The group of software we know as rescue apps is the best (and sometimes the only) solution Isolate, identify and fix errors in operating systems and other applications. In general, these are GNU/Linux distributions that work in “live” mode, boot from optical drives, pen drives or external USB drives, which are known to be ideal for troubleshooting because they run independently of the installed operating system.

These tools are used when the computer starts behaving strangely, won’t start, produces error messages or freezes on the dreaded “screens of death”, especially Windows. Many of these failures can be solved with these rescue tools, by saving a complete format and installation from scratch, with subsequent data loss if we do not have backup copies, or worse, a trip to the repair shop that will cost you money and leave you without the device for a while.

Free rescue apps

The industry offers a good collection of solutions both commercial and free and for use on different operating systems, especially Windows. They should not be missing in the software arsenal of any administrator or user. We’ll leave you with the top five and expand on media creation and use.

SystemRescue

A Linux distribution that migrated years ago from Gentoo to Arch Linux as a base system, using the Xfce desktop environment, a (Linux) kernel with extended support, and updated packages such as the Gparted partition manager, the LVM volume manager, or the main file systems supported by Linux and Windows . All new versions are 64-bit. If you need 32 bits, you can opt for one of the previous versions.

Hiren’s BootCD.

A super classic in this case exclusively for Windows and free. Well known and used by IT administrators, repair professionals and users, it includes diagnostic and repair tools for partitions, malware, hardware, drivers, BIOS, passwords, backup and restore, etc. Includes miniXP or the option to browse anonymously with TOR. The latest version, which is the one we suggest (“Hirens Boot PE”), is based on a stripped-down version of Windows 10 and includes updates not found in older versions of Hirens, which are quite outdated, although lighter and more useful. for systems like XP, Vista or 7.

Ultimate Boot CD

Very similar to the previous one, but adds support for Linux systems. It’s a Debian-based rescue disk that works like SystemRescueCd, a self-booting Linux Live CD. Free and with lots of diagnostic and repair tools, many of which are open source.

DriveDroid

It’s not strictly a bootable disk, and it’s very different from the previous ones, but we’re highlighting it as an alternative. It’s a tool for Android smartphones that allows you to boot your computer to repair from ISO/IMG images without burning CDs or flash drives because it works via USB connection. DriveDroid includes a convenient download menu for obtaining images of GNU/Linux systems such as Mint, Ubuntu, Fedora, OpenSUSE, and Arch Linux. 35 are currently supported.

Knoppix

Another of the great classics in rescue tools and like all of them we offer you for free. It provides a complete Linux system, but specializes in this type of tool. The CD version contains more than 1000 packages for scanning, troubleshooting, hardware analysis, data recovery, cloning tools, browsers, malware analysis, image manipulation tools, media players, etc. The “Maxi” version on DVD brings together 2600 packages, most of them free or open source.

How rescue apps are created and used

Providers generally offer an .ISO image that the user must “burn” to CD/DVD optical media or an external drive. The most convenient and easiest thing is always use a USB flash drive. Creating them is as simple as opening the program, selecting the ISO image we downloaded, and the application will take care of creating it. You can refer to our “How to Create Bootable Media” guide if needed. Some applications that can be used to record images are:

• ImgBurn
• UNetbootin
• Infrared recorder
• Sticker
• Rufus

Once the rescue media is created, using it is simple. We restart the computer with the inserted media in its place to boot from it. If we haven’t done it before, we will have to enter the BIOS/UEFI to place the optical or USB drive as the first boot medium, always before the hard drive or SSD where we have the system installed.

The created media is a “Live CD” bootable format, i.e We won’t have to install anything on our computer’s internal storage. Some of the proposed solutions offer an almost complete Linux distribution, including visual mode. Others contain only the most important rescue tools, and some are in text mode, less interactive but just as powerful.

Windows Internal Rescue Applications (CD/DVD only)

Windows also offers creating a rescue disk (Windows repair disk) that we can use. It is a self-booting medium operationally similar to the previous one, albeit with the limitation of creating it on a CD/DVD optical medium.

In Windows 10 and Windows 11, this is done through an app “recdisc” which you can access from the search box and create media simply by following the instructions. You can find the shortcut in “Start > All Programs > Maintenance > Create System Repair Disc” or “Control Panel > System and Security > Backup and Restore”.

Its use is similar to the previous ones. To boot from it, reboot the computer with the media inserted. It’s less powerful than the recovery tools we’ve suggested, but it’s easier to use to restore Windows after a serious error or restore a previously created system image.

These rescue applications are very useful and can “save our lives” when we face computer problems. Keep some of these solutions handy because you never know when your computer is going to fail.