Disclosed is a method of restoring a client device following failure of the client device, the client being connectable to a network comprising a server device. The method comprises saving to the server device a configuration state of the client device, the saved configuration state comprising client network interface configuration information, and a file of the client device. The method further comprises, following failure of the client computer, recording on a medium bootable on the client device program instructions for configuring the client device according to the saved configuration state, booting the client device from the bootable medium, configuring a network interface of the client device in accordance with the program instructions and the saved configuration state and restoring the file to the client device by copying over the network.