Backup or Sytem Restore?

after having my computer play up a few times i began to think about keeping the system files if something goes wrong.

lets say for example, changes to the registry. the only way i could fix it and restore the system to a working state is system restore, without having to play around with the registry.....im trying to stay away from that.

...or can performing a backup do the same thing?....it copies the registry, system boot files and COM+ class registration (basically system state)....

i was just think what is the difference between the system restore utility and backup utility, and what would be more beneficial, for example, if a main file or system file was to get corrupt?

 

say, for example, i had some malware or some malicious program installed. (without me knowing, of course)
i would do a system restore. use some anti-virus,spyware,adware program to clean the system, which it does successfully...

if a few days later encounter a system problem that i can only fix by system restore...by using that system restore point i made previously, would that bring back the malware i had removed?...

 

I'm assuming here what you mean is you made or the system made a restore point with the malware present, you use the phrase "i would do a system restore ". If you mean that you really did restore the system prior to the malware infestation, than some cleanup afterwards anyway.

Depends at what point you made the restore point, prior to the cleanup, or after the cleanup. If after the cleanup, you should be alright, before, you'll get it back. In that case:

The system problem may be worse than the malware problem and that was the only way to get the system working again. In that case you would go back thru the removal of the malware again.

Regards - Charles

 

aPod--This really has been covered in the above posts. System Restore "backs up" only certain files and Registry keys. No Personal data.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/sr/sr/monitored_file_extensions.asp
Depending on your backup tool (and how you set it up), many more files, etc, will be backup up--including personal data.
I use both, but SR more, for simple restoration of the Registry to an earlier time if something minor goes wrong. A backup would be needed if the larger amount of data needed restoring.