Re: General instructions to re-install Windows XP
- From: tcarp <tcarp@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2008 05:44:00 -0700
Tim
Again, I am so grateful for the time you, Anna, and others are taking here.
It's beginning to make some sense for me (and hopefully for others). I'll be
asking more questions of Anna on cloning, etc. For you are questions about
the applications. Both of you are striking a theme of good habits for backup
and documentation just in case restores are needed.
It looks like the three major groups of "stuff" on a system are Windows (I'm
ignoring BIOS and DOS here), the applications, and user data. I'll persue
Windows in a reply to Anna.
A partial checklist is in:
Start | Settings | Control Panel | Add or Remove Programs
That is a list of programs that were installed. In addition to that
are the programs which can be executed but didn't need installation
that may be listed in C:/Program Files as .exe files.
There may also be various browser plug-ins listed in your browser.
The checklist sounds like add/remove, executables in Program Files, and
browser plug ins.
Remembering I'm here to learn, not solve a particular problem, when do
executables require installation and when don't they?
Don't forget to back up your email files and your Favorites (Booknotes)
file, too.
I've taken the path to understanding .pst files (Outlook) and can find the
bookmark files for my browsers (IE and Firefox) on my own.
Focusing on Outlook (in my case), there are also settings (e.g. accounts).
I've never had to look for those but during a restore it would be nice to
bypass the task of re-entering all the email account data (POP, SMTP, etc.)
by just doing a restore.
There are so many configuration settings in Windows (accounts, power
options, etc.) and in applications (like Outlook) it seems like a tough one
to prepare to restore. Is there any pattern or practice or is it just get
each one documented in the "checklist"?
Finally, the Lenovo:
That System Restore partition contains the image of the hard drive
as it came from the factory - without your data files, without any
programs which you may have installed since then, and WITH the
trialware junk that OEMs put on their machines. Don't use that
System Restore unless you've backed up ALL your data and any
programs which you've installed. Most people, after a couple months,
just reformat that partition and use it for data storage.
Is the "image of the hard drive" simple mean it is structured like Windows
Explorer would display for the C drive? (I know this is one of those 'just
look for yourself, you lazy bum' questions, but remember I don't have the
Lenovo - it's the one my friend has and from what we talked about on the
phone the other day she can't "see" another drive (partition) when she goes
to My Computer.)
Assuming it is structured like the C partition, is the system restore
process for Lenovo just wiping out the C drive and putting it back the way it
came from the factory? (ugly!!!)
Can that partition be used as a bootable if the C gets clobbered or is it
best to create bootable CDs for emergencies? (I've done some preliminary
searching on the net for creating bootables but I haven't found the "happy
path" for a system with no floppy).
Thanks again
Tom
.
- References:
- Re: General instructions to re-install Windows XP
- From: Timothy Daniels
- Re: General instructions to re-install Windows XP
- Prev by Date: Fax Preview can not be displayed
- Next by Date: Re: Open Source DVD player for Windows?
- Previous by thread: Re: General instructions to re-install Windows XP
- Next by thread: Re: General instructions to re-install Windows XP
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
