Question Software to create a 3 x DVD recovery set on one USB stick ?

[onespeedbiker]

I have an old Lenovo Thinkpad X230 running Windows 7 with a recovery set of 3 DVD ISOs.
I was wondering if there is a method of creating one recovery USB stick for all them. I have seen software that will copy multiple ISOs for a multiboot USB, but this needs to be done in sequence as only the first one is a boot disc.

 

[COLGeek]

Good question, and I don't know of a solution. However, I would suggest a word of caution. Those DVDs are more reliable than a typical USB drive.

USB drives fail all the time, usually at the worst possible time. I would not rely on a USB backup as the only solution.

 

[Eximo]

Do you need the recovery disk, or do you need that OS and all its installed programs at their current state?

I would just start cloning it to an external hard drive if you need to be able to bring it back for some reason. Or clone it, then virtualize it inside a more modern OS if you still need Windows 7 for something.

I have to say, not much that runs in Windows 7 64bit can't be made to run in Windows 11, Windows 32 bit is another matter, but 32bit versions of Windows 10 are still available.

 

[SkyNetRising]

I was wondering if there is a method of creating one recovery USB stick for all them.

Create a drive image for your pc and save it onto USB flash drive.
Then, when you need to restore your pc, restore it from the saved drive image.

 

[hotaru.hino]

I have an old Lenovo Thinkpad X230 running Windows 7 with a recovery set of 3 DVD ISOs.
I was wondering if there is a method of creating one recovery USB stick for all them. I have seen software that will copy multiple ISOs for a multiboot USB, but this needs to be done in sequence as only the first one is a boot disc.

If this set of recovery ISOs is because the factory reset image is that large, then I think the only way to get what you want is to restore the system using them, then use Windows's system imaging tool to create a single "factory reset" image onto an external drive.

 

[USAFRet]

I have an old Lenovo Thinkpad X230 running Windows 7 with a recovery set of 3 DVD ISOs.
I was wondering if there is a method of creating one recovery USB stick for all them. I have seen software that will copy multiple ISOs for a multiboot USB, but this needs to be done in sequence as only the first one is a boot disc.

Flash drives are so cheap that I wouldn't even think about trying to squish multiple ISOs or whatever onto a single one.

 

[TerryLaze]

If this set of recovery ISOs is because the factory reset image is that large, then I think the only way to get what you want is to restore the system using them, then use Windows's system imaging tool to create a single "factory reset" image onto an external drive.

Depends on what is on the discs, if it is a spanned archive and it includes a restore tool that can handle spanned archives then it might be as simple as just copying the three files to a usb that you already prepared with the same tool the dvds use.
Or take the boot dvd edit it with poweriso or similar to take out the archive and use grub or isolinux to boot into the edited small iso of the dvd.
Then the tool should be able to see the three main archives on the usb and restore them.

 

[onespeedbiker]

Create a drive image for your pc and save it onto USB flash drive.
Then, when you need to restore your pc, restore it from saved drive image.

Do you need the recovery disk, or do you need that OS and all its installed programs at their current state?

I would just start cloning it to an external hard drive if you need to be able to bring it back for some reason. Or clone it, then virtualize it inside a more modern OS if you still need Windows 7 for something.

I have to say, not much that runs in Windows 7 64bit can't be made to run in Windows 11, Windows 32 bit is another matter, but 32bit versions of Windows 10 are still available.

To answer most the questions, while I have used this laptop for many years (upgraded to Windows 10) I am going to retire it and add it to my collection of old Thinkpads (my oldest is a 380ED). The fun of collecting Thinkpads, after you get them running, is to load them with the OEM software/ drivers (and the gadgets of the times, like a PCMCIA card). So the plan was to load X230 with the OEM recovery DVD (Windows 7), the X230 did not come with an internal CD/DVD player, but it has a docking station that does. While I have always had the OEM ISOs for the recovery discs, I never got around to burning them and after 2 moves I can't find any blank DVDs, so I wondered if I could somehow use a USB to combine the ISOs just to see if it could be done (I have since ordered some blank DVDs for the discs). Thanks for all your replies.

 

[onespeedbiker]

Depends on what is on the discs, if it is a spanned archive and it includes a restore tool that can handle spanned archives then it might be as simple as just copying the three files to a usb that you already prepared with the same tool the dvds use.
Or take the boot dvd edit it with poweriso or similar to take out the archive and use grub or isolinux to boot into the edited small iso of the dvd.
Then the tool should be able to see the three main archives on the usb and restore them.

Thinkpads recovery discs are very involved. While the first has all the boot files and OS, the second and third have about four directories. Once transferred to the drive, the program goes through a lengthy install process (it's not just an image) that includes installing the OS, pre installed programs (such as MS Office) and model specific drivers.

 

[TerryLaze]

Thinkpads recovery discs are very involved. While the first has all the boot files and OS, the second and third have about four directories. Once transferred to the drive, the program goes through a lengthy install process (it's not just an image) that includes installing the OS, pre installed programs (such as MS Office) and model specific drivers.

Show us the directories of all the discs, or just do some experimenting yourself.
It might just be looking for the directories so if you don't change their names it could find them on the usb and just work normally.
You can also load up the first dvd in a virtual machine, or a real one, and show us what it looks like. It's hard to give advice without having any idea what the dvs do.

 

[onespeedbiker]

The second image is the same for the second and third disc.

 

[SkyNetRising]

The second image is the same for the second and third disc.

You need to look inside those folders and check, if file names conflict between different disks.

 

[onespeedbiker]

You need to look inside those folders and check, if file names conflict between different disks.

If you mean the files have the same name(s); no, the files in the directories are all different in the second and third discs.

 

[TerryLaze]

If you mean the files have the same name(s); no, the files in the directories are all different in the second and third discs.

According to a random guy on the internet the directories contain normal cmd and batch files that just get executed normally.
There should be no issue in just copying them all together to the same folder, at the worst you will have to find the main script file and tell it where the files are located.
https://github.com/seancrites/Lenovo-Win7-Slim-Down/blob/master/win7-slim-virt.patch

 

[onespeedbiker]

According to a random guy on the internet the directories contain normal cmd and batch files that just get executed normally.
There should be no issue in just copying them all together to the same folder, at the worst you will have to find the main script file and tell it where the files are located.
https://github.com/seancrites/Lenovo-Win7-Slim-Down/blob/master/win7-slim-virt.patch

Thanks I'll give it a try.

Edit; After reading the Readme file* it appears this is how to use a Lenovo Recovery DVDs set for barebones Win7 install on any computer, "prevent the installation of most, if not all Lenovo drivers and bloatware" (which with Lenovo could mean programs like MS Office). So probably not what I was looking for but interesting post ntl. Thanks again for looking. 👍

* After performing a system restore/reinstall using the Lenovo Windows 7 Recovery Media, interrupt the initial reboot and patch the system to prevent the installation of most, if not all of the Lenovo drivers and bloatware applications. This may not play well when reinstalling on bare metal but when virtualizing, the payoff is remarkable.