Article Number: 000123667
Do you need to reinstall Microsoft Windows or Linux on your Dell computer due to a system crash, hard drive replacement, and so on?
The Dell OS Recovery Tool helps you download a customized Dell recovery image of Microsoft Windows or Linux that was preinstalled on your Dell computer. Dell OS Recovery Tool now supports downloading SupportAssist OS Recovery for supported Dell computers. Follow the steps below to download the utility, create a USB recovery media and reinstall Microsoft Windows or Linux on your Dell computer.
Dell OS Recovery Tool helps you create a USB recovery media using Dell ISO recovery image that is customized for your Dell computer. Dell OS Recovery Tool allows you to download either Microsoft Windows or Linux operating system recovery image, whichever was preinstalled on your Dell computer. To create a USB recovery media using a Windows computer:
The Advanced Mode in Dell OS Recovery Tool allows you to create a USB recovery key using an operating system image file (ISO file format). This is useful if you downloaded the operating system recovery image using a Linux, Mac, or Android device and then creating the USB recovery key on a Windows computer using the Dell OS Recovery Tool.
Windows 10 recovery image enables you to format the hard drive and install a clean copy of Windows 10 on your computer. File size of this recovery image is considerably higher than the Windows 10 Automated by SupportAssist.
The recovery image that is named Windows 10 Automated by SupportAssist enables you to create a recovery USB drive that supports SupportAssist OS Recovery.
Figure 3: Difference between Windows 10 Automated by SupportAssist and Windows 10 images (image in English)
SupportAssist OS Recovery is supported on select Dell computers that run a Dell factory-installed Microsoft Windows 10 operating system.
Key features of SupportAssist OS Recovery:
For more information, see the Dell knowledgebase article How to Use Dell SupportAssist OS Recovery
Dell SupportAssist OS Recovery provides a recovery environment with tools to diagnose and troubleshoot issues that may occur before your computer boots to the operating system. When your computer is unable to boot to the operating system after repeated attempts, it automatically starts SupportAssist OS Recovery. This recovery environment enables you to diagnose hardware issues, repair your computer, back up your files, or restore your computer to its factory state.
SupportAssist OS Recovery is available only on certain Dell computers that run a Dell factory-installed Microsoft Windows 10 operating system. For the list of systems where SupportAssist OS Recovery is available, see the Dell SupportAssist OS Recovery Support Matrix at Dell.com/ServiceabilityTools.
The Dell OS Recovery Tool utility works on any Windows-based computer. Follow the instructions in the Using the Dell OS Recovery Tool section of this Dell knowledge base article.
Dell OS Recovery Tool utility works on Windows-based computers only. To manually download the operating system recovery image file (ISO file format) using a Linux, Mac, or Android device:
To learn how to create a USB recovery key on a Linux computer, see the Dell knowledge base article How to download and use the Dell OS Recovery Image in Linux.
Dell Windows recovery image is available for 64-bit Microsoft Windows operating systems only.
Dell OS Recovery Tool can pause and resume the download if there is a network connectivity issue. The download resumes when the network connection is restored.
Typical Windows ISO files are between 5-16 GB in size (varies across different Windows operating systems). Once the file is downloaded, the Dell OS Recovery tool verifies the integrity of the file before creating the recovery key. The time to download and verify the integrity of the file, can vary based on network speed and file size.
To successfully boot to the USB or DVD recovery media to install Microsoft Windows 7 on the Dell computer:
If you download a large file through a Dell online application (such as Dell Windows Recovery Image website), you may receive a "Not enough space on drive" error. This is due to a space limitation on the drive where the files are being saved to. Some recovery images that are downloaded through Dell Windows recovery image can be up to 16 GB in file size.
To correct this error, free up additional disk space on the hard drive. For information about freeing up disk space in Microsoft Windows, see the Microsoft knowledge base articles:
Also, if you have an external hard drive or secondary hard drive with more disk space, select that drive to save the files to.
You can try to resolve this issue by using a different brand of USB drive. Certain brands of USB drives may cause this issue.
The operating system recovery image may not contain the latest device drivers for your Dell computer. The latest device drivers are available at Dell Drivers & Downloads website. Once the operating system is installed, Dell recommends that you download and install the latest device drivers.
To learn more about downloading and installing device drivers, see the Dell knowledge base article Drivers & Downloads - FAQs.
To learn more about Windows activation, see the Dell knowledge base article Windows Product Key Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
The operating system recovery image does not include the software that was pre-installed on your Dell computer.
To learn more about downloading and installing Dell installed software, see the Dell knowledge base article Where Can I Download Drivers and Dell-Installed Software for My Dell Computer
If the Dell OS Recovery tool fails to launch after installation or if running the installer does not start the installation process, temporarily disable the anti-virus or anti-malware software that may be installed on the computer and try running the application or installer again.
If the Dell OS Recovery Tool shows this error, you will need to contact Dell Technical Support for assistance enabling your available images.
Latitude 7390 2-in-1, Inspiron 5575, Inspiron 15 5579 2-in-1, Inspiron 5482 2-in-1, Inspiron 11 3185 2-in-1, Vostro 5370, XPS 13 9370, Latitude 5591, Latitude 5290 2-in-1, Latitude 5590, Latitude 7390, Vostro 3578, Inspiron 3552, Vostro 15 3568, Inspiron 3252, XPS 27 7760, Dell G3 3779, Inspiron 3475, Inspiron 3655, OptiPlex 5250 All In One, Inspiron 3265, Inspiron 27 7775, OptiPlex 5050, Inspiron 3052, Inspiron 11 3180, XPS 13 9360, Inspiron 7472, Inspiron 7380, OptiPlex 5060, Inspiron 14 3473, Inspiron 15 3573, OptiPlex 3060, OptiPlex 7760 All In One
20 Jan 2021
5
Solution