How to create up-to-date Recovery Drive and Recovery Partition on Windows 8.1 U1.

Question

I am running 8.1 and exploring the recovery options.
I'm periodically creating recovery images, etc. but would like to do better than that.
I'd like to know how to:
Create an updated Recovery Partition that will restore to a Recovery Image (WIM) that I choose.
Modify / Create a Recovery Drive that includes a system image
of my choice, as opposed to an image created by the manufacturer / supplier (and the extra work that that implies).  If I can create an up to date partition and mark it as such, then I'm clearly done.  Should I not be able to sensibly
make my own partition, how do I create this on a USB recovery drive?  (The built in interface has a Boolean option, use hard drive recovery partition OR use nothing.  This would be solved if it
also had an option to use current recovery image.  I'm happy to write simple code to make this happen if that's what it takes.)
Put another way.  I can make a recovery image at will, how do I create a recovery partition and recovery drive to match?
I'm no expert on the ins and outs of Windows 8.1 recovery, if this is already covered elsewhere, I'd appreciate a link.

Answer 1

I have documented an unsupported process for creating an automated recovery for use in a task sequence
here. However, if I read your post correctly you are suggesting being able to do this from USB media. The method for creating the recovery partition is simple. It is simply a partition containing a folder called RecoveryImage with your install.wim
inside. Reagentc is the tool that will actually tell Windows where that recovery is. While I don't personally have a use for what your suggesting, I may give it a shot just to see if it can be done. I suspect it will work.
Here are the links that got me started:
ReagentC:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd799242(v=WS.10).aspx
Creating Push Button Reset:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh824917.aspx
Good Luck!
bill
Regards, Bill Moore @BMooreAtDell