Refresh Windows 8 - Set a Custom Recovery Image as Active

How to Set a Custom Recovery Image as Active to Use to Refresh Windows 8 and 8.1​


information   Information
A custom recovery image contains the desktop apps you've installed, and the Windows system files in their current state. Recovery images do not contain your documents, personal settings, user profiles, or apps from Windows Store, because that information is preserved and included at the time you refresh your PC by default.

When you create a custom recovery image, recimg will store it in the specified directory, and set it as the active recovery image. If a custom recovery image is set as the active recovery image, Windows will use it when you refresh your PC. You can use the /setcurrent and /deregister options to select which recovery image Windows 8 will use. All recovery images have the filename CustomRefresh.wim. If no CustomRefresh.wim file is found in the active recovery image directory, Windows will fall back to the default image (or to installation media) when you refresh your PC.

This tutorial will show you how to set the active recovery image to use the CustomRefresh.wim file from any previously created custom recovery image of your choice to use when you refresh Windows 8.

You must be signed in as an administrator to be able to do the steps in this tutorial.



Here's How:


1. Open an elevated command prompt.

2. In the elevated command prompt, type the command below and press Enter. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: Substitute Full Path of Directory in the command below with the actual directory (folder) name within quotes that the CustomRefresh.wim file from where an already created custom recovery image is saved at.
​
recimg /setcurrent "Full Path of Directory"​
​
​
For example: If I created a custom recovery image to the E:\RefreshImage directory (folder), I would type the command below exactly and press Enter.​
​
recimg /setcurrent "E:\RefreshImage"​
​
​
​
Set_Active_Recovery_Image.jpg​


3. When successfully completed, Windows 8 is now set and registered to use this current active custom recovery image when you refresh Windows 8.

4. You can now close the elevated command prompt if you like.


Note   Note
To unregister this custom recovery image for refresh to have Windows 8 go back to using it's default refresh, see:

How to Deregister the Current Custom Recovery Image to Refresh Windows 8






That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

 

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Click to expand...
You're most welcome. Glad we could help. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Okie dokie, I have done all this but still need further assistance.

When I try to make a Recovery Drive the option to 'Copy the Recovery Partition' is greyed out.

I found this page which explains the same situation: Windows 8.1 - Unable to "Copy Recovery Partition" when building Recovery Drive? - KeithMayer.com - Site Home - TechNet Blogs

I have tried to follow this by substituting INSTALL.WIM for CustomRefresh.wim but it does not work.

Am I missing something or is it not possible to store the CustomRefresh image on the Recovery Drive?

Regards..,
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self Build
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    ASUS Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    2x Kingston KHX1866C9D3/8GX
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG Matrix R9 290X Platinum
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS MX279
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1x WD1003FZEX - System Drive
    2x WD10EZRX - Storage Pool Drives
    2x WD20EZRX - Storage Pool Drives
    1x WD10EZEX - System Image Drive
    1x WD Elements 1TB USB 3.0 - Network Attached Drive
    PSU
    Corsair CP-9020073 Professional Platinum Series HX850i
    Case
    Cooler Master HAF932 Advanced
    Cooling
    Phanteks PH-TC14PE CPU Cooler - Red + 3rd Fan
    Keyboard
    Corsair Gaming CH-9000062 CGK95 RGB MX Cherry Brown
    Mouse
    Corsair Gaming CH-9000070 M65 RGB
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Trust GXT 638 2.1 Digital Gaming Speaker
    Corsair CH-9000084-WWCGMM600 Standard Dual Sided Aluminium Gaming Surface Pad
    Hornettek Enterprise 4X II Quad-bay 20 TB Capacity
    LG BH16NS40.AUAR10B 16x SATA Internal BD-RW
    LG DVD-RW GH24NSB0 Optical Drive
    BitFenix SuperSpeed Card Reader USB 3.0
    Silverstone PCI Express Card w/ Dual Internal 19pin Connectors SST-ECU01
Registering install .wim

