Reinstalling Windows

ghosstt · Post by **ghosstt** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:34 pm

Ok, tell me if i have this right. I have a purple disc that came with my computer.(Dell, XP OS) I want to reformat and reinstall windows. Since its the official disc that came with the PC, do i need to find drivers for my video card and stuff like that? and do i just format my whole HD, then turn on the PC, and then shove the disc in?

Mario · Post by **Mario** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:50 pm

Well, since that disk came with the computer, it's probably not the Windows XP install disk. It's probably only a restore disk. To reinstall Windows XP, you need to buy the system disks.

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:51 pm

Just shove the disc in and restart, after you've backed up your important files. You can format the hard drive from within the installer. The disc has at least enough drivers to start up the computer, you can update them after you install XP.

My computer came with an XP install disc.

ghosstt · Post by **ghosstt** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 9:06 pm

i thought if you "reformatted" from the disc, it just reinstalled the basic windows components and left all your files.

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 10:03 pm

ghosstt wrote:i thought if you "reformatted" from the disc, it just reinstalled the basic windows components and left all your files.

Formatting and reformatting are pretty much the same think, it just "erases" everything (really just forgets where stuff is, its still there if you know how to find it) and puts the file system on. Reformatting is just when you format the hard drive again. After being formatted, a hard drive is empty, then you install an OS on it or make it a slave to another hard drive with an OS.

Post by **bicostp** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 10:49 pm

First back all your important stuff up. Back up everything if you can; it's easier to pull files off a DVD than it is to recreate them. You might as well scan everything for viruses on the old install, just to make sure your stuff is clean for the new install.

After you use the restore CD, run Windows Update and get your computer up to date. After that's done, run the <a href="http://www.pcdecrapifier.com">PC Decrapifier</a> to get rid of all the demos and trialware that comes with those discs. Then install any drivers that are missing. Install your major programs like Office and Photoshop, and tweak them to your liking.

At this point you can continue to the next paragraph, but if you plan on reinstalling more than once before you get a new computer, you might want to think about making your own system restore CDs using a program like Arconis Disk Image or Norton Ghost. Next time you reinstall, all your programs will be in place the way you want them, and you'll have a head start on the Windows updates. I don't recommend adding smaller tools and utilities to the image, because they're updated more often.

Now install and update Firefox, AVG, Ad-Aware, ZoneAlarm, and whatever other system tools and utilities you use. Restore all your old documents and stuff from your backups, set up Windows the way you want, and the system is done!