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My online banking began in 2000, as soon as my credit union went online. All of my regular monthly payments (auto insurance, ISP, etc.) are setup for autopay from my credit card. I use Microsoft Money Sunset edition (unsupported, but still works very well). I check my accounts daily, download my transactions and update Money, as well as an Excel spreadsheet (belt and suspenders).
I don’t use my debit card or cash (no ATM withdrawals), I always use my credit card (2% cashback on every purchase, no limits) or my phone pay app (setup with my credit card, fingerprint ID) for groceries, gas, etc. I pay the statement balance in full every month, and avoid paying any interest. I write only one check per month, to the guy who does my lawn care. I could use Zelle for him, but I just pay him once a month when he’s here working, so no stamp.
My cashback rewards average ~$50/month, which automatically transfers to my savings account on the 25th of every month. I have direct deposit for my retirement and Social Security checks, and on the rare occasions when I receive a check, I deposit it with my credit union phone app. I don’t carry cash, because I don’t need to.
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.1 user thanked author for this post.
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Since I was relying on Images I removed the Recovery Partition from the drive many-many moons ago so that even with my 9 rotating backup drives (every two weeks) I no longer had an image with the Recovery Partition on it that was current enough to be usable with my constant tweaking.
With TeraByte’s utility to incorporate Image For Windows into the Recovery Environment, (and because of my own constant tweaking) I find it quicker to boot into TBWinRE to restore the OS image than to boot with the TBWinRE USB thumb drive. And from the RE it is just a single click to boot directly back into Windows.
An added bonus to keeping the Recovery Environment around is that the Command Prompt, when booted into the RE, runs at Trusted Installer level, which can come in quite handy from time to time.
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.1 user thanked author for this post.
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All those PowerShell scripts I’ve been writing sure speed up the reconstituting it from “clean install” to all programs, shortcuts, scheduled tasks, etc. back to normal. Did it in hours vs days!
I skipped Windows Vista and had to clean install Windows 7 Ultimate (early 2010, two PC’s), as there was no upgrade path from XP. Those were the last clean installs I’ve done. Instead, I rely on “clean” drive images for restoration of my Windows setups.
My OS is separated (on a 100GB partition) from my Program Files and User files (they have their own partitions on different SSD’s), so restoring Windows is down to ~3 minutes, not days, not even hours.
Getting ready for some deep diving into Windows innards takes ~12 minutes to create a fresh, validated byte-for-byte drive image. If I’m messing around in ways that might affect the EFI partition, creating a fresh validated image of that partition takes about a minute. My Windows Recovery Environment also takes about a minute.
I applaud your tenacity and dedication to detail in your PowerShell scripts. We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do. I’ve been hacking and cracking and cutting and splicing Windows for so long that I’m completely comfortable in my reliance on drive imaging to bail myself out of self-inflicted difficulty and things that go bump in the night.
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.1 user thanked author for this post.
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Simply put, immutable backups are backup files that cannot be changed or deleted for any reason whatsoever.
“Air-gapping allows for immutable backups if the devices are stored in a safe location as the data written to them cannot be tampered with. For example, you can store backups on tape, NAS, optical disks, or SSD. If your production site is down or was hit by a ransomware attack, air-gapped backups are not affected.”
That’s what I do, in duplicate. I also run complete drive images (the entire disk) from time to time on all drives, and those are also in duplicate.
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.1 user thanked author for this post.
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So the bottom line is that the old boot media will still work, but if we use such media (whether old or new), we will have to add the steps of first turning off Secure Boot, then turning it back on. Is that right?
In my experience, yes it is.
New question: After Microsoft force-feeds these scripts onto customers’ PCs, will it be possible for us to simply do without Secure Boot? That would be one way to simplify matters.
Susan advises that Secure Boot isn’t particularly necessary for consumers, however, I prefer to use it. I use TeraByte’s Image For Windows, and I am unfamiliar with any other drive imaging software. Image For Windows has a utility for incorporating it into the Windows Recovery Environment. Then just go to Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options > Recovery > Advanced startup > Restart now, and the Recovery Environment, including Image For Windows, boots without issue, no finagling with settings in UEFI. That’s my preferred method.
I have the USB recovery media (also created with IFW’s utility) in the event of Windows getting pooched and not allowing Advanced startup, or of drive failure, which could include one’s Windows Recovery Environment if it’s located in the standard Windows position, a small partition after the Windows partition. I have mine on a separate SSD in its own 1GB partition, but I’m also a belt and suspenders kind of guy.
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things. -
Hardened Windows user.
KB5026446 Cumulative Update Preview for Windows 11 Version 22H2 for x64-based Systems
No hiccups. Now running Windows 11 Pro 22H2 (OS Build 22621.1778)
Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!We were all once "Average Users". We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do to our systems, we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.1 user thanked author for this post.
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