3 Free Ways to Create Windows 10, 11 Recovery Disk or USB  

3 Free Ways to Create Windows 10, 11 Recovery Disk or USB


What is a Windows recovery disk or USB?

A Windows recovery disk is a bootable disc that contains advanced recovery options, such as System Restore, Startup Repair, Safe Mode, and Command Prompt, allowing users to fix system errors and even reinstall Windows 10 or other operating systems from startup.

Since Windows 8, creating a Windows recovery USB has become a more mainstream approach, especially with the portability it offers. This is now a common practice in Windows 10/11, allowing users to create a bootable USB drive for recovery purposes. However, users still have the option to create a system repair disc on a CD or DVD if they prefer not to use a USB drive.

Create Windows 10 Recovery Drive

Which kind of recovery disk should you choose?

Both recovery drive and repair disc can help you access recovery options even when you fail to boot Windows 10/11, but they serve slightly different purposes: a recovery drive allows you to boot into Windows and access recovery options, while a repair disc is typically used to troubleshoot and repair issues with the operating system.

☛ A recovery drive requires a USB drive, whereas a system repair disc needs a CD/DVD.
☛ The recovery drive allows you to backup system files for Windows reinstallation, enabling you to reinstall Windows 10/11 with the "Recover from a drive" option if you're unable to restore your computer.
☛ To create a Windows recovery USB that can be used on another PC, you can try making a Windows recovery USB that is tied to the current PC, which is not recommended, or making a Windows repair disc that can be used on different computers with the same version of Windows. If you want to make a Windows recovery USB that can be used on another PC, then you can try making a Windows recovery USB that is tied to the current PC, which is not recommended, or making a Windows repair disc that can be used on different computers with the same version of Windows.

Based on your needs, choose between a USB drive and a CD/DVD, considering factors such as reinstalling Windows, using it on a different computer, and the need for periodic updates to improve security and PC performance. It's recommended to recreate a Windows installation media every year.

Related Tips:

How to create Windows 10/11 recovery drive (3 free ways)

There are three methods to create Windows 10 or 11 recovery drive for your reference.

Here is how you can create a Windows 10/11 recovery USB with Recovery Media Creator:

To create a system repair disc in Windows 10/11 using the Backup and Restore feature, go to Control Panel > System and Security > Backup and Restore (Windows Backup). Click on "Create a system image" and then select the drive where you want to save the repair disc.

To create a Windows 10/11 boot repair drive, you can use Qiling Disk Master. This tool allows you to create a bootable USB drive that can repair or reinstall Windows 10/11. By following the steps in the Qiling Disk Master software, you can create a boot repair drive that can help you troubleshoot and fix issues with your Windows installation.

The three ways to create a bootable drive are designed to serve different purposes. Way 1 creates a recovery USB tied to the current PC, Way 2 creates a repair CD/DVD, and Way 3 works with both USB and CD/DVD, allowing the drive to be used to boot different computers running different systems, as well as non-system computers.

Way 1. Create Windows 10/11 recovery USB with Recovery Media Creator

It is not necessary to format the USB drive to create a recovery drive, as the Recovery Drive will create a FAT32 formatted USB that can boot on both BIOS-based and UEFI-based PCs.

To prepare for the process, you'll need a USB drive with at least 16 GB capacity and ensure it's completely empty, as all data on the drive will be deleted.

To create a Windows 10 recovery USB, you'll need a blank USB drive with at least 16 GB of free space. Insert the USB drive into your computer, then go to the Windows 10 settings by pressing the Windows key + I.

1. Connect your USB drive to your computer, and you'll be given access to the recovery drive. You may be prompted to allow the app to make changes to your device, in which case, click "Yes". To use the recovery drive, you have two options.

To create a recovery drive, type "recovery drive" into the search box and select "Create a recovery drive".

To create a recovery drive, go to the Control Panel, select the "View by smaller icons" option, and then navigate to the "Recovery" section. From there, choose the "Create a recovery drive" option on the advanced recovery tools page.

