Windows

5 Tips For Reinstalling An OS

Posted by on Feb 15, 2008 | 4 Comments

Gnomie Zanok Manza writes:

Good evening Chris,

I have just reinstalled Vista due to a spyware infection, which I am sad to admit. I have compiled these tips to help anyone else who will be reinstalling their OS so they don’t make the same mistakes as me.

  1. The first thing to do before reinstalling Vista or any other operating system is to back up important files.

    CAUTION: The more files you back up, the greater the chance of transferring malware, so try backing up the bare minimum — not your whole hard drive!

  2. The second thing to do is to go online to the manufacturer’s site and download any key drivers that may be needed later on and be sure to burn them to a disk.

    CAUTION: Again, if you download many drivers, they may get infected as well.

    I would recommend getting the ethernet driver (may differ from PC to PC) if it is built into the motherboard. I did not think of this step and after reinstalling Vista was unable to access the Internet to update Vista or download the driver, which put me in a real pickle. Fortunately I had a PC with Linux installed through which I was able to download and transfer the driver with little hassle.

  3. When reinstalling your operating system, make sure to format the hard drive so no file survives. It’s a simple step, really!
  4. Remember the disk full of the drivers? Well, it’s back! After successfully installing the OS, it’s time to load the drivers. After that, install any anti-malware programs you may have (including firewalls). Now connect to the Internet and update Windows and the anti-malware programs you just installed. At this time, you will be asked to restart. Do this and check again as soon as possible for more updates as Windows will “overlook” the update.

    I found this took many times to do, and it can be very frustrating. But there will be an end to it eventually!

  5. The fifth and final step is to copy the backed-up data to the hard drive and now your system should run much more smoothly.

I hope this makes that reinstall much easier next time!

  • Brian W. Humbrecht

    Chris, a couple of additions that may help, others in this situation.

    1. I keep all my orginal downloads [if not on CD] & update downloads in a Folder I named “My Downloads” & I backup this folder periodically to both CD/DVD-R & external HDD, in addtion to any Data files that I include in my periodic backups, e.g. My Docs, My Pictures, Outlook files, including Calendar, Contacts & Mail, Browser Bookmarks, My AI RoboForm data, PassWordSafe data, etc. [This also helps if I have to uninstall & reinstall a corrupted program.]

    2. I use Norton GoBack [ever since Gateway recommended it to me almost 10 yrs ago!] If the infection is recent, I can run GoBack to an earlier date/baseline [e.g. it will reconfigure the entire HDD to said previous date. NOTE: GoBack is the source of the 'light' version used by Microsoft as "System Restore"; except, GoBack covers the whole HDD, not just the Registry file.] eliminating the infection from my HDD.

    3. Use a service, e.g. “Version Tracker”, which will scan your HDD & link you to outstanding software & driver updates.

    4. I use a earlier free copy [v1.07] of “WinDrive Backup” as one of the sub-folders in “My Download” & run new copies @ time I backup “My Download” folder. WinDrive Backup searches my HDD & makes a ‘backup’ copy of all my current drivers in one folder.

    I have used the above collection since my original Win98 thru WinMe, Win2000, to my current WinXP Home OS on my 3 PCs. Both for transfer/sync to a new OS or reinstalltion of an existing one. Also I maintain a couple of my previous CD/DVD-R backup copie dates; so, if the latest is ‘corrupted’, I can use an earlier, ‘uncorrupted’ version to reinstall drivers & programs/updates. Hope this helps.

  • Alan Gee

    “Fortunately I had a PC with Linux installed”

    I guess my question is, if you have a perfectly good Linux computer that works when you really need it, why on Earth do you keep reloading Vista knowing it’s going to keep breaking and you’ll have to do all that work over and over? Do you like the punishment?

  • Acehydro06

    Great list Chris! I couldn’t of said it better myself, especially getting drivers before formating I have been in a few situations where I had to fire up a old machine get the files burned to disk and then install them in the new machine. You rock man! -Acehydro06 (Chris W)

  • Moira

    THanks. I did this after I boogered my OS up myself by playing with coinstalling a second OS I even managed to mess up the BIOS, and had to reset it as well as reinstall my OS. Anyway, if anyone has tips about things to do AFTER reinstallation, please post. What I’m looking for is people who have not found installing updates to be as smooth. It may be a coincidence, but updates aren’t all successfully installing. This is Windows 7, in case anyone has specific pointers. It otherwise runs fine, but sometimes takes two attempts to get through the BIOS setup to start the OS. Still, since the machine was a lovely paperwieght before this, I can’t complain. Rather than shutting it down, I’m letting it idle for now and plan to retry the updates later.