thefultonhow
10-20-2005, 12:08 PM
If your laptop gets really messed up and you would like to start from scratch, each manufacturer has a different procedure for reverting to the fresh-from-the-factory state or doing a clean install. The following list is not complete, but is as accurate as I can make it from my personal experience.
Dell -- Older Dells came with CDs for the OEM version of Windows, drivers, and some of the installed applications. Starting in mid-2004, Dell has been shipping their laptops with a utility called Dell PC Restore by Symantec. This utility is on a partition on the hard drive and can be triggered by pressing Ctrl+F11 at the Dell BIOS startup screen. Dell has recently stopped shipping their laptops with the reinstall CDs, and is now charging $10 for the privilege of having them. If you want to do a clean install or a repair install, you may be able to pressure Dell to give them to you for free, but the best bet is to buy them along with your laptop (they are an option on the configuration page).
Toshiba -- Toshiba ships a restore DVD with the original factory configuration on it. Booting with this DVD will trigger a Ghost-like restore process that will revert everything to the factory settings. AFAIK there is no way to get a regular OEM Windows CD from Toshiba, so you're probably out of luck if you want to do a repair install.
HP/Compaq -- The last time I checked, both of these manufacturers shipped both the original factory image on a four-CD set and an XP OEM reinstall CD. However, I have found the restore CDs to be buggy, and in my experience they often don't work (they often freeze at the same point each time).
IBM/Lenovo -- All of their recent laptops can be restored by pressing the blue Access IBM button at the top of the keyboard at the IBM BIOS boot screen. This will launch you into a multipurpose utility; you'll have to choose the restore option. This is a lengthy (2-3 hour) process; leave plenty of time for it. The recovery utility is on the hard drive; you can receive backup CDs for free if you request them within the first thirty days or if your hard drive dies while under the IBM warranty. AFAIK, here's no way to get a regular Windows CD from them.
Sony -- Sony is another manufacturer that puts a restore utility on a hard drive partition. You can access it by pressing F10. Sony's recovery CDs (if you accidentally erase the recovery partition) are very expensive (although you can burn a backup yourself), and doing a clean install is often not an option becuase they don't provide drivers for all their proprietary hardware.
Gateway/eMachines -- Newer Gateways (and I would assume eMachines too) include a recovery partition/utility that is triggered by pressing F11. You can make a backup of it. They seem to no longer include an OEM Windows CD.
Acer -- They have a utility called eRecovery that you can use to restore the system. As far as I can see, you cannot strt this from the hard drive, and they don't give you CDs, so plan ahead and burn the recovery CDs before you have problems. They provide a Windows utility to burn the CDs. I'm not sure, but I don't think they include an OEM Windows CD.
Averatec -- They provide restore CDs, but I'm not sure of their nature. I'm also not sure hether they include an OEM Windows CD.
Micron -- I've never seen the restore process on these laptops, and I couldn't find much information on their site, so I don't know what it entails.
If anybody has any further information, feel free to add it.
Dell -- Older Dells came with CDs for the OEM version of Windows, drivers, and some of the installed applications. Starting in mid-2004, Dell has been shipping their laptops with a utility called Dell PC Restore by Symantec. This utility is on a partition on the hard drive and can be triggered by pressing Ctrl+F11 at the Dell BIOS startup screen. Dell has recently stopped shipping their laptops with the reinstall CDs, and is now charging $10 for the privilege of having them. If you want to do a clean install or a repair install, you may be able to pressure Dell to give them to you for free, but the best bet is to buy them along with your laptop (they are an option on the configuration page).
Toshiba -- Toshiba ships a restore DVD with the original factory configuration on it. Booting with this DVD will trigger a Ghost-like restore process that will revert everything to the factory settings. AFAIK there is no way to get a regular OEM Windows CD from Toshiba, so you're probably out of luck if you want to do a repair install.
HP/Compaq -- The last time I checked, both of these manufacturers shipped both the original factory image on a four-CD set and an XP OEM reinstall CD. However, I have found the restore CDs to be buggy, and in my experience they often don't work (they often freeze at the same point each time).
IBM/Lenovo -- All of their recent laptops can be restored by pressing the blue Access IBM button at the top of the keyboard at the IBM BIOS boot screen. This will launch you into a multipurpose utility; you'll have to choose the restore option. This is a lengthy (2-3 hour) process; leave plenty of time for it. The recovery utility is on the hard drive; you can receive backup CDs for free if you request them within the first thirty days or if your hard drive dies while under the IBM warranty. AFAIK, here's no way to get a regular Windows CD from them.
Sony -- Sony is another manufacturer that puts a restore utility on a hard drive partition. You can access it by pressing F10. Sony's recovery CDs (if you accidentally erase the recovery partition) are very expensive (although you can burn a backup yourself), and doing a clean install is often not an option becuase they don't provide drivers for all their proprietary hardware.
Gateway/eMachines -- Newer Gateways (and I would assume eMachines too) include a recovery partition/utility that is triggered by pressing F11. You can make a backup of it. They seem to no longer include an OEM Windows CD.
Acer -- They have a utility called eRecovery that you can use to restore the system. As far as I can see, you cannot strt this from the hard drive, and they don't give you CDs, so plan ahead and burn the recovery CDs before you have problems. They provide a Windows utility to burn the CDs. I'm not sure, but I don't think they include an OEM Windows CD.
Averatec -- They provide restore CDs, but I'm not sure of their nature. I'm also not sure hether they include an OEM Windows CD.
Micron -- I've never seen the restore process on these laptops, and I couldn't find much information on their site, so I don't know what it entails.
If anybody has any further information, feel free to add it.