Create A Recovery Drive

2. In the pop-out window, select the option to back up system files to the recovery drive and then click Next.

Backup System Files

Note: The option "Back up system files to the recovery drive" will create a recovery drive that allows you to reinstall Windows.

3. Select the USB drive you prepared and click next to continue.

Select Drive

4. Please confirm that you are aware of the data deletion and click "Create" to start making a Windows 10 recovery USB drive.

Creating

After completing the process, you will see an option to delete the recovery partition from your PC, freeing up space if you have a Windows recovery partition on your Windows 10/11 computer.

In some cases, a Windows bootable USB may not work, such as using a Windows 8 recovery disk to restore Windows 10 or a 64-bit recovery drive on a 32-bit computer, meaning a Windows 10 recovery USB created in this way cannot be used on another computer.

Way 2: Create system repair disc in Windows 10/11 using Backup and Restore

You can create a Windows 10 repair disk using either a CD/DVD or the Windows built-in utility.

1. To access older backup settings, type "backup settings" in the search box and select it. Then, scroll down to "Looking for an older backup" and click "Go to Backup and Restore (Windows 7)".

2. To create a system repair disc, click on the "Create a system repair disc" option at the left panel of the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) page.

Create A System Repair Disc

3. To proceed, you will need to select a CD/DVD drive and insert a blank disc into it, following the instructions provided.

4. Click "Create disc" to create a Windows 10/11 recovery disk on a CD/DVD, which will start writing the disc in a few minutes.

Choose Dvd

Way 3. Create Windows 10/11 boot repair drive via Qiling Disk Master

The repair USB created by the recovery media creator won't work on computers with different systems or non-system computers. A more flexible option is to use a third-party media creator like Qiling Disk Master Standard.

With this tool, you can create a Windows 10/11 recovery USB that can be used on both the current computer and another PC, and it works with all Windows PCs, including Windows 11/10/8/7 (both 32 bit and 64 bit), offering the convenience of a portable recovery solution.

✭ HP PC Suite allows you to create a bootable DVD/CD or USB that can be used to start a crashed computer of HP, Lenovo, Acer, ASUS, Dell, and other brands, and the created media can boot in both BIOS and UEFI mode.
✭ You can also create a Windows 10 recovery disk from another computer to boot the problematic one if your system crashes before you made a recovery drive.
✭ A complete data protection solution, it enables you to create scheduled backups of your system, disks, files, and partitions to various locations, including local disks, external hard drives, network shares, and the cloud.

How to create Windows 10 recovery USB with Qiling Disk Master:

1. To create a Windows 10/11 recovery USB media, download and install Qiling Disk Master, a Windows 10/11 recovery USB media creator, and then launch it.

2. To recover Windows via this tool, create a regular system backup in the Backup tab, then click Tools and select Create Bootable Media.

Create Bootable Media

3. Select a bootable disc type, either Linux based or Windows PE based, and click "Next". The type of bootable media chosen will determine the functionality of Qiling Disk Master, with Linux based allowing only basic functions and Windows PE enabling full access.

Windows Bootable Disc

4. To create a Windows 10/11 bootable recovery media, select a CD/DVD or USB drive and click Next to run the process.

Note: If you don't have a CD/DVD or USB drive, you can export a Windows 10 recovery ISO image file instead.

With Qiling Disk Master, you can create a Windows 10 recovery USB that allows you to boot a computer into WinPE, from which you can restore your system using a previously created system image.

Advanced Features You May Need (Available in Professional edition):

✭ If you haven't made a system backup before the failure, you can create a system image on another working computer and restore it to the problematic one using the Universal Restore feature.

✭ If you don't have any CD/DVD or USB drive, you can enable the Qiling recovery environment to achieve the same effect as recovery disk.

How to restore Windows 10/11 using different recovery drives

After creating a Windows 10/11 recovery USB, you may want to know how to use it. There are two common ways to do so: using the Windows recovery drive or repair disc, which allows you to troubleshoot and repair issues with your operating system, or using a third-party rescue disk, which can also help you recover your system.

