Patent ID: 8336044

Claim:
A computer-implemented method of deploying an image into a first storage area of a variety of different types of target computer systems comprising the steps of: (a) storing, outside the first storage area, a second operating system, recovery software, a common image having a first operating system different from the second operating system and a plurality of delta files, wherein said common image is a sector-based image of a first computer system and the common image is created using the first operating system while the first operating system is operating the first computer system; (b) deploying the common image into the first storage area using the recovery software and the second operating system; (c) selecting at least one delta file based on at least one characteristic of the target computer system from the plurality of delta files and deploying delta file into the first storage area using the recovery software and the second operating system; and (d) executing the deployed first operating system in the first storage area after step (c).