How to Create a Mirror Image of your Windows PC and Restore from it

For this tutorial ill be using Paragon hard Disk Manager 15 to create a mirror image back up. This program is free for non-commecial use. You would have to register and every time you run it it will ask you to pay for it.

I’ll be using My external hard drive to store my image file.

Video Tutorial:

Create a Mirror Image of your Windows PC

Create the mirror image back up file:

Download and install Paragon hard Disk Manager 15.

1. Make sure you have connected your external hard drive.

2. Go to Computer, right click Local Disk C: to select properties from the context menu.

3. Locate the Used space on you C: drive, very important.

Note: Your destination drive should be same or larger size than the space used on your Local Disk C:

4. In my Tutorial I’m using 300 GB external hard drive which is more than enough space to fit my 15 GB Used space.

5. Create a Folder inside the external drive and name it recovery. This is where we are placing the Mirror image file.

6. Now run Paragon Hard Disk Manager 12, Click yes to the UAC if prompted.

7. Under partitioning select Backup and Recovery. on the top left.

8. Then Select Smart Backup under Backup and Recovery located on the top right of the paragon window to start the Smart Backup Wizard.

9. Click Next to the Wizard and select Disk or Partitions under what to back up.

10. Check mark Local Disk C: and System Reserved. That is all you need to successfully create an image of your hard drive, and click on next.

11. Select Save data to local/network drives in the choose kind of backup destination window. Click next.

12. in the Backup destination – choose a partition window. change the Archive name is optional and locate the folder you created on the external drive to store the image file. click next.

13. In the Backup comment and mode window select Back up now and click next to run the back up.

14. When you click on next the wizard will present you with a summary you can read it if you like or just click next to start creating the image file. This process can take a long time depending on how much information you have on your Local Disk.

15.Once completed finish the wizard and you would be done creating the image backup. The only thing left is to restore from it in case of a disk failure.

Restore from that mirror image back up file:

1. Paragon hard Disk Manager 15 comes with a boot.ISO you need to burn that doot.ISO to a disk.

2. You also need to change the boot sequence in the BIOS to boot from that disk.

3. Once you boot from the Hard Disk Manager 12 boot disk, select Normal Mode from the menu. Then Simple Restore Wizard.

4. Browse for the image file by clicking on the 3 dots button.

5. In the Select a Drive window, Browse for the image file inside of the external drive, it should be a .pbf file. Double click it or selected and click open button.

6. Once the file is selected the file path will show under select image, here click on next.

7. In the image properties window select the Local disk not the System Reserved and click on next.

8. Make sure to select the your local disk in the Select the Destination to restore chosen partition or hard disk Window.

9. Once you select the local disk is marked with an indentation barely visible and click next.

10. In the partition start and re size window, leave it default and click on next.

11. In the Summary windows you will see the end result how you C: drive looks now and how is going to look after the re-image.

12. Once you click on next your computer will re-image the C: drive using the image file we created earlier from the external hard drive.

13. Once done re-start and you should be good to go.