Windows Backup
I started using Windows 7 a lot more recently (due to work) and I found that my system would go down every so often after installing a Windows update (the most recent happened today, the day after I installed the update).
The only saving grace now is Windows Backup. I have set it to run every Sunday night and it basically takes an image of all modifications to my C:\ drive and backs it to my secondary drive. Now when a Windows update chooses to have it’s way with my computer, I am able to pop in the recovery CD and have it restore. Yes, it takes a while to run, but I don’t need to format and re-install everything again (a few days worth of installing different versions of Visual Studio and SQL Server).