Deep Freeze Standard Editor's Review

Deep Freeze performs a specific and unusual task efficiently, but it's not for everyone and needs careful thought before use.

In some ways it's the ultimate back-up and recovery tool, though for most users it won't be convenient. All Deep Freeze does is take a snapshot of your operating system when you start your machine, then automatically put your machine back to the same state next time you restart.

In other words, that means any changes you make to the system, whether intentional or not, are automatically undone the next time you restart the machine. This includes saving changes to documents or adding new programs. At any time, you can put the machine into "thaw" mode, which mean that changes will stick. Once you return to "freeze mode", any ensuing changes will be lost on the next restart.

It's a useful tool in very specific circumstances: when you want to make a change to your computer such as trying out a new application or adding a hardware device, but don't want to make the changes permanent until you've checked for performance issues or compatibility problems. In practice, though, you may find the need to keep track of whether you are "frozen or thawed" can outweigh any added convenience.

Pros: Simple and effective tool.

Cons: Easy to get confused and lose changes; a big problem if you forget the password.

Conclusions: Could be handy, but think very carefully before using.