Can't get computer to do a factory restore

[imlost]

Hello All
1st off, My user name is not a joke. I have a hp G72-B27CL Notebook that was purchased online from aGoodwill auction. The notebook looks brand new & in their listing for the auction they said it just needed a hard drive so I put my WD 500 GB hd in it & attempted to do a system recovery. It went through the whole process & ended with Welcome TO YOUR NEW HP COMPUTER, About a minute later it was showing Restoration Incomplete with the options to Retry or try to find out what the problem was, Well it would only allow me to try again, Which I did (actually 2 more times) Of course same results. Their is no recovery CD'S that came with the computer, However it does have the windows product key # on the back of it. This computer will not let me do anything else except keep trying to recover it. (Which is a total waste of time) Should I erase everything on that hard drive ? It really has nothing I care if I lose or not & how would I go about erasing the hard drive ? The computer I'm talking about wont let me do anything except what I have shared. And I don't want to put the hard drive in another computer & mess up what ever computer I put it in. This really is a bummer because I felt I was getting a good deal + helping out a organization, So the bottom line is right now I have a pretty laptop that doesn't operate & I am currently down $232.00 + shipping cost. I truly apologize for the length of this post, But as I stated from the start I'm truly lost. Any suggestions & please remember you are replying back to someone that is truly lost, so if at all possible if you choose to respond. Talk in language I understand. I Thank any & all that are willing to assist me with this major headache in advance.

 

[Golden]

Hi,

The easiest thing is probably to do a clean install, and then activate that using the Product Key on the COA sticker affixed to the bottom of the PC.

Follow this guide (which also shows you where to download a Windows 7 ISO to install from - select the correct ISO based on the Windows 7 version shown on the COA sticker):

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/219487-clean-reinstall-factory-oem-windows-7-a.html

Regards,
Golden

 

[marsmimar]

Hello imlost and welcome to Seven Forums.

I'm guessing your WD 500GB hard drive has some version of Windows 7 installed, correct? And you're trying to do a factory restore on the HP G72-B27CL notebook? Did the WD hard drive come from another HP G72-B27CL notebook?

 

[gregrocker]

Although the suggested Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 is a vastly superior install and provides everything you need to get it perfect, you might try wiping the HD first with Diskpart Clean Command before runnning the Recovery Disks, accessing DISKPART At PC Startup .

If Recovery succeeds then you will have a huge load of HP bloatware and duplicate utilties that have better versions built into Win7. I would Clean Up Factory Bloatware

Make sure the disks are not smudged, scratched or otherwise dirty.

 

[theog]

The notebook looks brand new & in their listing for the auction they said it just needed a hard drive

You need to ask yourself, why no HDD drive.

 

[imlost]

need info on hdd ?

I Thank every one that replied back to me & unfortunately I only have limited time to be on a computer & that is why it is taking me so long to respond back, I understand what everyone has advised me to do & I want to make sure I do it correctly. Can I just place that hard drive in any computer and run the cleaner to wipe it clean ? like I said in original post, I can't get the computer that I'm trying to fix to do anything more than what I had explained, so I obviously can't use that computer to clean the hard drive. For the person that ask why no hdd ? didn't I think about that ? The answer is I had heard a lot of people remove their hdd when they are selling or donating their computer & I was looking at it from a different view when I got involved with that auction & that being I felt I was helping a organization that is dependent on the general public generosity to survive & just felt it was the right thing to do. I will say if I get this operating correctly w/out putting more $$ into it, I will feel I have gotten a very good deal, Yes headaches along the way, but a good deal as well. Thanks again for all responses & I will try to answer back in a more timely manner to those who respond to this thread. Thank you.

 

[bobkn]

I wasn't going to comment, but:

The Windows restoration is commonly done through a hidden partition on the hard drive. Trying to do it using a new HD that lacks that won't do much for you.

Post #4 points you to all that you'll need to do. I hope that you have sufficient access to a PC to download the Win7 .iso and prepare install media (DVD or USB flash drive). I hope that the notebook has a Win7 license sticker on it. If not, it won't be much of a bargain.

 

[imlost]

Just wanted to jump in real quick to say Thank you for all your suggestions. Unfortunately I have been away all day till about an hr ago. I plan on going tomorrow & picking up some DVD's & then take some of this advice & put it to use. I will let all know how it turned out, but please don't feel I'm being rude if its a few days or better before I can respond back. This is a super nice site & truly grateful I came across it. Thank you all

 

[AddRAM]

You did get a good deal, and you had a hard drive to put in it. So you need to just use Greg`s tutorial. Stop trying to do a factory restore on that pc with that hard drive. The only way that might work is if you order the factory recover dvd`s from the manufacturer, but why ?

Just burn windows 7 to dvd ( Walgreen`s $2.00 for 5) using the tutorial and activate using your key on the COA ( Certificate of Authenticity ) sticker on laptop or pc. That`s it and your done.

We will be glad to help you get the job done.

Read the instructions under my signature for doing a clean install to familiarise yourself on how to do it.

 

[bobkn]

Just wanted to jump in real quick to say Thank you for all your suggestions. Unfortunately I have been away all day till about an hr ago. I plan on going tomorrow & picking up some DVD's & then take some of this advice & put it to use. I will let all know how it turned out, but please don't feel I'm being rude if its a few days or better before I can respond back. This is a super nice site & truly grateful I came across it. Thank you all

No worries. I only speak for myself, but I don't expect instant replies to posts. We sometimes see posts from people who ask for help and then never return to look for responses, but that's more sad than annoying.

You seem to have the right attitude: you want a bargain notebook, but you don't expect someone to just hand you one. I hope that it works out for you.

 

[AddRAM]

Just wanted to jump in real quick to say Thank you for all your suggestions. Unfortunately I have been away all day till about an hr ago. I plan on going tomorrow & picking up some DVD's & then take some of this advice & put it to use. I will let all know how it turned out, but please don't feel I'm being rude if its a few days or better before I can respond back. This is a super nice site & truly grateful I came across it. Thank you all

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