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6 ways to reset Windows computer to its original state
Resetting your Windows computer is the quickest and easiest way to get Windows back to its original state. Even if Windows is currently running very slowly and infected with viruses. This method will completely clean Windows and give optimal performance again.
This article will introduce you to 6 easy ways to reset Windows on your computer, please refer to it. If you are using Windows 10, please refer to how to reset your Win 10 computer because this operating system has options available for you to reset more easily.
Quick look at 6 ways to reset Windows
- 1. How to factory reset Windows 10 using built-in method
- 2. Restore Windows 10 to factory settings using the "Fresh Start" option (old version)
- 3. Reset Windows using Recovery Disc
- 4. Reset your computer using the “Refresh” or “Reset” feature in Windows 8
- 5. Restore Windows 10 to factory settings from boot using advanced methods
- 6. Reinstall Windows from scratch to reset your computer
1. How to factory reset Windows 10 using built-in method
Factory resetting Windows used to be an inconvenient process, but Microsoft introduced a much easier way to do it in Windows 8. This is also included in Windows 10 and is the best way to factory reset a Windows computer in most cases.
To access this Windows reinstallation option, go to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery . You'll see a Reset this PC section , click the Get started button below it to begin.
Keep files or delete everything?
You'll have two initial options to choose from when resetting Windows 10 this way: Keep my files and Remove everything .
Selecting Keep my files will reset your operating system options to their defaults and remove all installed apps (like browsers, Microsoft Office, and games), but will keep files like documents and music. As the name suggests, Remove everything is a complete factory reset: All options will be returned to their original defaults and all your files and apps will be deleted. After that, Windows will be like a brand new computer.
While the Keep my files option will retain your personal data, you should still back it up before using it in case something goes wrong.
Cloud Download or Local Reinstall?
On modern versions of Windows 10, you'll next have to choose how you want to reinstall Windows. There are two ways: Cloud Download or Local Reinstall .
Local reinstall uses files on your current system to create a fresh copy of Windows. While this saves you from having to download any files from the Internet, it won't work if your Windows installation is corrupted.
With Cloud download , this process downloads a new copy of Windows 10 from Microsoft over the Internet. This reinstalls the version of Windows 10 you're currently running (along with any minor updates), so you won't be upgraded to a newer feature update.
Downloading Windows will take up several gigabytes of data, so be careful if you're on a limited connection. However, if you have a fast Internet connection, this option may be faster than a local reinstall.
Options when resetting Windows 10
Next, you'll see an Additional settings menu with a Current settings section, which contains a summary of what you've chosen to do so far. There's also a Change settings link that you can click for more options.
If you previously selected Keep my files , the only option in Change settings is a redundant Download Windows? toggle for a local or cloud installation. There are more options if you select Remove everything.
Enabling Clean data? will erase everything on the drive, reducing the chance that someone will recover the data later. While this process takes a while, it is recommended if you plan on not using your computer anymore. It is not necessary if you decide to keep your computer.
Turn on Delete files from all drives? to delete everything on all drives you have connected to your computer. This includes external hard drives and recovery drives. Because you may have backups and other important files on those drives, you shouldn't use this feature unless you want to permanently delete everything associated with your computer.
If you bought your PC with everything preinstalled, you'll also see the Restore preinstalled apps? slider here. Turn this off and Windows won't include manufacturer bloatware and other preinstalled apps when you reinstall. This option won't appear if you reinstall Windows from scratch.
Confirm Windows 10 reset operation
Click Confirm when you are satisfied with the above options. The final screen before you begin the factory reset is titled Ready to reset this PC .
You'll see a list of actions the process takes. Click View apps that will be removed if you want to double-check which apps are affected by this process.
Finally, confirm the operation by clicking Reset , then wait for the process to complete. If you are resetting your laptop, make sure that you have your laptop plugged in to avoid losing power during the operation. You will need to perform the Windows 10 setup process after it is complete.
Make sure you follow the recommended steps after reinstalling Windows 10 .
2. Restore Windows 10 to factory settings using the "Fresh Start" option (old version)
If you're using an older version of Windows 10, Microsoft offers another way to factory reset your computer, called Fresh Start . Starting with Windows 10 version 2004, this option was replaced with the process described above, so use that option if you're using a modern version.
