Backing up the system state of Windows Server 2003

System State is proposed by Microsoft for a number of important components in Windows Server 2003 that must be backed up and restored together.

The system state includes the registry, the startup file, and the COM + registration database. In a domain controller, the System State also includes the Active Directory and the system volume (SYSVOL).

Major changes to the system, such as adding new applications, drivers, or hot patches, are a good habit to back up the system state before that.

In order to be able to successfully recover the system state, you must ensure that the "%SystemRoot%" folder and the Active Directory database are in their original location. If the location has changed, the recovery operation will fail.

If your operation fails, please check some of the following items:

The "%SystemRoot%" folder must be restored to the same drive letter as it was backed up.

The "%SystemRoot%" folder must be restored to the same folder as its backup.

If the system volume or other Active Directory database is positioned on another volume, the volume must exist and have the same letter. However, it allows the volume's capacity to be different from the original.

In a system state backup, you must also back up the "Winnt\Sysvol" folder. Also, you must select this option during the recovery operation.