justkay used his keyboard to write :
System Restore Points are quicker & easier to restore and will often do
the job just fine. Unfortunately they're also more susceptible to
corruption and won't work or the point you need won't work, or there
won't be one current enough to use, etc., unless you created one on your
own (recommended when installing progs).
The System State is more inclusive, less prone to corruption, should
always be availble and since it's a file on disk is easier to assess
visually.
Where Restore Points can only have so much space to use, once that's
full, evry time a point is added, older points are tossed out to make
room. System States are more permanent in that manner.
The part of Restore Points that I really don't like is that by
default it's allocated alarge chunk of space on each disk drive letter
but it's only useful on drives which have system files on them. I've
turned it off on all non-system drives (D thru J) and made the one on C
much smallers, so it only holds a few day's instead of weeks worth. I
gained space on every drive that way. You do that under "Drive
Settings" on the Restore dialog.
Then too, the System State is part of each automated backup I do, so
it's always available and if I do a LOT of changes I'll create one
manually.
Lots more to it, but those seem to be the areas you're interested in.
It's kind of a user choice which to use, but System State backups are
more reliable and apt to exist when you need it. But f I have an
install go bad, the first thing I try is a Restore Piont. If that
doesn't work, then I use the System State instead; it's never failed me.
All that said, it's still sort of a user's choice. Some people have
never needed more than a Restore Point.
Erunt and the like are OK, but I personally avoid 3rd party apps when a
native application will do the job perfectly well.
HTH
Twayne
