[Mulderator]

See this site:

http://www.windowsreinstall.com/

The site refers to a reinstall as a "Repair" (but see No. 3 below):

I would point out two things about a reinstallation:

1. Contrary to many concerns, a Reinstall DOES NOT change your computer except for replacing files with the original Windows installation files--your desktop and menus and Documents and Settings all stay the same. This may or may not have an effect on some installed programs--I have reinstalled many many times and it seems with XP, I've never had any problem

2. Reinstall is often an easy way to fix a nagging problem that there seems to be no solution to--you can do it easily in about a half hour with a minimum of effort as long as you have your original CD and product code AND you have bootable CD drive which most are--you can test it easily by changing the boot order to the CD and inserting your Windows CD to see if it starts booting. You can then just CTRL-ALT-DEL while its loading setup files and change the boot order back--Windows doesn't change anything until you go through few commands to tell it too. That's not to say that you should use this right away--a reinstall is the option to use when you've exhausted efforts to fix the specific problem.

3. DO NOT use the "Repair windows Through the Recovery Console" option--follow the instructions for your OS in the above link.

4. Here are quick Links to XP Reinstall Guides for all Service Packs:

Professional Editiion:

http://www.windowsxpprofessional.win...pair/part1.htm

Home Edition:

http://www.windowsxphome.windowsrein...pair/index.htm

Anyone else can feel free to add comments.

[wacor]

Thanks

So you lose nothing is what you are saying?

What about the drivers and applications?

I probably will get the answers when i check out the link but this will let me keep track of the thread

[Mulderator]

Originally Posted by wacorsaut

Thanks

So you lose nothing is what you are saying?

What about the drivers and applications?

I probably will get the answers when i check out the link but this will let me keep track of the thread

YOU LOSE NOTHING (most liikely). There is the chance that a program you've installed does not work properly after a reinstall, but you can simply reisntall that program.

Everyone says to make a backup copy of your critical files, which is a good idea because if you make the wrong choice (i.e., a fresh install) you do lose your documents. For this reason, I ALWAYS have two logical partitions on my main drive and I move the Documents and Settings and the My Documents to the second partition (i.e., the one without the OS. As such, there is no way that I'd ever lose any data no matter what happened to the OS. If the OS cannot be repaired, the chances are still excellent you can get to all your files on the other partition (barring a complete hard drive failure of course). I have had several instances where I could not get a drive to boot nor could I repair windows, but I could get to the files using it as a slave drive.

[wacor]

Not sure if you can answer this but my desktop has deteriorated a ton. Before that i went thru a lot of things and had the security folks help and a couple times ended up reinstalling windows.

things would each time work ok for a while and then slowly bog down. the last time i reinstalled and things started to bog down i removed the additional ram i had installed in case it was for some reason not compatable. so my question is can an incompatable ram cause problems that are permanent and can only be corrected by a repair or reinstall or the option this thread is discussing?

any thoughts?

[Mulderator]

Originally Posted by wacorsaut

Not sure if you can answer this but my desktop has deteriorated a ton. Before that i went thru a lot of things and had the security folks help and a couple times ended up reinstalling windows.

things would each time work ok for a while and then slowly bog down. the last time i reinstalled and things started to bog down i removed the additional ram i had installed in case it was for some reason not compatable. so my question is can an incompatable ram cause problems that are permanent and can only be corrected by a repair or reinstall or the option this thread is discussing?

any thoughts?

No Windows problem is "Permanent"--the only permanent problems are hardware related. I would start a new thread though for that issue because this thread is just for instruction on Reinstall.

[bbearren]

Originally Posted by Mulder

The site refers to a reinstall as a "Repair" I have reinstalled many many times and it seems with XP, I've never had any problem

...a reinstall is the option to use when you've exhausted efforts to fix the specific problem.

I checked the site; but I still like this step-by-step explanation better:

http://www.informationweek.com/windo...leID=189400897

Usually, I only recommend a Repair/Reinstall on the forum (with the above link as a guide) to folks who are already wanting to do a reformat/reinstall, or asking if there is an alternative to reformat/reinstall. It's not something I do for my clients--I fix their problems instead. I've encountered two with non-booting destructive malware infections that had to be wiped with a reformat and then a reinstall. And I've had two non-booting systems where I used a Repair/Reinstall, and then did a thorough cleaning.

A big downside to the Repair/Reinstall is that one doesn't learn anything from it. Also, if Windows is munged because of malware/virus issues, it's possible that those issues can resurrect after the Repair/Reinstall.

