On a PC with Windows XP

• 1). Go to "Start" then "All Programs" then "Accessories" then "System Tools" and click on "Backup." This will start the backup and restore wizard.
  
  
• 2). Click on "Advanced Mode" and then the "Restore and Manage Media" tab.
  
  
• 3). Expand "File" and then the backup file that you want to use. Put check marks in the boxes by the files that you want to restore. To restore the whole operating system put a check mark by "System State."
  
  
• 4). Choose a location for the "Restore files to" box. Your options are the original location, an alternate location or a single folder. To restore the entire computer you should choose the original location. To avoid overwriting files, choose an alternate location. Use a single folder to keep the restored files separate.
  
  
• 5). Confirm the restore and a progress bar dialog box will appear on the screen. The process can take a few hours and you will be prompted to do a reboot when it completes.
  
  

On a PC with Windows Vista or 7

• 1). Type "restore" into the "Start" menu search box. Click on "System Restore" when it appears at the top of the "Start" menu.
  
  
• 2). Select either the recommended restore or choose a different restore and continue. If you opted to choose a different restore you will get a list of backups to choose from.
  
  
• 3). Confirm your backup restore and wait for the restore to finish. Reboot your computer when prompted to finalize the restore.
  
  

On a Mac

• 1). Power on your Mac and choose "From a Time Machine backup" and click "Continue" on the "Do You Already Own a Mac" screen.
  
  
• 2). Select your backup to restore. If you have the backup files on an external drive you will need to connect the drive to the Mac first. If it is on a network device you will need to connect to your network first. Enter your user name and password if you have one for the storage device.
  
  
• 3). Wait for the Mac to initialize the Time Machine backup. If you have more than one machine backed up you will have to choose which backup to restore. If any of your backup items say "Calculating" instead of giving you the file size you must wait for the file size to appear before proceeding. This can take a few minutes to a few hours.
  
  
• 4). Click "Continue" to start the restore once all file sizes have appeared on the screen. It will likely take a few hours for the backup to restore to your Mac.