Reformat and install Windows 7 operating system
There are two main types of Windows 7 fixes:
A reinstallation that allows you to keep all your personal software and settings. This option is concerning because you may inadvertently keep the glitch you are trying to remove permanently.
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Recommended method: Full reformat and reinstall. Highly recommended if you haven’t completely reformatted your computer for a year or if you have long-standing problems that cannot be removed or fixed by optimization software.
(I strongly suggest that you read the entire article before you start reformatting, this will ensure that you don’t miss any vital steps during the installation.)
Complete reformat and reinstall of Windows 7 software
First, to get started: make a backup copy of all your data.
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recommended method: Buy a new hard drive: a terabyte HD in the current market of July 2011 should not cost more than $65.00 USD/AUD. Use the old hard drive “as is” to use as a backup. Reformatting the new hard drive is relatively easy and is done automatically by the Windows 7 setup software. To set up a new installation: First install and connect the new hard drive. Press the computer’s boot button, then immediately press the “Delete Key” several times at startup to enter BIOS setup. You should now be at the blue BIOS screen, tab into the menu to set the system to boot from CD or DVD. Insert the Windows 7 CD, reboot and select boot from CD by pressing “ENTER”.
Important note for the next step – On the initial installation of Windows 7, your screen displays a default Windows blue screen a few minutes after the start of the fresh installation. The blue screen has a small “Microsoft Bird” at the bottom right. It may appear that the program has frozen, it hasn’t, please be patient, this initial screen lasts around 4-5 minutes, then installations continue without issue until fully complete about 20 minutes later. If you think the program has crashed and try to cancel it, you may get stuck in a time-consuming exercise and find you have to start all over again.
Install motherboard driver – Insert the motherboard disk and follow the prompts. These drivers should install easily and will automatically reboot the computer several times.
Printer and personal software – Printer installation often requires that you first install the software before connecting the printer. If you make a mistake, you will often have to uninstall, reboot, and start over with the printer program. Carefully install the rest of your personal software by rebooting after each installation when practical.
Optimization software:
The right optimization software is worth its weight in gold. I don’t normally give free plugins in my articles, but the few listed below have helped me on many occasions and saved me from having to reformat my hard drive many times.
Advanced System Care Pro (IOBIT’s ASC Pro) This is a fantastic value and has loads of fixes and repair utilities at a very reasonable price. Easy to use even for beginners.
Uniblue – Power Suite is another quick and handy three-part software repair program at a very reasonable price. Easy to use software, driver updates can take a bit of thinking with the odd driver rollback required. Both offer special discounts on a regular basis.
Free optimization software:
CCleaner is a very good “free” registry cleaner
Smart Defrag again “Free” to use and very good software.
Reformat cost:
A Rough Guide to Reformatting and Installing Windows 7 Drivers – $65.00 AUD/USD February 27, 2012
You must provide the hard drive and Windows 7 operating system. Personal software installation is not included in the quote and is additional.
Advantages:
There’s a lot to be said for a complete reformat and reinstall; it virtually guarantees that any long-term failure will be permanently eliminated.
Cons:
Reinstalling personal software can be difficult and time consuming, especially with regard to “Custom and Printer Software”. Creating a designated backup to a drive can be time consuming, installing a new hard drive and using the old one as a backup is a smart way to go.
Conclusion:
For me, I will format and reinstall only as a last resort. The real work is not in reformatting or reinstalling the Windows 7 operating system and motherboard drivers, but with custom, printer, and boutique software that often requires a lot of care to install. Good optimization software can be worth its weight in gold and is highly recommended.
