Optiplex 380 Win 7 Prof 32Bit BIOS and Safe Mode

Question

Hello All

Please excuse my ignorace but I would like to confirm what I 'think' is correct before attempting something that might mess up my new computer.

Computer is only a month old. When 'booting up' I believe that the computer automatically goes to the 'C' drive where the OS is located (I also have another internal drive 'D' for data). However, in case I should need to boot from a CD/DVD (Recovery Disc) in case of computer problems, then I would like to have the DVD drive to be the first place Windows looks for the OS . On my old XP machine, I think (was long ago when I changed the boot order) I 'hit' F2 at the Dell Logo to enter the BIOS - is this correct for this machine and OS? At Start Up there is a very very brief 'message' that says F12 Boot Menu?? What exactly is this?

To boot up in Safe Mode do I still hit F8 at the Dell Logo?

Hopefully I won't need to use Safe Mode any time soon since this is a new machine, but I would like to have the info just in case. I also hope that I don't need to boot up from a Recovery Disc anytime soon either....but better to be safe than sorry.

Thanks in advance for your time and help

Barb

speedstep · Accepted Answer

F12 Boot Menu shows the choice of bootable media that the system recognizes.

I recommend you get a 16 gig or larger USB 2.0 Flash Drive and use the Dell Datasafe 2.0 software to make a Bootable

USB Repair/Recovery Flash drive. That way even if the hard drive DIES entirely you can reset the machine with a new

hard drive that is not formatted and put back the Diag, recovery, and boot partitions.

Micro Center - Patriot Extreme Performance Xporter XT Rage 16GB ...

You can also request the Recovery Media, which is a Windows 7 DVD, Resource Driver DVD etc.

request a set of backup discs - Dell - Support

If you are a country other than the United States and need to request backup Discs, please contact Technical Support

If you recently purchased a Dell computer with the Windows 7 operating system and have DataSafe Local 2.0 on your system, you can create a set of Recovery Discs that contain a complete copy of all software installed on your Dell computer.

How do I know if DataSafe Local 2.0 is on my system?

Click on start menu
Click on all programs
Click Dell DataSafe folder
Click Dell DataSafe Local Backup

For more information about DataSafe Local please see the following Dell articles:

Dell Customers can now request a set of backup discs containing the factory-installed operating system as well as the device drivers and utilities specific to your system.

Requests are limited to one (1) set of backup discs per system purchased.
The backup discs requested must match the operating system that was factory installed on the original order.

Please note that Dell will provide you the most up to date Resource disc available. This disc contains the latest drivers and diagnostic tools currently being shipped on new systems. Due to the frequent updates, this Resource disc may not have all the drivers needed for your specific system, especially if it is over one (1) year old.

To ensure that you have the correct drivers for your system, we strongly suggest that you download your drivers from our web site.

All Drivers and Downloads for your system can be found at http://support.dell.com/support/downloads.

If you are considering an operating system reinstall, please click here for an alternative.

To proceed with requesting these backup discs, please fill out the request form below and click Submit to continue.

Depending on your systems warranty status or if more information if needed, you may be asked to contact Dell by phone or schedule a time when Dell can contact you by phone.

Important Note:

If you have a question about Enterprise (PowerEdge Servers, PowerVault Storage) product media, please complete the form at this link: http://www.dell.com/enterpriseemail

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Optiplex 380 Win 7 Prof 32Bit BIOS and Safe Mode

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