Recovery Disk/image 8.1

[malberttoo]

Is it possible to create my own recovery disk? And how I am able to restore my Windows from that disk?

Tried it with Acronis TI, but there are issues with the UEFI/BitLocker!

In the case of True Image, I believe they recommend that you make the image from within Windows, in order to bypass any Bitlocker issues.

 

[bender]

Yeah, but restore of partitions will work only in acronis secure boot!

 

[Alex_SP3]

Yes, it can be a MicroSDXC drive. However, it will be reformatted to 32GB. When you decide to return it to normal service, you cannot use the Windows built-in Format options to return it to original (like my SanDisk 128GB), butinstead use the SD Formatter free formatter from here. This utility will return it to the max possible configuration.

Thanks for this valuable info!

It worked like a charm on my 128GB SD. I'll be using the 32GB from my phone for the recovery instead.

 

[lonaysta]

So... Is there a way for me to download an image for different language? I may need to flash my Surface from US version to another region....

 

[BornBad]

So... Is there a way for me to download an image for different language? I may need to flash my Surface from US version to another region....

Same question: Bought the Surface Pro3 in Norway. Even with the english language pack installed some parts are still norwegian.

Can I delete all partitions before installing with the recovery image and get new recovery partitions?

 

[xbliss]

Went there, asks for my serial number, the place where it shows me to look on the back of the Surface Pro doesn't have any numbers. Where else might I find my SN? thanks

not on my box, Microsoft site wants a 12 item number box had one with 10. Finally found mine by lifting up the back kickstand. Under there is very small print.

Found this super small print that starts with OOOs or Zeros then has some 5s or S'es in it. I tried various combinations on the MS Site and the damn thing will not verify/ allow me to download. What the hell do I do to figure out the Serial No? Is there a pattern to this AlphaNumberic code?
What part is alpha and what is numeric?
When tried to contact support agent, same drama.. it wont verify Serial.. Stupid MS..

OK, I found a tutorial that gave me my space back.
But I now have a question. Do the recovery files have to be on their own partition to be usable?

Do link and share please?

Is it possible to create my own recovery disk? And how I am able to restore my Windows from that disk?
Tried it with Acronis TI, but there are issues with the UEFI/BitLocker!

In the case of True Image, I believe they recommend that you make the image from within Windows, in order to bypass any Bitlocker issues.

I am also concerned with this whole UEFI thing, all old imaging apps are in trouble.

 

[aabento]

Is there a mirror for the recovery file anywhere. Everytime i try and download from there, no matter what PC i use or how fast my connection is, it downloads at around 150Kb/s, even on a high speed connection. It estimates that it will take me 12 hours to download the file from MS Servers.

I´m facing the same problem today (12-08-2015).
Any sugestion?

 

[Max_eb]

surface3_bmr_10_4.50.0.zip for Surface3 ... someone has?
I could spend the link where download?
Thank you

 

[GreyFox7]

Found this super small print that starts with OOOs or Zeros then has some 5s or S'es in it. I tried various combinations on the MS Site and the damn thing will not verify/ allow me to download. What the hell do I do to figure out the Serial No? Is there a pattern to this AlphaNumberic code?
What part is alpha and what is numeric?
When tried to contact support agent, same drama.. it wont verify Serial.. Stupid MS..


Do link and share please?




I am also concerned with this whole UEFI thing, all old imaging apps are in trouble.

Macrium Reflect works perfectly without disabling anything or buying anything.

 

[xbliss]

surface3_bmr_10_4.50.0.zip for Surface3 ... someone has?
I could spend the link where download?
Thank you

I wish someone could dropbox/ google drive/ multi upload or torrent it

 

[Switch]

Hi Guys, just want to update this post for other users (and for my own future reference ) as I didn't seem to find anything similar searching this forum. Following instructions from another forum (link), I have wiped my SP3 Win 8.1 recovery partition and updated it with a Win 10 recovery partition (my win 8.1 partition was corrupted. You can download Win 8.1 or Win 10, I chose Win 10 as its my preferred OS). Note that my SP3 was previous upgraded to Win10 using the free upgrade from MS, so the activation key is stored on MS servers. Using the recovery image downloaded from the first post, do the following (quoted for future reference in case the original source is removed):

Once you've got the recovery image (which you extract on your local pc and then copy to a USB pen) it can either be used from within Control Panel or as part of the boot sequence (if you formatted the USB pen as FAT32) to reinstall the Operating System. If you use the USB pen with the recovery image from the boot sequence you can actually completely clean and replace all the partitions on the main drive (so its just like new). This option reinstates the recovery partition of the Surface Pro.

The steps are:
1) Start with the Surface Pro 3 turned off
2) Hold down the "volume-down" button, and press and release the power button to turn it on.
3) When the surface logo / text appears on screen, release the "volume-down" button. It should then boot from the USB. If it doesn't the USB memory stick is not configured correctly (check its FAT32)
4) Select your language settings
5) Click Troubleshoot -> Advanced Options -> Command Prompt
6) Type "Diskpart" and press enter
7) Type "select disk system" press enter - this is a system action that automatically selects the device on which the operating system is installed
8) Type "clean" press enter to erase the disk
9) Type "exit" press enter
10) Turn off the device by holding down the power button
11) Hold down the "volume-down" button, and press and release the power button to turn it on.
12) When the surface logo / text appears on screen, release the "volume-down" button. It should then boot from the USB.
13) Select your language settings
14) Click Troubleshoot -> Reset your PC
15) Click Next and select to "Yes, repartition the drives" - this is the step that replaces the recovery partition as well as the OS etc.
16) Follow the prompts.

(Thanks to Microsoft support for guiding me through this process)

Note that at step 14, my process was a bit different. I had to choose the "recover from drive" option, then follow the prompts and choose the option to remove all files, in the bullet descriptions it will state that it also installs the recovery partitions. After the installation completes and restarts, the BIOS will ask for a TPM reset, as stated in this HowToGeek page (link). I pressed f12 to clear my TPM, not exactly sure what the effects are, note however that bitlocker encryption is turned off for the windows drive, so you need to manually turn that back on after the window installation.

I think there is a good chance to brick your device, so proceed with caution. I only did this as my recovery partition was corrupt, otherwise I would go the long way round with a factory reset with the recovery partition to windows 8.1 and then a manual ISO upgrade to windows 10.

 

[markaessex99]

Here is how you can download a recovery image

http://www.microsoft.com/surface/en...ervice-and-recovery/downloadablerecoveryimage

Hi there, thanks for the link and when I download the zip file and extract it to a USB it does not boot. I have the Surface Pro 3 boot settings correct for USB first but it seems the download does not actually contain bootable files. I need to do it this way as the Pro 3 is frozen on the Surface screen on boot up and I cannot reset it the usual way involving the Vol Up button so need a working bootable image? Any help would be much appreciated otherwise it will become landfill...thanks.