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I would like to use the File History feature of Windows 8 and so far it has been working fine. However, I have come across a scenario and need input on practicality for the following:
2. System crashes and new HDD required
4. Time to use File History for restore.... BUT
From what I understand you cannot "point" the new Windows 8 machine to use the external drive with previous File History. You will need to do a manual copy and paste from the external USB (by selecting the appropriate file in the File History directory on the USB drive).
The problem is, File History appends the date and time stamp, thus the file name changes. For example, MYDOC.DOC become MYDOC.DOC ((2013_04_04 18_27_46 UTC).
How do you remove the parenthesis from the file name when copying the file back to its original location or is File History not a "system restore" type utility. Whilst the parenthesis will not stop applications working (like WORD, OUTLOOK etc), it looks horrible and creates these long file names that is unwanted.
Thoughts/suggestions/comments?
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
I just had to try to do this, and I was able to (on a new Win8 machine) point at the previous backup by clicking Drives and then selecting my backup drive (a network share in my case). Then I was able to check "I want to use a previous backup on this File History drive" and it displayed my existing backups on that drive. Finally, I was able to do the regular (if not very intuitive) restore files by clicking the settings icon in the upper right of File History.
Hope that helps,
Glenn Gailey
Best answer especially if the other solutions bring you to: Access denied: to the drive you used on another computer. I just plugged my dive into new computer installed the free rename program from, http://www.den4b.com/?x=downloads&product=renamer , and it was simple to use and renamed a very large quantity of files. Great work and thanks Quintin Cooper
I have the same problem. tried in the ways that are mentioned here but went no use. it says "file history is closing. sending report." and quitting the application. that is all I am getting. I should have approached a third party software for my backup. now this is becoming difficult to restore to my system. Anyone from Microsoft please help!!!
thanks.
PTJam's instructions don't seem to work. I have no idea what "clicking on the settings icon" was suposed to do when the instructins were original written. PTJAam doesn't say. In current versions of Windows 10 it doesn't seem to take you antywhere useful.
My result: "No files found" for the default list of libraries, despite the fact that there are 400gb of backed up files on the drive in two default libraries, and one additional library created specifically to capture source code files that weren't stored in the documents directory. And there doesn't seem to be any way to mount the old history without simultaneously appending current files to the backup. Attempting to access the files before the first backup on the new machine occurs produces an error message saying "file history is not enabled". And now the old file history is no longer functional on the original machine (also produces "No files found" when attempting to restore).
Utterly bizarre.
35 years on Windows and DOS before that, but I'm pretty much done.
Thank you this is working. This information should be promoted to the head of this issue