To access Fresh Start, on the Settings > Update & Security > Recovery page , click the Learn how to start fresh with a clean installation of Windows link at the bottom. This will open the Windows Security app , displaying the Fresh start option . Click Get started to continue.
Here's how Fresh Start works:
- Fresh Start always keeps your personal files, there is no option to delete everything and restore complete factory settings.
- Fresh Start downloads the latest version of Windows 10 directly from Microsoft, with no option to reinstall from local files. Fresh Start therefore avoids clutter by removing all non-standard Windows apps, including manufacturer bloatware. The only exception is Microsoft Store apps that were installed by the manufacturer, which remain.
- Finally, Fresh Start keeps “some Windows settings,” but doesn’t specify which ones. The reset above doesn’t keep any of your settings.
In short, Fresh Start downloads a copy of the latest version of Windows 10, keeps your personal files and some settings, and leaves no manufacturer bloatware behind other than the Store app. Meanwhile, the standard reset option lets you choose whether to keep your files, not save any settings, install the same version of Windows, and lets you choose how to reinstall the operating system.
Keep in mind that after reinstalling this way, you may need to re-enter license keys for premium applications and may need to update system drivers.
3. Reset Windows using Recovery Disc
If the computer does not have a recovery partition, the manufacturer will attach a recovery disc when you buy a computer with a pre-installed genuine Windows ( or a license key that comes with the computer ).
This is usually a CD or DVD that contains all the data so that users can quickly restore Windows to its original state when they purchased the computer and will be stored in a recovery partition on the disk.
4. Reset your computer using the “Refresh” or “Reset” feature in Windows 8
If you use Windows 8 or later, you will be lucky to be equipped by Microsoft with 2 quite useful features: " Refresh " and " Reset ". Thanks to these 2 features, you probably will not need to use the recovery partition and recovery disk every time needed.
- Refresh: This option will install and refresh Windows 8 according to the manufacturer's default but still keep the data on the computer as it is, such as files, pictures, music and applications (Desktop and Metro).
This option can be used if you encounter some stubborn errors on Windows that cannot be resolved and above all do not want to lose files and applications that are being used on the system.
- Reset: Unlike Refresh, this option will reset the Windows 8 operating system and delete all applications, files, music, images as if you were reinstalling the system. This option can be used when you want to reinstall the system or transfer your computer to someone else. This process will require the user to enter the new Windows 8 key to perform.
5. Restore Windows 10 to factory settings from boot using advanced methods
While the methods listed above should work for most users, there are also some advanced ways to reset Windows, should you need them.
To run a Windows 10 factory reset from boot (for example, in case you can't get into Windows normally), you can start a factory reset from the Advanced Startup menu.
To launch this menu if Windows is working properly, go to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery . Under Advanced startup , click Restart now to reboot into Advanced Startup. Alternatively, you can open the Start menu and expand the power menu there, then hold down the Shift key as you click the Restart button.
If you can't do either of these, try pressing F11 during startup, which will open Advanced Startup on some systems. Failing that, Windows will automatically launch Advanced Startup after three failed attempts.
Once Advanced Startup opens, select Troubleshoot , then select Reset This PC to start the factory reset process similar to method 1 above. You can select Advanced options for more options, but none of them will allow you to factory reset Windows 10 unless you have a system image saved.
Otherwise, you can boot into BIOS and load the recovery partition directly on your hard drive, if your PC manufacturer included one. However, doing a factory reset using this method will reinstall all of your manufacturer's bloatware . While it's not ideal, it can be useful if you have no other options.
You can also type “create a recovery drive” into the Start menu to access a tool that allows you to create your own recovery drive. However, this requires some free space, and you’ll need to do it before things go wrong. If you haven’t already, it’s best to create a new Windows 10 installation disc, as described in method 3.
There is no way to factory reset Windows from the BIOS. Quantrimang.com's BIOS manual shows how to reset the BIOS to its default options, but you can't factory reset Windows through it. There is also no way to factory reset a laptop without turning it on; you need power to do all of this.
6. Reinstall Windows from scratch to reset your computer
If none of the above methods work, your only option is to reinstall Windows. This method is quite tedious, but it will help you quickly regain control of Windows from scratch.
And to be more secure, you should create a Ghost copy right after reinstalling Windows so that you can quickly restore it when necessary using Onekey Ghost . Wish you success!
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