[. . . ] User Guide is provided in the PDF format, which you can easily browse through and print out. To view the on-screen guide: 1 Double-click the VAIO User Guide icon on the desktop. Specifications The online specifications describe the hardware and software configurations of your VAIO computer. To view the online specifications: 1 Connect to the Internet. 2 Go to the Sony online support Web site at http://www. vaio-link. com. Important It is strongly recommended to create recovery discs immediately after your computer is ready for use because there are no recovery discs provided with the computer. For instructions on how to create the recovery discs, see 'Creating your own recovery discs' on page 18. Contents Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Printed Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [. . . ] Do not press the drive eject button while creating a recovery disc, as doing so may result in a failure of the process. 2 3 4 19 Backing up and restoring your data using Backup and Restore Center You can make a backup copy of your data, restore the data, and create a restore point using Backup and Restore Center. To back up your data Making a backup copy of your data is extremely important. If you do not make the backup copy, you will lose various data stored on your hard disk, such as documents or pictures, due to unexpected events or computer viruses. You can make a backup copy of your data to a CD, DVD or removal media, such as an external hard disk. For instructions on how to use the Back Up Files wizard, see 'To make a backup copy of your file with the Back Up Files wizard' on page 21. Use the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore feature (available on models with Windows Vista Ultimate or Windows Vista Business only). You can make a backup copy of everything on your computer including the programs, system settings, and files on the computer. You can restore your computer system to the state when you made the backup copy. For instructions on how to use the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore, see 'To make a backup copy of your file with the Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore feature' on page 23. Your computer may become unstable or slow after installing new software or changing the Windows settings. In such cases, you can use a restore point to restore your computer system to a previous state. For instructions on how to create a restore point, see 'To create a restore point' on page 25. If an optical disc drive is not installed on your computer, you need an external hard disk drive or optical disc drive to make a backup copy of your data or need to create a new partition by changing the size of the C drive. If you have saved a backup copy of your data to an external hard disk drive or discs with an external optical disk drive, connect the external device to your computer. If you have saved the backup copy to CD or DVD discs, insert a disc to the (external) optical disk drive. Follow the on-screen instructions. On models with an analog TV tuner, restore the backup data of the Recorded TV folder where the video contents recorded by Windows Media Center are saved to C:UsersPublic manually. See the online specifications to see whether your model is equipped with an analog TV tuner. 5 6 24 Before using your computer To create a restore point What is a restore point? A restore point is created automatically, for example when installing a software driver, and used to restore your computer system files to a previous state. Even though the restore point is created automatically, it is recommended to create the restore point manually before installing software or a software driver on your computer because your computer may become unstable or slow after installing new software or changing the Windows settings. If you have created the restore point when the computer is working normally, use the restore point to restore the system files to the previous state. To create a restore point manually 1 Click Start, All Programs, VAIO Recovery Center, and VAIO Recovery Center. If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user, enter an administrator name and password and click Continue. If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user, enter an administrator name and password and click Continue. Click to select the check box next to the drive for which you want to create a restore point under Automatic restore points. Follow the on-screen instructions. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 25 To use the restore point for restoring system files If you can start Windows, follow these steps: 1 Click Start, All Programs, VAIO Recovery Center, and VAIO Recovery Center. If you are currently logged onto your computer as a standard user, enter an administrator name and password and click Continue. [. . . ] To restore the data from the backup copy, see 'Backing up and restoring your data using Backup and Restore Center' on page 20. 38 Recovering your VAIO system Recovering your VAIO system when you cannot start Windows If you cannot start Windows, follow these steps to recover your computer system: 1 Insert a recovery disc to the drive while the computer is on, turn off your computer, and turn on the computer again. The System Recovery Options window appears. If you have not yet created recovery discs, follow these steps: 1 Turn on your computer. 3 Skip the following steps 2 to 4. 2 3 4 5 Select a keyboard layout and click Next. Follow the steps after step 2 in 'To restore the C drive' on page 37 or 'To restore your entire computer system' on page 38, depending on your computer state. After completing the recovery process, restore your data from the backup copy made with the Rescue Data software. [. . . ]