I started using Windows with 3.1, then upgraded to Windows 95. I reinstalled Windows 95 probably hundreds of times, because I would deliberatly tweak it/bend it/break it and try to repair it as a learning aid. When I upgraded to 95 OSR2, I was able to run it without reinstall until I upgraded it to Windows 98. And this with my kids using the computer more than I was using it. Not that 95 wouldn't crash; it did. But I had it stable enough that a reboot would bring it back to life. I never needed to reinstall 98. And again, if it crashed, a reboot would cure it. My daughter has a Compaq that came with 98SE, and it has had a multitude of difficulties over the years, but her O/S has never needed to be reinstalled.

I upgraded from Windows 98 to 2000 Pro (I skipped SE--not enough offered for the price). I never needed a reinstall of 2000 Pro. I upgraded from 2000 Pro to XP Pro. I have never needed a reinstall of XP. I run sfc /scannow routinely as a preventative maintenance tool, and also chkdsk /r. I use two malware tools and an AV, all updated regularly, and my home network sits behind a hardware firewall in the router/switch.

Originally Posted by Mulder

Everyone says to make a backup copy of your critical files, which is a good idea because if you make the wrong choice (i.e., a fresh install) you do lose your documents. For this reason, I ALWAYS have two logical partitions on my main drive and I move the Documents and Settings and the My Documents to the second partition (i.e., the one without the OS. As such, there is no way that I'd ever lose any data no matter what happened to the OS. If the OS cannot be repaired, the chances are still excellent you can get to all your files on the other partition (barring a complete hard drive failure of course). I have had several instances where I could not get a drive to boot nor could I repair windows, but I could get to the files using it as a slave drive.

If an OEM machine has more than one partition, it's usually a hidden restoration partition that contains the O/S files and pre-installed software. Agreed, everyone needs a reliable backup solution, but the reality is that not everyone HAS a reliable backup solution. I use a combination of backup folders on multiple PC's and image files burned to DVD. But some of the folks who come here seeking help don't have anything backed up.

[jolo10]

I have Win XP SP 2.

MY situation is that my PC will not power off. There have been some problems that I have fixed by changing the IDE cable that goes to that drive.

I am planning to first try a repair/rebuild, just to clean up any XP OS issues that have accumuilated.

• I have created a "slipstreamed" XP Home CD, that has SP 2 installed on it.
• My system drive is a WD IDE 120gb drive.
• I have access to a 300gb USb 2.0 drive, if that will help me making this process work without reinstalling all of my apps.
• If their are recommendations of backup certain files/folder before proceeing on the system drive, i would appreciate the help.
• If this doesn't fix all of my problems, I will have to do a Re-Format/Reinstall.
• I would appreciate any tips on how to may a Re-Format/Re-install as painless as possible. I am thinking of maybe backing up certain programs.
• Before proceesing with my Repair/Rebuild, I am going to back off data files, Outlook files, etc first.
• I then will do a DeFrag before proceeding. I have a third party product called PerfectDisk that does a better Defrag than what comes with XP Home.

Help/Advice is appreciated !!

Thanks,

Jon Temple

[americamba]

Does all this hold for reinstalling through the recovery functions included in an HP comnputer?

[mjbyyz]

This thread is probably where I should be (re Transferring Hard Drives to a new Computer - mjbyyz).
Here's what I have done so far - I took a HD from one computer to another (thinking all it had to do was reconfigure itself to the 'new' hardware) and it wouldn't boot. I installed WinXP Home again in a new folder. Now it boots, but I cannot find the *.dbx e-mail files anywhere.
IF, by doing this, I overwrote those files, can I UNinstall and get back to where I was? I also have Search & Recover - can I use this at any point to recover this data?
John -060923-10:20EDT

[JohnWill]

Actually, you should continue in your original thread. http://forums.techguy.org/windows-nt...-computer.html

[mjbyyz]

Hi, John:
Now I AM confused!!! Will continue here, as suggested -
http://forums.techguy.org/windows-nt...-computer.html
This is the second one on this topic, and seems to be a more appropriate place to be.
Why do I DO these things to myself (more accurately this time, to my long-suffering WIFE!)?
John -060923-10:59EDT

[JohnWill]

You have a thread going on an issue, Starting to post in another thread will just confuse the issue and dilute the assistance you'll receive. Also, this is just a generic thread with a general guide to re-installing windows.

[mjbyyz]

Yes, I realize this and am trying to stick to one site!
Going to - http://forums.techguy.org/windows-nt...-computer.html .
Cheers - John - 060923-18:38EDT

[lee85boro]

what if you cant copy or paste heh (i also have two logical partitions and doing a new install of windows)
need help on this one see
_________

http://forums.techguy.org/windows-nt...opy-paste.html

[tbeachhead]

My emachines disk that came with my t-series box promises to wipe the disk clean when I reinstall. Taking statements like that literally, I'm loth to answer "Yes" when asked "proceed?"

I need my three years of data.

Pete