Unsolved
This post is more than 5 years old
1 Message
0
8648
Problem with Dell Factory Image Restore feature
Hi all, new here and I need some help.
I need to restore one of my E521 towers loaded with Widows Vista 32 bit to the original factory settings.
Something got past my anti-virus program and I am having more problems than any virus has ever given me before. Scans and bot tell me I have both adware and malware, but they cannot remove them.
I was able to successfully achieve a factory reset in 2010 when faced with a similar problem, but this time no such luck,
I have tried numerous time restarting and/or shutting down and turning on the system, then hitting F8 repeatedly (perhaps 30 times) with no success. I also tried holding down the F8 button and still no luck.
Each time I am sure I was able to do this before the Windows logo appeared.
However, I each time find myself at the Password Screen, without seeing the Repair Screen. I did notice that at the password screen there is a message each time that the keyboard is not working, yet I can still type in my password.
I am at a loss. Do I need to just keep hitting F8 for a longer period or time, or is there something else I am missing?
Please note: If any of you good people have an alternative solution; I am one of those who requires step by step instructions in the simplest form possible.
I am in my 60s and all I know about Bios is somewhere in my computer, there is some. :emotion-42:
I will greatly appreciate any and all replies.
-DB
RoHe
10 Elder
10 Elder
•
44.3K Posts
0
July 17th, 2014 12:00
Possible the virus damaged the boot sector and that could prevent you from getting access to the factory image on the drive.
If you have the Dell Vista Reinstallation disk, you might try booting from that disk and running a Repair. Put the disk in the optical drive, reboot and tap (don't hold) F12. Choose the option to boot from the Vista Disk from the F12 menu, and then follow the prompts to repair the OS.
But if it's really badly infected, you may want to wipe the hard drive and do a clean installation of Vista. There's a good tutorial here.
Either way, I hope your personal files are backed up on external media. A repair from the Vista disk shouldn't damage your files but always good to back up first. A clean install will wipe everything from the hard drive so your files must be backed up first.
You could also go to spywarehammer and let the experts over there see if they can clean your system before you attempt a repair or a reinstall. Their help is entirely free, and many of those experts also help people on this forum. Be sure to read/follow their instructions to post a request for assistance at spywarehammer.