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Clean install of Windows? Factory reset?
My Dell Inspiron 1545 has been running very, very slow. Although it passed numerous diagnostic tests, I think messing around with the registry has taken its toll. I tried doing a factory reset but there's no option for Dell factory image restore. However, my recovery E drive does contain a factory.wim which would lead me to believe that if I could access it, I might be able to use it. Reading the instructions of how to do a clean install of Windows makes my head explode. I'm fairly tech saavy but hesitant about attempting this.
This started with my futile attempts to reinstall an HP printer. I could not, and can still not access the troubleshooter. I keep getting the message that a problem is preventing the troubleshooter from starting and error code 0x80070490. When I couldn't install the new Epson printer I bought, I thought I might as well start from scratch since all attempts to repair what was wrong have failed. I'm confused, overwhelmed, and tired of going around in circles. I'm not sure that I fully understand what the difference is between a clean install and a factory reset. I wonder if I shouldn't take my laptop to a pc guru to let him do it, but I'd also like to know if there's a easier and less expensive solution to this.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Appologize for the length.