Hi All, I have an Acer laptop, and I was experiencing many problems with it. I called Acer technical support to resolve these issues. The customer service agent instructed me to restart my computer and press CTRL + F10 continuously until "Windows is loading file" comes up. I was instructed to follow the onscreen instructions after clicking "Full Factory Restore My System" (or something thereabouts). After 45 mins my system was restored with everything working and all drivers/software installed. My question is; how do I do the same thing for a Dell PC I have at home. I'm confident with creating partitions but don't know how I can set the partition in such a way that will allow me to completetly reinstall my hard drive should anything go wrong. Ideally I would like for the partition to detect I wan't it to completely reinstall everything by activating it in the same way, or a similar way to CTRL + F10. Thanks All; Much appreciated
Unless your Dell came with a recovery partition you cannot do the same process. Most store bought PC's come with 3 options 1. A recovery disc that came with it 2. A recovery partition similar to your laptop 3. A built-in program that nags every few days to create your own recovery disc. If you have none of these, what you could do is note the exact Windows version and product key on the official Microsoft Authentic sticker located on the Dell PC. Find an install disc that matches your version, and use the key to activate.
Hi, Thanks for the reply, in that case There any way that I can create a recovery that is bootable so that when my operating system fails I can just restore it by booting into it. Thanks hope to hear from you soon.
Isnt there a service tag# on the Dell? Dell website says Vista was installed on these instead of the Media Center you describe. Does the computer have a recovery partition? Probably your D: drive?
The recovery partition was deleted by mistake when reinstalling windows XP media edition through CD. Service Tag?
There's a much better way than a recovery partition & that's using an imaging software like Acronis,Ghost,EASEUS,paragon etc,My personal choice is Acronis 11,the problem with recovery partitions is you don't restore to a fully updated & fully installed software point you then have to go thru the rigmoral of reinstalling all the crap..lol..,using an imaging program you reformat once,then after reinstall make an image,then adding a few most used software make another image,then add the rest perhaps make another image then update windows make another image etc till you have say 5-6 one time image files at differing parts of reinstall,this means you can go back if you make major software changes or hardware & with Acronis you can install to differential hardware in other words install to a new comp or a mobo replacement the main function is you can reinstall to the point with a fully updated OS with all the software installed in less than say 2-3hrs (could be an hour if you keep C as low in data size as poss)
ScorpNZ---Agreed an image is a good idea, IF YOU HAVE A CLEAN INSTALL TO MAKE THE IMAGE. I wouldn't recommend making a backup image from a machine thats been used for years as this one has. It's possible to do, but not best practice. Also, the OP sounds like they are looking for a way to "completely reinstall everything by activating it in the same way, or a similar way" which is a good skill to know, even if imaging software is available. Again, good tip, but might not be the best solution for this particular problem. Perhaps AFTER the OP figures out how to get a clean install on that Dell, then we will tell them to make an image and never worry again!
Recovery partitions and Window Restore are bogus. Buy an external drive. Use Acronis or your a backup utility of choice. Depending on how much data goes I/O of your computer dictates how often you do a backup I backup once a week. Also your hardware configuration is different with each chipset that is used. You may not be able to restore a computer with different hard/firmware. Good luck Jeff
It does a good job of resetting a machine to factory settings. That is all it is meant to do. Everything else you said is true, especially the part about backing up to an external drive; however none of these things will help get the machine back to original factory settings. They will be helpful once the machine is repaired.
Correct.. The best thing to do before doing a transplant is to remove all the drivers and such. If you are unable to do that all you can do is to cross your fingers. Even better is just do a fresh install. In case of a catastrophic failure, I always keep my software in an accessible place. ....As with Passwd's and such. Of course I pay for the software I use. Jeff
Your post makes more sense now I see it as a response to ScorpNZ statement about changing hardware and mobo's! At first i thought you were also trying to help the OP but now i see more clearly. Yes, i agree when changing a mobo a fresh install is the best way to go.
Well you got me confused you mention install by cd where are the xp media install discs or are you attempting to revert back to whatever OS was originally installed,recovery discs can be ordered can they not they can on an hp,the only other options are attempt to recover either the original partition setup or recover just the recovery partition data file that was wiped
if you have an official CD, i dont understand the issue! Using the CD is a fresh install. Using a restore partition, is a fresh install. Matter of fact, the Windows disc is better than a restore disc/partition because you dont get all the added bloat that comes with a commercial PC. If you have a problem and need to reinstall everything, why are you ignoring the same way you did it last time?
The reason is I'd like to reinstall everything and then create an image of the hard drive with softwares installed. If at a future point in time shoul there be certain issues with the operating system I'd like to reinstall everything including the softwares and drivers from this image on the partitioned drive. What would you recommend? I'll probably reinstall the operating system again next week sometime. After installing all my drivers and software is there anything I can do to save this image in the form of a bootable one. Many Thanks
ScorpNZ That statement is quite different than your original question and would have saved everyone time having known this originally. If you have the discs to re-install everything, really it is only a matter of using a program like the types ScorpNZ explained.
I would have like the Recovery Partition because I prefer that, but it seems as though I am not going to be told on how I can configure this. Hence why I have compromised to the last statement I made. All I wanted to know is how it can be done, and not the alternatives. Anyways Thanks
If xp discs can't create recovery partition then all you do is create a partition after C,now if you have a large enough hdd you can store all or just one image file on that partition,then using a pre made bootable disc (from the image making software)restore said image that you can create as i mentioned earlier,you will understand why i wouldn't waste my time using a normal recovery partition when you already have image files at hand & start using them when the shit hits the fan,it would be wise to create an image of your other comp as well,there is just one catch you can't rely just on one single set you need two sets of backups which need to be on separate hdd's you'll understand why when it happens..lol..also if you decide to make two sets of everything DO NOT DROP N DRAG ,you MUST create them individually (relax it's not as hard as it sounds)the imaging program can be set to automate,reason i recommend no drop n drag is for data corruption that may or may not occur Free partitioning software mini partition http://www.partitionwizard.com/ Easeus home site http://www.easeus-deletedrecovery.com/download.html Edit:before you reformat install pandora recovery & recuva set them to deep scan see if they can see the original OS you may be able to recover the original recovery image file,if not you may be able to recover the original partition setup by using Easeus partition recovery,yeah it's a long shot but worth it if at some point later you decide to sell the comp you can keep the xp discs,yeah well just a thought,you'll need to store the hdd in an external housing & use the other comp to scan for any left over partitions
Back in my original post, things were explained. You said you erased the recovery partition installing Win MCE so strike #2. You didnt recognize #3 so strike that too. Look at the bold statement now. Since you already erased the only chance of doing it the way you want, i gave alternatives. My point must have been valid if you say you used a disk to install everything, thats the only choice left on the original list.
