How to bare metal restore Windows Server 2008 under Windows Recovery Environment?

How to bare-metal restores from Windows Server 2008 Backup?

What is bare-metal restore?

An explanation from Wikipedia:

Bare-metal restore is a technique in the field of data recovery and restoration where the backed up data is available in a form which allows one to restore a computer system from "bare metal", i.e. without any requirements as to previously installed software or operating system.

Typically, the backed up data includes the necessary operating system, applications and data components to rebuild or restore the backed up system to an entirely separate piece of hardware. In some configurations, the hardware receiving the restore needs to have an identical configuration to the hardware that was the source of the backup, although virtualization techniques and careful planning can enable a bare-metal restore to a hardware configuration different from the original.

The bare-metal restore can be performed to recover your server operating system or the entire server itself by using the Windows Recovery Environment on Windows Server 2008. It seems unbelievable? Keep reading and you will catch the clue to do a bare-metal restore.

Before doing a Windows Server 2008 bare-metal restore, you definitely must have back up for your Windows Server and make sure it is in a safe place. To have a successful recovery, make sure of the following:

You have a Windows Server 2008 setup/installation disc.
If you are recovering just the operating system, make sure that you have a backup available that contains at least the critical volumes of the Server. If you are recovering the full Server, make sure that you have a backup available that contains all volumes of the Server.
Make sure the destination disk or partition bigger enough.

Step by step introduction of performing a bare metal recovery

1. You must first boot the Windows Server 2008 from the installation media and select proper settings for:

a. Language to install
b. Time and currency format
c. Keyboard or input format

2. In the next Window, select the Repair your Computer option from the lower left corner console.

3. From the System Recovery Options window, you can choose to load any drivers required by your hard disk, like RAID drivers and then click on the Next button. If you are performing a bare-metal restore to a brand new hard disk, you will not see any Operating Systems listed out for your choice. Or the Operating Systems would be displayed if you are restoring a backup to a machine that already has Windows Server 2008.

4. Under the System Recovery Options window, select the Windows Complete PC Restore option. This will invoke the Windows Recovery Environment.

5. Then Windows will scan your machine for available backups. Please ensure that the media with your backup is connected to the machine. If Windows Complete PC Restore is unable to find the backup, please try un-connecting and re-connecting the backup device.

6. Once your backup disk has been detected, you may choose to restore the latest backup or another backup. Windows 2008 will automatically choose your latest backup by default.

7. In the Choose how to restore your backup window, you have the following options:

Install any drivers for the disk you are restoring to by clicking on the Install Drivers button.
Exclude disks that you don't want formatted by clicking on the Exclude disks button.
Choose to restart the computer after the restore process and to automatically check and update error information by clicking on the Advanced button.

8. Select the location of your backup and click on the Next button and confirm your settings and click on the Finish button.

9. Windows Recovery Environment will ask you whether you want to let Windows Complete PC Restore format the disks and restore the backups you have chosen. Click on the OK button.

10. Your bare-metal restore of Windows Server 2008 should begin. Once done, your system should reboot and Windows will load. Congratulations - the procedure is complete!

The above mention way is through Windows Recovery Environment to do bare metal restore. You can also use Windows Server backup and recovery software - EaseUS Todo Backup Server Edition to do this.

Tutorial to peform Windows Server 2008 bare-metal restore.

Bare metal restore software