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There are several ways to backup and restore Windows 7, 8, 10 systems to their original state to fix errors, malfunctions, and more. One of them is by using an ISO file. Suppose you don't have a spare computer to create the file, in this case, you can use your Android devices. Refer to Mytour's article below on how to restore your PC using an Android device to learn how to do it.
Computer malfunction, unable to boot
If your computer encounters errors, fails to boot, it could very well be due to a virus-infected operating system or a faulty hard drive that needs replacement. If you need to recover important data on your computer but don't know how to create a recovery drive.
And if you think that the computer is the only device capable of downloading and burning ISO files (disk images stored as files), you might need to rethink that.
If you're using devices or tablets running Android 3.1 or higher, the device may support USB On-The-Go (OTG), meaning you can attach a USB device to your Android phone or tablet, including a mouse, keyboard, or even a USB storage device.
Download the ISO file, then connect the USB drive to your tablet or Android phone, use a dedicated app to burn the ISO file.
Professional Android devices rival PC computers
If you're using Android devices (phones or tablets), as long as they support OTG, you can use them to restore your PC.
Note: Before proceeding with PC restoration steps, you should search the internet for signs occurring on your computer to find out what the computer error is, whether it needs to be restored to fix the error or not. If so, refer to the following steps.
Simply ensure your Android device has sufficient storage capacity, then find and download the ISO disk image file. If the available storage on your Android device is limited, you may consider a small Linux distribution.
Additionally, it's advisable to use Wifi to download ISO files instead of using mobile data. ISO file sizes can reach several gigabytes of data, so if you use mobile data, you may incur a significant cost.
Use an app to create installation ISO files
After downloading the ISO file, to burn the ISO file, you'll need to rely on a dedicated app. There are many apps available on stores that can burn ISO files, one of which is ISO 2 USB.
Download ISO 2 USB to your device and install it here: Download ISO 2 USB
However, to use the app, you'll need to have an OTG cable. This type of cable is reasonably priced, and you can purchase it at various retail phone stores.
After connecting to your phone, the OTG cable will allow you to connect to a USB flash drive. At this point, you can burn the ISO file you downloaded in the previous step.
By connecting the USB via the OTG cable, then pressing the Pick button. Choose your USB drive, then press the Pick button again to select the ISO file. Accept the Android device access permissions requests; you'll be asked to allow access to multimedia files as well as the USB drive.
Next, click the Start button to begin burning the data. This process won't take too long. Once completed, remove your USB device and plug it into your PC to start the restoration process. Remember to change the boot order in your computer's BIOS to allow booting from USB.
Transform Your Android Phone into a Linux Boot Environment
If you don't have a USB flash drive or an OTG cable, but your Android device is rooted, then you can try this alternative method.
The DriveDroid utility is handy as it allows you to directly boot your computer via USB cable using any ISO or IMG file stored on your phone. All you need is an Android phone or tablet and the appropriate cable, without the need for a USB flash drive.
DriveDroid offers both free and paid versions.
Download DriveDroid to your device and install it here: Download DriveDroid
Please note that this option is for rooted Android devices. Additionally, your Android device must support USB Mass Storage. The latest versions of Android do not support USB Mass Storage.
Restore PC with DriveDroid
Once DriveDroid is installed, access your computer and download the ISO file you want to use for restoration.
Run DriveDroid and grant root permission. Next, click the Download button, select the operating system to download to your phone. A range of available operating systems includes from Ubuntu to ZorinOS, Tiny Linux, Gentoo, Arch Linux, and other top Linux distributions.
However, if you're trying to restore your PC, the best options for you are boot-repair-disk or CloneZilla if you need to clone the content of a dead hard drive.
Note that when selecting the operating system, you'll be provided with versions to choose from, typically including both 32-bit and 64-bit builds. Make sure you select the correct operating system to restore your PC.
After selecting the operating system, wait for it to download to your Android device. The ISO file will be stored in the Downloads folder but will also appear on the main DriveDroid screen. Select the ISO file, then wait for other options to appear. Choose either USB storage, read-only USB storage, or CD-ROM. This will determine how the ISO file behaves when you restart your computer.
Then you can connect your Android device to your computer and restart it. As long as the default boot configuration on the boot selection screen is set to USB device, the downloaded operating system will boot your computer from your phone. You can then use it to restore your computer or even install a new operating system.
2 Options for Restoring Your Computer with Android
If your computer is not functioning, you may consider installing a new operating system or running a PC recovery environment using an Android device. There are 2 options available to you:
- ISO 2 USB: Allows direct burning of ISO files to a USB drive via USB-OTG.
- DriveDroid: Allows you to store ISO files that can boot on Android.
This article by Mytour just guided on restoring a PC with an Android device. Just with a USB drive containing a disk image or an Android device with one or more ISO files to boot your computer, the steps are not too complicated either. Wish you all success.