#1: How to restore Windows from recovery USB or repair disc

1. Insert your recovery drive or system repair disc, then press the displayed F key on the initial screen when you start computer, and change the recovery drive or disc as the first boot option in the BIOS to boot from it.

2. To start the Windows recovery environment, restart your computer and immediately start tapping the F8 key. This will bring up the Advanced Boot Options menu.

3. In the blue Troubleshoot page, you will see three options: "Reset this PC", "Recovery from a drive", and "Advanced options".

You have three options to address the issue: reinstalling Windows, which can be done with or without keeping your files, or using recovery tools to repair your computer, including system restore, system image recovery, startup repair, and command prompt.

Recovery from A Drive

4. To recover from a drive, click on "Recover from a drive" and then select either "Just remove my files" to delete only files on your computer, or "Fully clean the drive" to fully recycle the operating system.

Just Remove My Files

5. Click "Recover" to start the recovery process. It will take a while to finish and your PC will restart. Please follow the on-screen instructions to configure your preference settings.

#2: How to restore operating system via Qiling bootable drive

1. Connect the backup drive containing the system image and recovery disk to your computer, then boot your computer with the disk created by Qiling Disk Master.

2. Once the file loading process completes, you will see the main page of Qiling Disk Master Standard, where you can click "Restore" and "Select Image File" to locate the system image created beforehand.

Select Image File Winpe

3. Select the "Restore this system image" option and check the "Restore system to other location" box if needed, then click the "Next" button.

Select System Image

4. To restore a system to a different location, select a destination disk to store the backup image and click "Next". If the destination disk is new, connect it beforehand.

Select Destination

5. If you're restoring your system to an SSD, select the "SSD Alignment" option to speed up the writing and reading process on the SSD disk. After that, click "Proceed" to start the system image restoration using the recovery disk.

Relate tip:
If you need to restore a system image from another computer with different hardware, the steps are similar, but make sure to select "Universal Restore" (available in Professional edition) to ensure the computer can boot after restoration.

Troubleshoot: A problem occurred while creating the recovery drive

If you're unable to create a recovery disk in Windows 10/11 and receive the error message "We can't create the recovery drive. A problem occurred while creating the recovery drive", try the following solutions: check if the USB drive is properly connected, ensure it has enough free space, and try creating the recovery drive on a different USB drive. If the issue persists, check the Event Viewer for any error messages related to the recovery drive creation process, and consider running a System File Checker (SFC) scan to identify and replace any corrupted system files. Additionally, you can try using a third-party recovery disk creation tool, such as EaseUS Todo Backup, to create a recovery disk.

Failed to Create Recovery Disk

Solution 1. Check the USB drive

If Windows fails to create a recovery drive with the error "We can't create the recovery drive", try checking if your USB drive is properly connected and recognized by Windows. If that's not the case, you can download the Windows 10/11 recovery disk ISO file and burn it to your USB flash drive or CD/DVD. Alternatively, you can try the following solutions.

Solution 2. Enable Windows recovery environment

Windows recovery environment is disabled, which prevents the system from booting into recovery mode. To resolve this, run the command "reagentc /info" in an elevated Command Prompt to check the status of Windows RE. If it's disabled, type "reagentc /enable" to reenable it, allowing the system to boot into recovery mode. If this still fails, consider alternative solutions.

Windows 10 Recovery Environment Info

Solution 3. Create Windows recovery environment with installation ISO file

1. To create a folder named WindowsRE under the Recovery folder of the C: drive, you can follow these steps: First, show the hidden Recovery folder by navigating to the C: drive and clicking on the "View" tab in File Explorer, then selecting "Show" and checking the box next to "Hidden items". Once the Recovery folder is visible, right-click on it and select "New" > "Folder" to create a new folder. Name the new folder "WindowsRE".

