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Restoral issues with an image backup.

edward m rhyne sr 20 Reputation points
2025-09-26T21:10:03.5666667+00:00

I successfully completed M/S (system) image backup to a portable storage device.

Later that day, I attempted a restore of the image copy. The system restore failed with the following message “Windows cannot restore an image to a computer that has different firmware. The system image was created on a computer using EFI and the computer is using BIOS.” The same PC was used for the backup and restore. I made no changes to the firmware. Any thoughts on what I’m missing?

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Recovery and backup
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  1. Hendrix-V 5,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-09-27T04:24:19.7366667+00:00

    Hi edward m rhyne sr,

    Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A Forum!

    Thank you for sharing the details of your situation, I can imagine how frustrating it must feel to complete a successful backup only to run into an error during restore. Let me give you a breakdown of what’s happening and how to fix it.

    The message you mentioned usually means the restore environment is running in a different boot mode than the one used when the backup was created. Even though it’s the same PC, the recovery media might have booted in Legacy BIOS mode instead of UEFI, or vice versa. Windows Backup ties the image to both the firmware mode and the disk partition style.

    The solution you can try is to boot the Recovery Media in the correct mode

    • If your original system was UEFI, make sure the USB/DVD boots in UEFI mode (look for “UEFI” in the boot menu).
    • If it was Legacy BIOS, select the non-UEFI option.
    • You may need to adjust Secure Boot or CSM/Legacy Support in your firmware settings.

    You can also check the partition style

    • UEFI requires GPT; BIOS requires MBR.
    • If needed, please use diskpart in recovery mode. Run these lines in the Command Prompt window:
    diskpart
list disk
select disk 0
clean
convert gpt (or convert mbr)
exit
    • (Note: This erases all data on the disk.)

    I look forward to receiving your update and I'm willing to collaborate with you till we resolve the issue. Please keep me informed.

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. Accepting an answer helps us track the effectiveness of our support efforts. If you have additional questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

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  1. IGYQ 14,825 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-09-27T00:09:35.6666667+00:00

    Hi!

    Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum.

    That’s a frustrating one, but I’ve seen it happen, you shouldn’t normally get the EFI vs BIOS mismatch message.

    The only thing that I can think of is, if you created the backup while Windows was installed in UEFI mode, but then booted the restore media (USB) in Legacy BIOS (CSM) mode, Windows Recovery will think you’re restoring to a different firmware type.

    Let's do a whole check on your system:

    Step 1: Check how your Windows was installed

    • Boot into your working Windows (if possible).
    • Press Win+R → msinfo32 → Enter.
    • Look for BIOS Mode:
      • UEFI → means your backup expects UEFI restore.
      • Legacy → means your backup expects BIOS restore.

    Step 2: Boot your recovery media the same way

    • When starting the PC, enter boot menu (F12, F8, Esc depending on PC).
    • You may see two entries for the same USB stick:
      • UEFI: <USB name>
      • <USB name> (no UEFI prefix = Legacy mode).
    • Pick the one that matches your original Windows install (from step 1).

    Step 3: Disable/enable CSM consistently

    • Enter BIOS/UEFI firmware settings.
    • If Windows was installed in UEFI mode, set:
      • CSM = Disabled
      • Boot mode = UEFI only
    • If Windows was installed in Legacy mode, CSM must be enabled.

    Try restoring again. Once the recovery media is booted in the correct mode, the restore should work.

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