Creating customized bootable image for client computing device from backup copy

A method of creating customized bootable images for a plurality of client computing devices in an information management system, the method comprising:

• using one or more computing devices comprising computer hardware:
• creating an image of a client computing device of a plurality of client computing devices, wherein the image comprises a non-default system state of the client computing device at a first time, the non-default system state comprising:
• a kernel of the client computing device,
• one or more virtual machine managers, and
• a plurality of drivers, wherein the non-default system state at the first time reflects one or more internal settings of the client computing device at the first time;
• creating a generic bootable image that includes a default kernel and one or more default device drivers;
• subsequent to creating the generic bootable image and the image of the client computing device, receiving a request to restore a target computing device to the non-default system state;
• subsequent to receiving the request to restore the target computing device, using the generic bootable image as a template to create a customized bootable image specific to the client computing device, the customized bootable image comprising the non-default system state, wherein the customized bootable image is configured to directly restore the target computing device to the non-default system state by booting from the kernel of the client computing device without first booting from the default kernel of the generic bootable image and then loading the kernel of the client computing device, and wherein the customized bootable image further comprises one or more drivers associated with computer hardware existing on the target computing device at a restoration time of the destination computing device;
• and
• rebooting the target computing device to the non-default system state using the customized bootable image.

A system configured to create customized bootable images for a client computing device in an information management system, the method comprising:

• a computing system comprising one or more computing devices comprising computer hardware, wherein the computing system is configured to:
• create an image of a client computing device, wherein the image comprises a non-default system state of the client computing device at a first time, the non-default system state comprising:
• a kernel of the client computing device,
• one or more virtual machine managers, and
• a plurality of drivers, wherein the non-default system state at the first time reflects one or more internal settings of the client computing device at the first time;
• create a generic bootable image that includes a default kernel and one or more default device drivers;
• subsequent to creating the generic bootable image and the image of the client computing device, receive a request to restore a target computing device to the non-default system state;
• subsequent to receiving the request to restore the target computing device, use the generic bootable image as a template to create a customized bootable image specific to the client computing device, the customized bootable image comprising the non-default system state, wherein the customized bootable image is configured to directly restore the target computing device to the non-default system state by booting from the kernel of the client computing device without first booting from the default kernel of the generic bootable image and then loading the kernel of the client computing device, and wherein the customized bootable image further comprises one or more drivers associated with computer hardware existing on the target computing device at a restoration time of the destination computing device;
• and
• reboot the target computing device to the non-default system state using the customized bootable image.