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My computer is several years old and has a failing hard drive and I will be replacing it. I want to know how to start fresh/start over with a "new" installation of Windows
Hello,
I have a Dell Inspiron 17R laptop running Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit that I have had for about three years. I've been coping with a failing hard drive for 4ish months now. It started out failing SMART tests and turned up with a bunch of bad sectors. It randomly freezes up and crashes(mostly when saving large files to the hard drive and this is getting more frequent and it crashes every time the SMART test tries to run). So I plan to replace it because other than that, it's been a great computer(and I can't afford a new one). But I have had other glitches with the system such as problems with corrupted files and the desktop icons(I arrange them the way I like and then next time I restart my computer they get strewn all over the desktop(most annoying thing in the world)). New computers always seem really fast because the system is not bogged down with all kinds of junk. So my question is: can I put a new hard drive in and start over with a new, clean copy of Windows 7 instead of cloning the old drive? After I get the new Windows up and running I will move all my pictures and videos over and then re-install all my programs. I would also like to add that my computer DID NOT come with recovery disks or anything like that. However I did make a system repair disk. But I'm guessing that doesn't contain the whole Windows operating system. The product key sticker is still on the bottom of the computer so can I just use that to download a new copy of Windows 7? Or is there a way to ONLY copy the windows operating system off the old drive(I'm guessing not because some might be corrupted and if my computer has any virus those would get copied too)?
Thank you so much in advance! :)
-Joachim
DELL-Terry B
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3.5K Posts
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March 30th, 2015 16:00
You should be able to install a replacement hard drive without any problems.
The following document should be helpful for installing Windows on the replacement drive and where to go about getting OS media.
Please let me know if you continue to have difficulties.
TB
Philip_Yip
7 Technologist
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March 30th, 2015 18:00
Please run F12 preboot diagnostics and let us know the results, it sounds like you have a failing drive however:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/f12-preboot-diagnostics/
If diagnostics pass use another computer to prepare a Windows Defender Offline Bootable USB:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/download-microsoft-windows-and-office/download-security-essentials/scanning-your-system-with-windows-defender-offline/
Creating media with Dell DataSafe Local Backup in particular in DVD format is usually problematic (they usually don't work well particular if cheap DVDs have been used).
I advise upgrading to the latest version of Dell Backup and Recovery and making a Factory Backup (Bootable USB). You may also make a Rescue Disk (Bootable External Hard Drive) however this system may not have the capabilities to boot from an external hard drive (check if you create one) therefore I recommend the Bootable USB. See here for details:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/dell-backup-and-recovery/
I recommend replacing the HDD with a 256-512 GB SSD to get maximum performance, I prefer the Crucial MX200. You can use the media created with the latest version of Dell Backup and Recovery on the SSD. The media you created with the earlier version will likely not work on a new drive.
Joachim Hall
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March 31st, 2015 21:00
Everything passes the diagnostics except the hard drive. When it get to it it makes all kinda of awful beeping and comes up with short shelf life failed.
I contacted Dell and even though my computer is out of warranty they are sending me a recovery media disc. I think this is the best option that I know of because I want to start out with a fresh, new, clean Windows just like it's new out of the box. I feel like if I made a recovery media disc using my system it might still have some of the same problems I already have. I could be wrong though.
As for a new drive, I am going with this 2TB: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MPWYLHO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have a YouTube channel and do lots of videos so I need a bigger drive. My current 1TB drive is almost 70% full. Ugggg it's going to take a long time to copy all those files onto the new drive... I would like the speed of an SSD but I can't afford one let alone one big enough. My computer does have a slot for a mSATA so I may install one.
Thank you!
Philip_Yip
7 Technologist
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April 1st, 2015 04:00
If you got the Reinstallation DVD from Dell its the best option. If the system has a mSATA slot you can install a 256 GB mSATA drive and install Windows on it and use the 2 TB for data storage.
To use the Reinstallation DVD see here:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows-7/windows-7-installation/
Or the more in depth A Clean Install of Windows 7:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/a-clean-install-of-windows-7/