This article explains how to create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc. This will give you access to System Recovery Options, a powerful set of Microsoft-created diagnostic and repair utilities like Startup Repair, System Restore, System Image Recovery, Windows Memory Diagnostic, and Command Prompt.

What to Know

  • Insert a blank disc.Go to Start > All Programs > Maintenance > Create a System Repair Disc. Choose disc drive from Drive menu, and select Create disc.

How to Create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc

You’ll need an optical drive that supports disc burning (you probably have one; this is very common) to create the disc. Unfortunately, a flash drive isn’t a supported bootable media in this case.

As of January 2020, Microsoft is no longer supporting Windows 7. We recommend upgrading to Windows 10 or Windows 11 to continue receiving security updates and technical support.

This whole process is very easy and should only take around 5 minutes:

  • Insert a blank disc in your optical drive.
  • An empty CD should be large enough for a System Repair Disc. We’ve created a Windows 7 System Repair Disc on a new Windows 7 32-bit installation, and it was only 145 MB. If you only have a blank DVD or BD available, that’s okay, too, of course.
  • Go to Start > All Programs > Maintenance.
  • An alternative is to execute recdisc from the Run box or a Command Prompt window. If you do that, skip directly to Step 4 below.
  • Select Create a System Repair Disc.
  • Choose your optical disc drive from the Drive drop-down box.
  • Select Create disc.
  • Windows 7 will now create the System Repair Disc on the blank disc you inserted in the previous step. No special disc-burning software is required.
  • After the System Repair Disc creation is complete, Windows displays a dialog box that you can close. Select OK on the original Create a system repair disc window that’s now on the screen.

Using the Windows 7 System Repair Disc

Now that you’ve created the repair disc, label it something relevant like “Windows 7 System Repair Disc,” and keep it somewhere safe.

Insert a blank disc in your optical drive.

An empty CD should be large enough for a System Repair Disc. We’ve created a Windows 7 System Repair Disc on a new Windows 7 32-bit installation, and it was only 145 MB. If you only have a blank DVD or BD available, that’s okay, too, of course.

Go to Start > All Programs > Maintenance.

An alternative is to execute recdisc from the Run box or a Command Prompt window. If you do that, skip directly to Step 4 below.

Select Create a System Repair Disc.

Choose your optical disc drive from the Drive drop-down box.

Select Create disc.

Windows 7 will now create the System Repair Disc on the blank disc you inserted in the previous step. No special disc-burning software is required.

After the System Repair Disc creation is complete, Windows displays a dialog box that you can close. Select OK on the original Create a system repair disc window that’s now on the screen.

This process works equally well to create a Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows 8 System Repair Disc, but there’s an alternative process that’s probably a better option. See How to Create a Windows Recovery Drive for details.

You can now boot from this disc to access System Recovery Options, the set of system recovery tools available for the Windows 7 operating system.

As with a Windows 7 installation disc, you’ll need to watch for a Press any key to boot from CD or DVD message on screen, right after your computer turns on or restarts with the System Repair Disc inserted.

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