Your computer screen is blue or stays black. You force the shutdown and restart your device. You repeat the operation 1 time, 2 times, or even 3 times … without success. So what to do?

It’s at this point that having an ISO copy of your system on an external hard disk and a USB key to reboot the system has its biggest reason to be.

Indeed, it’s the only way that allowed me more than once to restart my computer without having to call a technician for help. I certainly lost a few hours, time to restore the image … but nothing more and I saved the repair costs.

Which ISO image to choose?

In a previous chapter, I prompted you to do several ISO images, at different stages of installation of your computer. There were mainly three:

  1. Factory status: This is when the operating system is installed as well as all drivers.
  2. Operational status: This one is with all your software installed and set up.
  3. Current status: This is the one you do annually of the entire system.

Which one to use? This will depend on your intentions, the time available and your current strategy versus the one when you made your ISO images.

Situation A: You are in a hurry

You only have a few hours available. You have to send, if possible still today, an important file to a customer.

  • Restart the computer by booting it with the USB key
  • Restore the ISO image, taking:
    • Current status, often the longest, if you had a lot of files on the computer at the time of creating that image.
    • Or the Operational status one, which will be faster, but the software you need today may need to be added or updated.
  • Once your computer is restarted, all you have to do is go back to work and send your file.

Situation B: You have time available

You have a rainy weekend available. Now that the system has collapse, you want to take this opportunity to do the cleaning in your system.

  • Restart the computer by booting it with the USB key
  • Restore the ISO image – Factory status – to verify that the computer is still running.
  • Make Windows updates, if necessary
  • Re-create an ISO image (= new Factory status)
  • Re-install the software you want, as you want.
  • Re-create an ISO image (= New Operational Status)

Situation C: Your images are no longer topical

Your Windows 7 system has migrated to Windows 8 or 10. It may also be that your operating system is still the same, but there is a service pack 2 long enough to install and you do not want to waste time each time.

  • Restart the computer by booting it with the USB key
  • Restore the ISO image – Factory status – to verify that the computer is still running.
  • Update your operating system or install service pack 2.
  • Make Windows updates.
  • Re-create an ISO image (= new Factory status)
  • Re-install the programs you want, as you want.
  • Re-create an ISO image (= New Operational Status)

Here are three scenarios among many others, to give you leads to solve your particular case. Note, however, that this kind of restoration does not always work.

If your computer does not really restart and the screen persists to remain blue or black for hours, do not hesitate to go to a technician. He will check your equipment, do a major cleaning, replace the necessary parts and return it to the factory condition.

(Photos : CC0 @ pexels.com)