O&O BlueCon 17: Remove Windows updates easily – even when the machine can no longer start

O&O Software GmbH releases O&O BlueCon 17, the latest version of its system recovery solution, to enable restoration directly from the Windows Recovery Environment.

With the new O&O UpdateRemover integrated in O&O BlueCon 17, all the removable Windows updates installed on a computer can be displayed in detail and uninstalled directly. The O&O UpdateRemover can even be used when the Windows recovery environment can no longer be started.

O&O BlueCon 17 can access all current Windows systems as well as their data. Dynamic OEM drivers can be loaded for starting those systems whose drivers are not yet integrated in Windows.
Version 17 is so fully integrated in the Windows operating system, it can be started directly from the Windows Recovery Environment along with all its drivers. This makes O&O BlueCon the perfect tool box for any emergency, whenever and wherever needed!

Administrators and IT Service Providers can also add their own tools to O&O BlueCon 17 so that these are available to them immediately after starting the program.
O&O BlueCon 17 also supports Windows Deployment Services (PXE boot server) which makes it possible to run O&O BlueCon’s features across a network.

The program can then be used without any installation for any number of purposes such as recovering data from defective systems (O&O DiskRecovery), deleting data securely (O&O SafeErase), or making forensic images of computers and converting them into virtual machines that can be restored as well (O&O DiskImage, available in the Plus Edition).

O&O BlueCon 17 is also able to access BitLocker encrypted drives for making changes or extracting data. Accessing encrypted data will, of course, require entering the respective BitLocker key.
When necessary, it’s possible to forensically access a system without having to start it and without any previous installation. This allows server and desktop systems to be completely backed up, before making any changes, using the Plus Edition’s integrated O&O DiskImage. These systems can then be easily restored once changes to the system have been made.

As always, O&O BlueCon continues to include a wide collection of powerful tools from O&O Software GmbH that help get damaged Windows systems up and running again. This includes doing everything from deactivating faulty drivers to resetting user passwords and reconstructing deleted data. Put simply, O&O BlueCon is a must for any IT administrator.

The current version supports Windows 10 and starts directly from a USB stick or CD along with all its integrated programs. The wizard needed for creating the bootable medium has been completely redesigned, making its use even more intuitive.

The current version supports Windows 10 and starts directly from a USB stick or CD along with all its integrated programs.

Solutions to daily problems with O&O BlueCon

• Remove updates installed by Windows: O&O UpdateRemover
• Backing up and restoring data: O&O DiskImage
• Restoring accidentally deleted data: O&O DiskRecovery
• Driver problems and service issues: O&O DeviceManager
• Secure deletion of data volumes: O&O SafeErase
• Resetting passwords: O&O UserManager
• Partitioning hard disks: O&O PartitionManager
• Combat errors in the registry database: O&O RegEditor
• Advanced error detection: O&O EventViewer and O&O CheckDisk
• Locating and removing data: O&O FileExplorer
• Downloading additional tools: Integrated Firefox browser

Windows Deployment Services compatibility (PXE-boot server)

Thanks to its integrated Windows Deployment Services (PXE-boot server) support, O&O BlueCon’s features can now be run across a network, for example, by starting O&O BlueCon on a computer where it’s not installed. Physical disks do not have to be created because PXE media can be saved in a central location and activated on the PXE-boot server whenever necessary. This removes any need for connecting a physical medium to the computer being serviced.

Windows Deployment Services: run scripts across a Windows 10 network

Experienced administrators can use Windows Deployment Services (PXE-boot server) to run various scripts across a network.

BitLocker

With O&O BlueCon, BitLocker drives can be unlocked and their encrypted data accessed. After entering the BitLocker password, encrypted drives can be accessed via the booted O&O BlueCon environment.

Support for Hyper-V

The new and extended support for Hyper-V means O&O BlueCon also runs on host systems. This gives users in the otherwise quite sparsely decorated system environment a complete set of applications for locating and resolving problems.

The time factor for recovering a system is even more crucial with virtual machines because failure on a host system could result in not just a single server, but a whole series of virtual systems being affected.

Remove updates installed by Windows: O&O UpdateRemover

With the new O&O UpdateRemover now integrated in O&O BlueCon 17, all the removable Windows updates installed on a computer can be displayed in detail and uninstalled directly. The O&O UpdateRemover can even be used when the Windows recovery environment can no longer be started.

Backup and restore data: O&O DiskImage

O&O DiskImage makes it easy to create images of drives or file backups. In the Plus Edition, O&O BlueCon includes a license for rolling out images across an administrator’s own company or across a customer’s network using the service technician license.

This enables ready-made reference systems to be installed on new machines with just a few clicks. The license also includes the “Machine Independent Restoration (M.I.R)” component from O&O DiskImage. Forensic images of the system can also be created and saved on external drives or over a network share.

Professional Data Recovery: O&O DiskRecovery

O&O DiskRecovery searches for and then reconstructs data that was accidentally deleted or lost through a software defect. O&O DiskRecovery can not only recover deleted data but also formatted partitions. It can even reconstruct data from hard disks where the content directory (MFT and FAT) were damaged.

Complete new design for the wizard needed to create a boot disk

As a result of customer feedback, the user interface for creating the bootable disk has been completely redesigned for the new O&O BlueCon 17. The intuitive wizard now lets users create the PXE bootable server for booting across a network as well as bootable USB sticks or DVDs.

Start directly from the boot medium

Along with starting O&O BlueCon from the Windows Recovery Environment, it’s also possible to start the program directly from a USB stick or CD without previous installation.

Intuitive and easy to use like Windows

All the tools in O&O BlueCon are familiar to users thanks to its Windows-like user interface, so the learning curve is very short. Because O&O BlueCon is based on the original Windows, Windows drivers can easily be integrated and the original algorithms are used to access the operating and file systems, removing incompatibility risks. This enables a system restore without time-consuming “hacks”.
A special highlight is the integrated O&O DriverLoader that automatically detects all system components and loads the appropriate driver. If a driver for a specific hardware device is missing, the user can integrate this with just a few clicks into the current system so that he has full access to this device.

Hard disk management made easy: O&O PartitionManager

O&O PartitionManager, can be used to create, delete, enlarge, and shrink partitions. It can change the size of system partitions so that files can be stored specifically to save space.

Various Editions

O&O BlueCon is available in two editions: Admin and Tech. Each Edition is also available as a “Plus Edition” containing the O&O DiskImage data backup solution.

The Admin Edition is licensed in the name of a person, i.e. it is licensed per administrator and can be used on all computers within the company. The Admin Edition Plus also contains O&O DiskImage for backing up and restoring data.

The Tech Edition allows the user to provide a disaster recovery service to clients. It is licensed per technician, i.e. it allows a technician to work on any number of different computers. The Tech Edition Plus also contains O&O DiskImage for backing up and restoring data.

Pricing and availability

Product upgrades are available without additional charges for all O&O Business Suite and Maintenance Agreement customers. The O&O BlueCon 17 Admin Edition costs 1090 USD, the Admin Edition Plus with the O&O DiskImage license for imaging and cloning costs 1790 USD. The license for IT Service Providers (O&O BlueCon 17 Tech Edition Plus) costs 5990 USD. All prices include 19% VAT where applicable.
An overview of O&O authorized resellers can be found at https://www.oo-software.com/en/order/reseller/.

Those Interested can request a free trial version of O&O BlueCon 17 on the O&O website at https://www.oo-software.com/en/oo-bluecon-disaster-recovery-for-companies.
Further product information can also be found under https://www.oo-software.com/en/oo-bluecon-disaster-recovery-for-companies.