If you purchase a new computer or laptop from a renowned OEM such as Dell, Acer, HP, Toshiba or Lenovo, most of the times you are not provided with a Windows Vista installation disk even though you are entitled to one since you have a valid license. And without the original installation media, it is not even possible to create your own bootable recovery CD/DVD as described in this tutorial.

With Windows Vista, the installation media serves more than one purpose. It not only allows you to install Windows but also provides you the only way to recover from disaster. The Windows Vista DVD has a “recovery center” that provides you with the option of recovering your system via automated recovery (searches for problems and attempts to fix them automatically), rolling-back to a system restore point, recovering a full PC backup, or accessing a command-line recovery console for advanced recovery purposes.

This ISO image contains just the necessary contents of the Windows Vista DVD’s “recovery center”. It cannot be used to install or reinstall Windows Vista, and just serves as a Windows PE interface to recovering your PC.

Visit NeoSmart’s website to download a Torrent or ISO image of the Windows Vista Recovery Disk. You will need to burn this ISO image to a CD or DVD before you can use it as a bootable recovery medium.