Hi
RoWin7,
That leaves a Repair Install, which I think might be easier than the cmd option. I've done one on this machine. What do you think?
If you decide to proceed with the
repair install, please follow my instructions below!
NOTE: The
light blue text below are links to the relevant websites and programs, just
click them!
Repair Install
A
repair install differs from a
clean install in the fact that it
ONLY replaces the corrupted OS with a new fresh copy. This means that
ALL your User Accounts, Folders, Files, Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos, Data Files, Icons, and any installed programs are left intact. It does however,
delete ALL the Window updates, and can affect, sounds, services, visual effect settings and device drivers by re-setting them to default. You
cannot do a repair install at boot, in Safe Mode, using a system repair disk, or using an integrated Windows update disk. Basically, this process can
ONLY be performed from within the
LIVE OS.
IMPORTANT: You must have
MORE than the currently
used HDD space available
BEFORE you
start the
repair install process. This is because during this process, a
C:\Windows.old backup folder gets created which is a
FULL copy of the current OS.
NOTE: This backup folder can either be used to restore the OS back to the pre-repair install version, or to restore individual files etc that weren’t properly copied. Once you are happy, you can delete this folder.
IMPORTANT: REMOVE any connected drives
BEFORE you start the
repair install.
SUGGESTION: It is advisable that you run an
Extended Disk Cleanup [with
ALL the options checked]
BEFORE you start the repair installation. This gets rid of all the superfluous files and will reduce the size, the install processing time, and the size of the
C:\Windows.old backup folder.
You will need your
Product Key for the version of Windows that you are re-installing. This is the
ONLY version that you will be able to
activate. On a laptop, it will either be on a sticker on the bottom, or in the battery compartment. If the sticker is too worn to read, or there isn't one, then you can retrieve it by either using
Belarc Advisor or
Magic Jelly Bean. Write this
Product Key down and keep it in a
safe place.
You will need either a
Win 7 SP1 installation disk or a
Win 7 SP1 ISO.
If you have a
Win 7 SP1 installation disk, insert it into the DVD drive. When
AutoPlay appears, click
Run setup.exe. The process is the same as if you were doing a clean install, with the exception of when you get to the
Which type of installation do you want screen, you
MUST click
Upgrade.
If you
don’t have a
Win 7 SP1 installation disk, you can download the latest and last
Windows [Final] > Windows 7 SP1 [build 7601] > Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 ISO [build 6.1.7601 - July 2009] file from
TechBench [make sure to use the correct language and bit type]. It is recommended that you download the
Win 7 Ultimate SP1 ISO because all versions of Win 7 can be made available from it. This is achieved by creating a folder on the desktop and unzipping the ISO into it using
7-Zip, and then deleting the
ei.cfg file in the
sources folder, or by running the
eicfg_removal_utility against the downloaded ISO. If the version of Windows you are installing is
Windows 7 SP1 Ultimate, then there is
NO need to remove the
ei.cfg file as instructed.
To begin the repair install, go to the extracted ISO folder on the desktop and click
Run setup.exe. The process is the same as if you were doing a clean install, with the exception of when you get to the
Which type of installation do you want screen, you
MUST click
Upgrade.
You now need to get Windows updated, because
ALL the Windows updates were
deleted through the repair install process. There are at present, over
240 updates. Now rather than letting
M$ Windows update update your OS, which involves
many hours of downloading, installing and re-booting, you can use
DISM++ [see below] to do it all for you. DISM++ is discussed and explained here =>
Update your Win 7 installation media.
DISM++ [Deployment Image Servicing and Management]
DISM++ Direct download [zip] =>
DISM++.
DISM++ Website [you will need to translate the page] =>
DISM++ | New Windows Utility.
DISM++: DISM++ is a FREE implementation tool that has the ability to perform
Windows Update [WU]. Some of the advantages [but not all] are:
[1] The GUI is
very easy to understand and use.
[2] It is
much faster than M$’s WU because it uses a different engine.
[3] It downloads the latest WU DB from the M$ servers, scans your OS, and then lists the updates available.
[4] It
doesn’t install
superseded updates like M$ does.
[5] It gives
you the option of what you want to install.
[6] The
pre-ticked updates are what is
recommended and are similar to the WU
critical and
recommended updates. The
un-ticked updates are similar to the WU
optional updates.
[7] It
warns you if an update:
- Includes telemetry.
- Has known issues with certain hardware.
- Needs exclusive access.
- Is suspect.
- Your OS doesn't need it.
- Has any other known issues.
[8] It
doesn’t require
re-booting between updates.
[9] It can be used to
either update an
install.wim image
OFFLINE, or to update the
LIVE OS.
If you decide to use DISM++, then it is best to run the DISM++ Windows updates a
couple of times to make sure you get
ALL the updates that are needed.
DON’T install
ANY of the
ORANGE updates though [see numbers [6] and [7] above]. It can also install the required
.NET Framework updates. Then just run
WU to see what other updates are available, if any.
IMPORTANT: Although a repair installation leaves
ALL your User Accounts, Folders, Files, Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos, Data Files, Icons, and any installed programs intact, it is still strongly advised that you backup
ALL your essential files [excluding installed programs of course because these have registry entries and other data including product keys etc] to an external HDD or USB
BEFORE you start in case of any unforeseen problems. You should also create a
system image as a secondary precaution. This way, if things go wrong in the future, you will be able to restore your OS back to the exact same state that it is now in a very short time. There are two imaging programs which are very popular among members here, the first is
AOMEI Backupper Standard [FREE], and the second is
Macrium Reflect [FREE].
SUGGESTION: Once you have your OS updated and running the way you like it, create a
system image. This way, if things go wrong in the future, you will be able to restore your OS back to the exact same state that it is now in a very short time. There are two imaging programs which are very popular among members here, the first is
AOMEI Backupper Standard [FREE], and the second is
Macrium Reflect [FREE].
I hope this helps!
