A guide as to how to use the Dell restore/ghost?

here are the instructions for "dell restore", from the "dell support" website:

 

Perform a PC Restore of the operating system.

 

NOTICE:  To help prevent further complications, it is important to disconnect the system's modem or network cable before starting the restore process. 

 

To perform a restore of the operating system using PC Restore, perform the following steps:

 

NOTE: Dell PC Restore by Symantec is available on Dimension and Inspiron systems that shipped on or after 7/16/2004 in the Americas and 8/30/2004 in Europe.

 

1. Power the computer on.

 

2. When the Dell screen appears press and hold the key on the keyboard, press the key, then release them both at the same time.
The Dell PC Restore by Symantec window appears.

 

NOTE: Press the keys one time only. If you press them more than once, a keyboard error occurs and the process has to be initiated again.

 

3. Click the Restore button or press the key to highlight Restore and press the key.
A caution message appears advising that all data will be lost.

 

4. Click the Confirm button or press the key to highlight Confirm and press the key.
The Progress window appears. Once the process is begun, Dell PC Restore usually takes only 8 to 10 minutes to complete.

When the restore is complete, the message The system recovery process was successful appears.

 

5. Click the Finish button or press the key to highlight Finish and press the key.

The computer will restart.

 

Your software is now as it was when you first received your computer.

 

-end "dell support" instructions

 

let me add, when it says to press the "ctrl" key when the "dell screen appears", it is talking about pressing the "ctrl" key while the "bios" is still loading, which is while the "dell screen" appears..

 

on my computer, i never see the dell screen.. the first thing that i see is the "windows screen", showing windows loading.. so, in that case, you need to know to press the "ctrl" key almost immediately after turning on the power for your computer-while the bios is still loading- in order to access "dell restore"..

 

(you do the same in order to access the bios settings, where you press "F2" [on my computer]-almost immediately after turning on the power for your computer-while the bios is still loading-in order to acces the bios settings)..

 

(on my computer, the only way that i ever see the "dell screen" is if i use "restart" to "restart" the computer, as opposed to starting the computer from a "cold" boot)..

 

the way that i accessed the information about "dell restore" was by going to the "reinstall guide" in "dell support".. dell's "reinstall guide" is designed to walk you through steps to restoring your computer, and the first option is to use "dell restore"..

 

if it was me, i would opt to do a clean install of windows xp et al instead of using "dell restore", just so that i wouldn't have anything installed that i didn't want installed.. and i also think that a clean reinstall of windows helps to ensure a problem-free computer..

if you already did a "clean" install of win xp, that would have erased the "dell restore" "partition", so that is gone.. but i wouldn't worry about that..

 

you should be able to find whatever drivers that you need in "dell support"..

 

or, sometimes you can get drivers from the various vendors' websites instead of using the ones provided in "dell support".. for example, i use ati radeon drivers from the ati website instead of the ones provided in "dell support", and i also use intel drivers from the intel website instead of using the ones provided in "dell support".. however, you cannot always do that because sometimes dell will have a product that is customized, and so, in those cases, only the dell drivers should be used.. i have seen that in cases with inexpensive sound cards where they were customized for dell computers and so only the dell drivers should be used with them.. still, i would opt to download drivers from "dell support" instead of using drivers on the disks that came with the computer, if that is an option, so as to have the most "up-to-date" drivers, which may have addressed some bugs in earlier drivers..

what model dell computer do you have, and what "sound device" (sound card/integrated sound) are you using?

 

also, what do you mean when you say that you have a different bootloader? was that intentional?

This MAY restore your PC Restore.

 

http://www.goodells.net/dellrestore/

Question - Did you install the chipset driver immediately and before any other device drivers (video card, sound card, printer, etc.,) once  the Windows installation had completed to the desktop?