1CM69 said:
Okie dokie, I have done all this but still need further assistance.
I have tried to follow this by substituting INSTALL.WIM for CustomRefresh.wim but it does not work.
Am I missing something or is it not possible to store the CustomRefresh image on the Recovery Drive?
Regards..,
Click to expand...
Don't substitute. Create a new directory something like. Then copy your install.wim
D:\Original_Win\install.wim
Run this command in Administrator dos prompt
C:\Windows\System32\reagentc /setosimage /path D:\Original_Win /target C:\Windows /index 1
That will register where the install.wim is located.
If you want to create a customized install.wim than you can use this command in Windows PE to capture the Windows
image of your current windows. I would experiment with just the install.wim from the installation CD first.
Dism /Capture-Image /ImageFile:"D:\Original_Win\install.wim" /CaptureDir:C:\ /Name:"Windows8.1_x64_Pro"
Hope this helps. Microsoft seems to make this harder than it should be.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64 bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
In addition, you won't be able to copy the custom refresh image to a recovery drive. The 'Copy the Recovery Partition' is for the OEM factory recovery partition instead.

Instead, you could use the recovery drive to boot from to "Refresh" Windows that would then use the currently registered custom recovery image.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
prz42 said:
1CM69 said:
Okie dokie, I have done all this but still need further assistance.
I have tried to follow this by substituting INSTALL.WIM for CustomRefresh.wim but it does not work.
Am I missing something or is it not possible to store the CustomRefresh image on the Recovery Drive?
Regards..,
Click to expand...
Don't substitute. Create a new directory something like. Then copy your install.wim
D:\Original_Win\install.wim
Run this command in Administrator dos prompt
C:\Windows\System32\reagentc /setosimage /path D:\Original_Win /target C:\Windows /index 1
That will register where the install.wim is located.
If you want to create a customized install.wim than you can use this command in Windows PE to capture the Windows
image of your current windows. I would experiment with just the install.wim from the installation CD first.
Dism /Capture-Image /ImageFile:"D:\Original_Win\install.wim" /CaptureDir:C:\ /Name:"Windows8.1_x64_Pro"
Hope this helps. Microsoft seems to make this harder than it should be.
Click to expand...

Brink said:
In addition, you won't be able to copy the custom refresh image to a recovery drive. The 'Copy the Recovery Partition' is for the OEM factory recovery partition instead.

Instead, you could use the recovery drive to boot from to "Refresh" Windows that would then use the currently registered custom recovery image.
Click to expand...

Thanks guys.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self Build
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    ASUS Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    2x Kingston KHX1866C9D3/8GX
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG Matrix R9 290X Platinum
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS MX279
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1x WD1003FZEX - System Drive
    2x WD10EZRX - Storage Pool Drives
    2x WD20EZRX - Storage Pool Drives
    1x WD10EZEX - System Image Drive
    1x WD Elements 1TB USB 3.0 - Network Attached Drive
    PSU
    Corsair CP-9020073 Professional Platinum Series HX850i
    Case
    Cooler Master HAF932 Advanced
    Cooling
    Phanteks PH-TC14PE CPU Cooler - Red + 3rd Fan
    Keyboard
    Corsair Gaming CH-9000062 CGK95 RGB MX Cherry Brown
    Mouse
    Corsair Gaming CH-9000070 M65 RGB
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Trust GXT 638 2.1 Digital Gaming Speaker
    Corsair CH-9000084-WWCGMM600 Standard Dual Sided Aluminium Gaming Surface Pad
    Hornettek Enterprise 4X II Quad-bay 20 TB Capacity
    LG BH16NS40.AUAR10B 16x SATA Internal BD-RW
    LG DVD-RW GH24NSB0 Optical Drive
    BitFenix SuperSpeed Card Reader USB 3.0
    Silverstone PCI Express Card w/ Dual Internal 19pin Connectors SST-ECU01
how to convert this recovery image to ISO and then dvd or cd
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    WINDOWS 8
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    lenovo
    CPU
    intel i7 3632Q CPU 2.20 GHZ
    Motherboard
    intel
    Memory
    829GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    INTEL AND NIVIDA GT635
    Browser
    FIRE FOX
Last edited by a moderator:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
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