One way PC problems can sometimes be fixed is by using the built-in function called System Restore. It’s not the answer for every situation, but in certain situations it can be the perfect solution. But in order for it to work, it has to be set up correctly ahead of time.

Here’s what happens. A client will bring me a computer and maybe some malware has wormed its way in or some unwanted software has gotten installed, something like that. The client knows that the problem happened within the last 24 hours. So in this case, we can probably use System Restore to take the computer back to an earlier date – meaning longer than 24 hours ago – and the problem is likely to go away.

But with System Restore, there are a couple of things that are needed in order for that to work.

First, System Restore has to be enabled and configured properly.

Second, you will need what’s called a “restore point” – which just means a date that the computer can be brought back to. For example, usually when Microsoft sends out a Windows Update, the first step in that process is that the update will first create a restore point – so that if there’s a problem with the update, System Restore can be used to take the computer back to that point (before the troublesome update).

So what happens sometimes is I’ll go to use System Restore, and the message that comes back is “No restore points found”. When there are no restore points, System Restore is useless.

So here are the two things you need to do in order to make sure System Restore is ready to use when you need it:

First, enable and configure System Restore:

Click in the search field in the bottom left and type: Create a restore point.  Then, in the search results, click on “Create a restore point”. This will open the System Restore window.

In that window, click once to highlight the C drive, and click on “Configure”.

In the next window, there are two things you need to do:

Second, set a restore point:

After you click ok in the last step, you’re taken back to the main window. At the bottom of that window is a button named “Create”. Click that, and then give this system restore point a name. It can be as simple as today’s date.

Finally, click OK and you’re done.

It’s not a bad idea to just create a new restore point every once in a while, as long as your computer seems to be working well. Windows is supposed to set one automatically each time new Windows Updates come in, but that is not something I would rely on.

Some things you should know about System Restore: