Question : How convert Windows 7 shadow copies into usable Restore Points like XP?

Beginning with Vista, wonderful (right) Microsoft changed the way restore points are stored. So no longer can you access System Volume Information and pull out the backed up RP*.* points. In XP these points consisted of a few files like SAM, Security, Default, Software, etc..

But in Vista and Win7, you cannot access these points manually.
So if your system crashes as a friend of mine did, we resorted to the recovery CD for 64 bit Win 7. Well in trying to restore, and showing me all the restore points, I tried to pick one. Received an error stating that you must select a Windows Installation location (not sure exact message). There was only one Windows installation location and you could not change or select anything. Now this was a Toshiba Laptop with a hidden Win 7 restore partition and I believe another partition.

Also Windows Backup (prior to this crash and inability to boot), did not function when you clicked on Set Up Backup. In reading posts it seems apparent there are still some issues out there with Win 7.

So the simple question is this. I sometimes help people restore their computers. And if the recovery CD does not work, it would be great if someone created a program that could read the users hard drive (I would then connect as a USB drive) and reconstruct the Restore points from the Shadow Copy files.

Erunt is not an option as my goal would be to recreate the registry from a restore point form shadow copies on the users hard disk.

The simple answer is there presently is no utility to take the Win 7 many files and create the necessary Sam, Security, etc.. files to place in the config directory under System 32 on Win 7.

Thanks
PC

So Aside from Using Acronis in the future

Answer : How convert Windows 7 shadow copies into usable Restore Points like XP?

There's a RegBack folder under %systemroot%\system32\config that contains backup copies of the registry hives. You can use the backups along with a boot CD (e.g. UBCD4Win or ERD Commander) to replace any or all of the registry hives.