Changing OS & Restore Partition

Question

Hi guys,

I've not found a solid answer so i'm going to ask. My father bought an Inspiron 1150 laptop a couple of weeks ago. It arrived with XP Home Edition pre-loaded. We want to remove XP Home and load XP Pro since it will be used to connect to a domain. We want to leave the restore partition as it is since we don't have any installation media from Dell.

If we need to restore the laptop at a later date, will it matter that the OS has been changed (personally I think not, but I need to reassure my father), or will it render the restore partition useless. I've looked at the Reinstall Guides for XP and noted the correct procedure for installing drivers etc.

Anything else I should note?

Kind Regards,

Stuart,

bacillus · Answer

another member posted this but I don't have the link:
There should be an application inside All Programs/dell Accessories/ Dell OS Recovery CD
Run it and it will explain step by step what to do,
you will need a blank NEW CD for it.
It will acts As the OS recovery CD

if that doesn't work then suggest you use an xp pro upgrade cd copy as the restore partition should still then function.

Stuart_O · Answer

Hi there, Just had a look and the only thing under 'Dell Accessories' is 'Driver Reset Tool' which just does a diagnostic check. Stuart,

ejn63 · Answer

If you install XP Pro, the restore partition will no longer be useable.

Stuart_O · Answer

I've decided to try and email Dell tech support to see if they will send me a restore CD.

So here lies the problem, according to the support site @ http://support.euro.dell.com my service tag can not be located. I've looked at the bottom of the laptop, and downloaded the tool from Dell to find and tool matches whats written on the bottom of the laptop. How am I meant to email Dell with a service tag which can not be located???

Stuart,

Message Edited by Stuart_O on 01-15-2005 04:08 PM

bacillus · Answer

most likely the dell database hasn't yet been fully updated hence your service tag is not recognised ie the laptop is too new.

Infinite_Trial · Answer

the restore partition should still work even if you load xp pro on it. just make sure do not delete the FAT partition and just delete the NTFS because that is where the restore partition lies. if you decided to use the restore partition, pressing CTRL + R upon bootup will bring it up. It will ask you if you want to restore or not. actually, if this is a brand-new laptop, you can have an OS-swap. but you will have to wait and find the right person who can give you that privilege.

shriansh · Answer

well i just dual booted my 9100 with longhorn. what i did, was resize c: with partition magic to a smaller size, and used the empty space to create a smaller d:, on which i loaded longhorn.   Now, i've lost the blue bar (which says www.dell.com), that comes during bootup, and during which you're supposed to click cntrl+f11 to restore your system. What i would like to know, is how do i restore this.   I just get the o/s choices menu when the system boots up. i want to be able to restore the system at a later date, (because i'm bored of the dual boot already). Any ideas. Also, i didn't get a restore cd with the laptop. i'll use the system utility thats mentioned on the forum (in program files>dell acc), but i don't think its on my system. any ideas? can i email dell and ask them for the restore cd?   any help appreciated.

Stuart_O · Answer

Well it took a week, several emails and a couple of phone calls but Dell agreed to ship me out a restore CD.

There is just one snag - the restore CD is in German.

I don't think this is a mistake since someone else also received thier restore disk today and it's also in German.

Edit: Both me and my fellow Dell user are in the UK.

Stuart,

Message Edited by Stuart_O on 01-25-2005 10:28 PM

Storage, Drives & Media

Changing OS & Restore Partition

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