Tip: If you still don't see the Recovery folder, you can create one under the root directory of the C: drive.

2. To create a Winre.wim file, you can either copy it from another Windows 10/11 computer or download the installation ISO file from Microsoft, mount it as a virtual drive, and use it to create the file. If you already have the file backed up, you can skip to the next step. Otherwise, proceed with mounting the ISO file.

3. Locate the Install.wim file in the Source folder, copy the path to it, and note it down.

4. In an elevated Command Prompt, use the following syntax:

dism /mount-1. Copy the path to the install.wim file.

In my case, it is:

dism /mount-wim /wimfile:"F:\windows 10 ISO\sources\install.wim" /index:2 /mountdir:D:\mount_image_file\

5. Copy the Winre.wim file from the location you entered at the end of the above command to the "C:\Recovery\WindowsRE" directory.

6. To set the Windows RE image path, type the command `Reagentc /setreimage /path C:\Recovery\WindowsRE` and press Enter. This will allow you to create a recovery drive in Windows 10/11 successfully.

Set Winre Image

Solution 4. Fix to failed to include system files

If you're unable to create a Windows 10/11 repair USB drive that includes system files, try checking the option "Back up system files to the recovery drive" when creating the repair USB drive. This may resolve the issue.

1. Copy the install.wim file from the Windows 10/11 installation file to a folder on your hard drive, such as "D:\Windows-OS-image".

2. Open an elevated Command Prompt, type `Reagentc /setosimage /path D:\Windows-OS-image /index 1` and press Enter.

To create a Windows 10/11 recovery drive, you can use the built-in tool in Windows, called "Create a recovery drive". This tool allows you to create a USB drive that can be used to boot Windows and start the recovery process, which can be used to ret Windows 10/11 without requiring anything on your hard drive, including the system files, by including them on the recovery drive.

FAQs about Windows 10 recovery disk

What is a Windows recovery disk?

A Windows Recovery Disk is a storage device that holds a precise copy of Windows and troubleshooting tools, allowing you to resolve system issues and reinstall Windows to restore your system to its normal functioning state.

How to create a Windows 10 recovery disk?

To create a Windows 10 repair disk, plug your CD/DVD or USB flash drive into your Windows 10, search for "recovery drive" and select "Create a recovery drive", check the "Back up system files to the recovery drive" option and follow the prompts to select the device and create the disk.

You can create a Windows 10 recovery disk on one computer and use it on another, but you'll need to make sure the computer you're using the recovery disk on has the same architecture (32-bit or 64-bit) as the computer you created the recovery disk on. This is because the recovery disk contains the specific files and drivers needed to boot and run Windows 10 on that particular architecture.

It's a hassle to set up two computers with the same specifications, including drivers and installed devices, but a free backup software called Qiling Disk Master Standard can simplify the process by allowing you to create a recovery drive on one computer and use it on another, regardless of the Windows OS.

To fix a problem occurred while creating the recovery drive, check if the USB drive is properly inserted and has enough space. Try creating the recovery drive on a different USB drive or a different computer.

If the media is not working properly, try fully formatting the USB drive/CD/DVD. If that doesn't work, try repairing the recovery environment and enabling it. As a last resort, create a Windows recovery drive using the installation ISO file.

How to recover Windows 10 without recovery disk?

If your computer crashes before creating a recovery drive, you can use the "Reset this PC" feature to reset Windows 10 to factory settings or create a recovery disk from another computer.

Conclusion

To create a Windows 10/11 recovery disk, you can use Qiling Disk Master, which allows you to create a recovery disk for any Windows system version, including Windows 10 and 11, in a single process, eliminating the need to create separate recovery disks for each version. This tool can help you restore your system from a recovery disk with ease, making it a convenient and efficient solution for system recovery.

You can use Qiling Disk Master Technician Plus to protect unlimited computers within your company. This software also comes with a Qiling Image Deploy tool, which allows you to deploy or restore system image files on a server-side computer to multiple client-side computers over a network.

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