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Dell XPS 15 9550 - Clean Reinstall Windows 10 Pro With USB Boot Question
I want to do a clean reinstall of my maybe compromised dell xps 9550 windows 10 pro laptop. This laptop might have malware/virus so I want to clean reinstall windows. I have the usb stick with the windows 10 in it. I used it already for a windows 10 home desktop and did it successfully. The issue was when I did it, I had put in the usb stick in the desktop when it was powered off. Then I powered it on and the kept pressing F12 with no success. I shut down and turn on many times with this issue. Finally I did a restart and pressed F12 and that booted the usb and then I did the clean reinstall of windows 10 home on the desktop. But of course if I had a virus on this desktop before I did the clean reinstall, then I would be concerned.
I want to make sure that when I boot the usb on this maybe compromised dell xps laptop... I do this while at startup when I power on the laptop. The reason being I'm concerned is if my laptop is compromised... wouldn't that mean if it doesn't boot while my usb stick is in it and then it goes to my computer in normal mode, then I risk somehow it infecting the windows 10 usb? Or that is nothing to worry about?
I should shut down the laptop first. Then plug the windows ten usb into it... then turn on my laptop... and press F12 repeatedly to boot
And if it doesn't boot, then let windows load. Then restart and press F12 repeatedly
OR
Just plug the windows usb into it when in the normal mode and then restart and press F12 repeatedly?
Another issue is I never updated BIOS ever on this machine. Would that even matter in this? Do I need to turn off fast start or something which was the cause of why the usb boot screen didn't show at startup and only way was to restart laptop and then press F12 ? I want to take the necessary precautions on this as I'm not sure if the maybe compromised laptop could infect the windows ten usb stick... so even if you do the clean reinstall... it would affect it somehow? Or is that not possible?
I do know when I do this clean reinstall process, it should take about half an hour or so as I done this with my windows ten desktop already earlier.
jphughan
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December 20th, 2021 22:00
@quickguide01 Unfortunately I think I'm going to stop here. My previous experience with you from the other discussions you have started on this forum is that every time I answered one of your questions, you asked 2-3 new questions. We had an extremely long discussion about various ways to set up different multi-display configurations on your XPS 15 9550 and whether it would be worth buying a new system. I actually don't even know if you ever bought anything to implement any of the solutions I suggested. If you didn't, then that was a huge waste of time for me because I spent several weeks having that discussion with you. But either way, that pattern of asking multiple new questions every time you get an answer is now happening again here, and I don't want to go down that path again. You originally asked how to boot from a USB flash drive in order to perform a clean Windows install. It seems like you have now figured that out. But you've now also asked several new questions, and if you didn't know how to resolve the WiFi issue that you just asked about, then you are probably going to have even more questions as you work through setting up your system again. I just don't want to go through all of that. So hopefully you can either find someone else who can help you or figure things out by doing your own research or experimentation. I wish you good luck.