How to reset a laptop to factory settings

In almost 90% of cases, for novice users of personal computers or laptops, the devices begin to work slower or freeze. People try to solve the problem on their own by reinstalling the operating system in order to return the device to its original state.

However, in order to perform such a procedure, you need to have a good understanding of this process, otherwise you can make a large number of serious mistakes, after which the laptop will have to be taken to a service center. Moreover, very often there are situations in which the equipment is completely impossible to restore without replacing internal components.

When to reset your laptop to factory settings

The most common reason for resorting to standard settings is equipment freezing or a decrease in its performance. This can happen for many reasons, but most often the reason for this is that the hard drive is overfilled. To solve this problem, just delete unnecessary files and free up the device memory. In order for the system to function as efficiently as possible, the hard disk space must be at least 65% free.

Important! If the device has two hard drives, it is under no circumstances recommended to fill the drive on which the operating system is installed.This disk is intended exclusively for storing and using system files. Therefore, you should install the OS on a separate disk, which has the smallest amount of memory.

However, it very often happens that the laptop's memory is almost empty, but it still works with large delays. This may be due to the presence of viruses, or due to a large number of installed programs. With a huge accumulation of files, the OS also begins to slow down. And in order to solve this, you just need to clean the laptop memory. Additionally, it is also recommended to defragment the disk - this will clear the drive sectors of unnecessary files. To clean the system, you can resort to special programs that will do this job as quickly and efficiently as possible. The most popular program for this is CCleaner.

It is with these problems that users restore factory settings. But, as it became known, you can solve this yourself, without resorting to such serious actions. Moreover, in this case, all settings, installed programs and files are saved.

But there are also more serious problems in which you definitely cannot do without factory settings, most often these are:

• The presence of viruses in the system;
• Software failure;
• OS blocking;
• Rebooting the laptop, or the inability to turn it on (possibly also due to mechanical damage to its components);
• Errors of inexperienced users, in which the OS cannot fully function;

How to restore factory settings: methods

In order to perform these steps, a licensed OS must be installed, otherwise it will simply be impossible to roll back. You can do it either independently or with the help of specialists.But the work of craftsmen, as a rule, is limited only to replacing the OS, and these have completely different consequences.

Resetting through the boot parameters is the simplest and most common method. To use it you need to follow these steps:

1. We press the power button of the laptop, and at the same time we begin to press the F key repeatedly. If a window appears with the inscription “Advanced Boot Options”, this indicates that everything was done correctly;
2. In the same window, use the arrows on the keyboard to go down several positions and select “Repair your computer” using the Enter key.
3. An information window will now inform you that system recovery is starting. If the user has previously set a password, it will have to be entered to confirm the operation;
4. After some short steps, you need to select the “System Recovery Options” value. The system recovery process will begin; all you have to do is wait for the equipment to turn on;
5. Everything is ready, we update the drivers and install the necessary software.

Owners of a licensed Windows OS series can complete the process much faster if they have previously created restore points. However, only advanced users who are well versed in this have them. To return to a later value, you need to go to the “System Properties” section - you can find it by right-clicking on the “My Computer” icon. Next, you need to select the “System Protection” item, in the window of which the “Recovery” icon will appear, and you need to click on it.

You can create a restore point there by clicking on the “Create” icon. You can do this at any time, as this will greatly help in case of possible problems in the future.Points can be updated daily - thanks to this, differences between systems will be minimal.

When you can't return your laptop to factory settings

Resetting user settings is most often impossible when a new operating system is installed. Because of this, the partition responsible for the corresponding reset is deleted - this can be solved with installation disks, which are sold complete with the equipment. But, if such a disk is missing, it will simply be impossible to return to standard settings; you will have to completely update the OS. Some manufacturers have taken this problem seriously, which is why they sell special recovery discs.

Also, some laptop models are protected from updating settings. It is not recommended to bypass such a block on your own, as it can significantly aggravate the situation. Moreover, even if it can be formatted, during system updates, serious problems may appear that only a responsible specialist can handle.