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Software for Dell GX520 System Restore
Hi there....
I have a Dell GX520 Desktop...that won't boot. I have tried to get a disk that restored, but I think I barked up the wrong tree.
What I bought was a Driver Restore, when in fact, I need a disk that restores the system, itself. So, any help would be appreciated.
I'd hate to throw this thing in the dumpster.
Carl :emotion-11:
speedstep
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April 9th, 2013 09:00
GX520 will run Windows XP thru Windows 8 depending on Ram and Processor.
There is no "restore disk" or Restore partition on the 520. Availability of Reinstall Media depends on warranty status and what country you are in.
Philip_Yip
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April 9th, 2013 10:00
You need to reinstall Windows Manually. This system most likely came with Windows XP Professional but the COA attached to the system will verify what version of Windows it was shipped with. If you send me a private message with the Service Tag I can probably check from the Original System Configuration also.
Windows XP has <1 year of support see Windows XP SP3 and Office 2003 - End of Life April 2014 after this date Windows XP will no longer be updated by Microsoft making it quite a vulnerable OS.
Therefore it is recommended to install Windows 7 32 bit. I have installed the 32 bit OS on this machine with no problems and it worked well without many additional drivers. My machine had 2 GB of RAM which I would say is the practical minimum to run Windows 7 32 bit however it is recommended to upgrade it to 4 GB of RAM using this part:
http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/Dell-memory/OptiPlex/OptiPlex+GX520-upgrades.html
The 64 bit will likely work fine on the system with 4 GB of RAM but I would recommend using the 64 bit version only if you have 4 GB of RAM otherwise the 32 bit version will perform better.
For best results see my wiki Windows Reinstallation Guide/A Clean Install of Windows:
http://philipyip.wordpress.com/dell-community-forums/
This will guide you through A Clean Install of Windows 7. Use a Windows 7 .iso from Digital River and evaluate the performance of Windows 7 on your machine before deciding whether to purchasing a license.
Driver wise I think I only installed Dell Notebook Software (32 bit) or Dell Notebook Software (64 bit) and the Intel Update Utility.
Note Windows 7 is recommended over Windows Vista and in my personal opinion recommended over Windows 8. Although you can also try using the Windows 8 Enterprise Trial to install and evaluate Windows 8 (also explained in the guide).