Windows 7: Restoring Hp 6735en to vista after windows 7 upgrade

Hi all
My first post so please be gentle.
I have an HP 6735en pre-installed with vista (hp recovery partition) which I upgraded to windows 7. I have some compatibility issues so i would like to return to factory vista setup but have been reading that once you upgrade you cannot go back. My HP recovery manager only allows me to restore to a previous point and f11 does nothing. I have not created recovery disks before upgrading (yes slap me with the stupid stick) so is there any way to factory restore it since that's the only way I will be sure all my hardware and software will work perfectly again.?
Any assistance is greatly appreciated

Welcome to Windows Seven Forums.

Your easiest solution would be to buy a set of recovery discs from HP.

Looking for Recovery Discs? - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

The link is for HP's US support site. but as you haven't said where you live you may need to choose another region.

Thanks sea vixen I didn't know how to delete the other post so just marked as solved. Hope I don't get into trouble. Thanks for the welcome. You mentioned the easiest route so is there another? I bought the unit in Dubai btw and I can gladly supply any details you might need.

i have 2 HDs, one with the clean win 7 install and one with the vista to win 7 upgrade.
The 2nd (upgrade) HD still has the HP recovery partition. I can fit either HD to the pc and have access to the other via USB. Is there someway i can use this setup to retrieve/recover my vista partition so as to start over?

Having upgraded from Windows Vista to Windows 7 you cannot revert back to Windows Vista.

If you want Vista back you would need to clean install it.

This Microsoft article refers. Look at Scenario 3.

How to uninstall Windows 7

Thank you I have read and understand it. What is on the HP recovery partition now. Does it serve any purpose.
It still occupies the same 11.2 gb on the partition. Can I create a windows 7 recovery disk set since my vista is gone and this point is the best setup I can get. Hope I am not asking too many questions and thank you in advance


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You won't be able to create a Windows 7 recovery disc, but if you hook the drive up and boot into Windows you can then create a system image backup.

As for the HP recovery partition, if it is redundant you can utilise the drive space by booting into Partition Wizard, deleting the partition, and then extending the adjacent partition to take up the resulting empty drive space, as this tutorial explains.

Partition Wizard : Use the Bootable CD

If you really want Vista back, your best bet is to contact HP for a recovery disc (s).

Is there a tutorial on creating a system image I could use.
What would be the purpose of creating a system image?
I think a MSG you posted this afternoon about posting a snip of dir for partition is missing.


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The purpose would be making sure you never have to clean/reinstall OS & apps/change settings/reinstall updates again. Well worth it.

Two methods in two tutorials, written by forum members:

Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup

Imaging with free Macrium

You ought to check out the tutorials section if you really want to know Windows 7:

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/

A system image is a complete backup of your complete hard drive or partitions that you select that is then saved to an external drive for safe keeping.

Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup

If you carry out a clean install of Windows, and then install your applications, that is the ideal time to create your backup.

It means you can restore your computer without reinstalling Windows and not be bothered with activation issues.

System Image Recovery