Sony VGN-SZ3XRP - Manual (Page 7)

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Recovering your VAIO system
This booklet will guide you through the process of recovering your system, which can
resolve serious problems you may experience with your Sony VAIO ® computer.
There are no recovery discs provided with your computer. You can create your own VAIO
Recovery Media Kit (as described in “Making your own recovery discs (Recovery Media
Kit)” on page 13).
Introduction to your VAIO system
How is my hard disk drive set up?
When you purchase your computer, it contains one or more hard disks with the following
separate partitions:
❑
Your working C drive, where most applications and data are stored by default. In the
event of a system recovery, this partition will be cleaned of all data. When you start
using your computer, your C partition (also referred to as C drive) contains all the files
required by Windows and other preinstalled software, while the D drive is empty in
most cases.
❑ Your working D drive, where you can save data to save space on your C drive. After
a standard system recovery, data on this drive is saved. However, if you choose to
change partition sizes during the recovery process, this partition will also be cleaned
of all data. The D drive is the ideal storage space for all your documents and files,
especially larger ones like digital motion pictures captured by DVgate Plus.
❑ ’Recovery Partition’, containing recovery files and tools. This partition is ‘hidden’,
meaning you cannot browse it. It is vital that nothing gets deleted or modified on this
partition, unless you choose to do so through the backup process (see the notes under
“Making your own recovery discs (Recovery Media Kit)” on page 13 and “Restoring the
recovery partition” on page 11).
To optimize data storage, use the C drive to install new applications, and save all your documents
and files to the D drive. Doing this will also prevent the loss of your data in case you need to
perform a system recovery.
Please make a backup copy of your data before recovering your VAIO system.
Recovering your system will delete all the data previously stored in a hard disk.
Make sure to make a backup copy of the data by copying it to:
❑
floppy disks
❑ optical discs
❑ D drive
The hard disk in your computer is divided into two partitions (to be exact, plus one
hidden partition for hard disk recovery): C drive and D drive. If you choose C
Drive Recovery (Recommended) in step 2 in “Recovering the system without
changing partition sizes (C Drive Recovery)” on page 8, the C drive will be
cleaned of all data but the D drive will remain unchanged.
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