Edition (Download):
Veeam Agent for Windows caters to both personal and business users. It provides robust backup and recovery features, including options for full, incremental, and differential backups.
4. Redo Rescue (Download):
Redo Rescue is a lightweight and user-friendly solution designed for creating image-based backups and restores.
5. Paragon Backup & Recovery Community Edition (Download):
Paragon Backup & Recovery is a versatile backup software solution that caters to both beginners and more advanced users. With its user-friendly interface and a comprehensive feature set, it provides a range of backup and recovery options.
When choosing among these options, consider your technical proficiency, backup requirements, operating system, and desired features.
For users seeking simplicity, Macrium Reflect Free or AOMEI Backupper Standard can be good choices; If you're comfortable with technical aspects and need advanced customization, Clonezilla might suit your needs; Users prioritizing comprehensive features for both personal and business use could opt for Veeam Agent.
Always keep in mind that regular backups are essential to safeguard your data and ensure peace of mind.
Here I will take AOMEI Backupper Standard as an example to introduce how to crate bootable backup. This free bootable image backup software works with Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 and even earlier operating systems like Windows Vista and XP.
βIt can backup system and boot partitions to an image file easily. Other hidden partitions are also backed up during the system state backup, including EFI System Partition (ESP), Recovery Partition, etc. βIt offers flexible schedule options allowing you to create bootable image backup automatically. βBesides backup compression, you can also perform incremantal backup to save only changed data each time, so as to save backup time and storage space. βThe backup procedure will not interrupt your work. You can do bootable backup while working on the computer.
Free download the bootable backup software.
Step 1. Install and launch the software. Click System Backup under the Backup tab.
Step 2. The program will select the system and boot partitions by default, you just need to select a destination path to save the backup file.
You can backup computer to USB, external drive, network share, NAS, cloud, as well as the local drive.
Step 3. Click Start Backup to start creating bootable backup in Windows 11/10/8/7, and click Finish when it's done. The time the system backup process will take is determined by the amount of the valid data.
πUseful options:
Schedule Backup: You may specify the intervals in Schedule Backup to backup system automatically on a regular basis, such as Daily, Weekly, Monthly.
Backup Scheme: Choose backup method from full/incremental/differential backup, and enable automatic backup cleanup if you want. It will delete obsolete backups automatically based on the rule you set, so that there is always sufficient space for backup. Please note "Differential Backup" and "Automatic Backup Cleanup" are only supported by advanced editions like AOMEI Backupper Professional.
If you are worried that the computer may fail to boot one day, you may create a bootable media with backup freeware. With it you can:
Connect the CD or USB drive with your computer, and make sure it can be detected by Windows. The operation of creating bootable disc will be operated in Windows environment, so if your computer has already failed, try to make it on your families’ or friends’ computer.
Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI Backupper Standard. Click Tools -> Create Bootable Media.
Step 2. Choose Windows PE- Create bootable disc based on Windows PE. Then AOMEI Backupper will detect if you need to install Windows AIK or not. If you do, please install it first.
Step 3. Select the bootable media you want. Click Next and wait for the process complete. Mostly, it merely takes a few minutes.
Unplug the device after creating. Now you‘ve got a bootable media in hand.
To use it, you can insert it into the computer that you want to start in WinPE, change the boot sequence in BIOS/UEFI settings. If it works, you will see the interface of AOMEI Backupper Standard pop up automatically. Then you can use its backup & restore features just as normal.
AOMEI Backupper Standard is one of the best free bootable backup software to help you create system backup and recover computer from it.
From a data security point of view, it is recommended that both os and important data be backed up on a regular basis in case of disaster recovery. If you plan to replace your hard disk someday, you can also use the upgraded version of this tool to make a bootable clone, which helps you transfer Windows to another drive directly.