> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zmanda.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zmanda.com/guides/disk-image-walkthrough/bare-metal-restore-to-new-machine.md).

# Bare Metal Restore to New Machine

## Bare Metal Restore to a New Physical Device via Ubuntu

This guide walks through restoring a Zmanda Pro Disk Image backup to a brand-new or wiped physical machine using a bootable Ubuntu USB drive. Use this approach when the target machine has no existing operating system and you cannot use Zmanda Pro's built-in WinRE recovery media.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Prerequisites**

* A completed Disk Image backup in Zmanda Pro. See the Disk Image Walkthrough for how to create one.
* The target physical device must have a disk equal to or larger in size than the source disk that was backed up.
* A USB drive of at least 8 GB for the Ubuntu installer.
* Network access on the target machine to reach your Zmanda Pro server.
  {% endhint %}

***

### Step 1: Prepare a Bootable Ubuntu USB

1. **Download the Ubuntu ISO** — Visit the [official Ubuntu website](https://ubuntu.com/download) and download the latest LTS ISO to your local machine.
2. **Flash the ISO to USB using Rufus** — Open [Rufus](https://rufus.ie/), select your USB drive, choose the downloaded ISO as the source, and click **Start**. Wait for the process to complete before removing the USB drive.

***

### Step 2: Boot and Install Zmanda on the Target Machine

1. **Boot from the USB drive** — Insert the USB into the target machine and restart it. Enter the BIOS/UEFI boot menu (commonly **F2**, **F12**, **Delete**, or **Esc** depending on the manufacturer) and select the USB drive as the boot device.
2. **Install the certificates** — Once Ubuntu has booted, install the required `ca.crt` certificate for your Zmanda Pro server. This is necessary to establish a trusted connection to your Zmanda Pro infrastructure.
3. **Install Zmanda Pro** — Install the Zmanda Pro backup client on the Ubuntu environment, ensuring all dependencies are met before proceeding. Refer to Zmanda Pro Client Installation for detailed steps.
4. **Log in to Zmanda Pro** — Open the Zmanda Pro application and log in using your Zmanda Pro user credentials.

***

### Step 3: Back Up the Source Disk

{% hint style="info" %}
If you have already completed a Disk Image backup of the source device, skip this step and proceed to Step 4.
{% endhint %}

1. **Create a Disk Image backup** — In Zmanda Pro, create and run a backup job targeting the source disk. Confirm the job completes successfully before proceeding to the restore.

***

### Step 4: Restore the Disk Image

1. **Navigate to Restore** — In Zmanda Pro, go to the **Restore** section and select **Restore to a Physical Device**.
2. **Select the source and target devices** — Choose the Disk Image backup as the source. Select the target physical device as the restore destination.

   <div data-gb-custom-block data-tag="hint" data-style="warning" class="hint hint-warning"><p>The source disk image must be smaller in size than the target device. Restoring a larger backup to a smaller disk is not supported. See Restore to a physical device for more details.</p></div>
3. **Run the restore** — Start the restore job and wait for it to complete. Do not interrupt the process or power off the machine while the restore is in progress.

***

### Step 5: Verify the Restored System

1. **Reboot the target device** — Once the restore completes, reboot the machine.
2. **Confirm the restored OS appears in the boot menu** — Open the boot menu and verify the restored operating system is listed as a boot option. Select it to boot.
3. **Verify data integrity** — After the OS loads, confirm that all expected files, folders, applications, and settings are intact on the restored system.


---

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