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Completely reset Windows 10 laptop back to the REAL factory settings RRS feed

  • Question

  • I have a demo laptop that I loaned to a friend. I believe the PC has been compromised and I want to reset the PC back to the same state as when I purchased it. I followed these instructions and selected the bottom option each time.

    1) Remove everything

    2) Remove everything and clean drives

    http://www.laptopmag.com/articles/reset-windows-10-pc

    Upon finishing the procedure, I was surprised to find that some of my old data still remains. Is there a way to completely reset a Windows 10 laptop without reformatting the hard drive and reinstalling the operating system?

    By the way, will "Remove everything" and "Remove everything and clean drives" get rid of any viruses or apps that a hacker may have installed?

    Thanks in advance!

    Tuesday, February 21, 2017 7:26 PM

Answers

All replies

  • They'll help you over here.

    https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10

     

     

     



    Regards, Dave Patrick ....
    Microsoft Certified Professional
    Microsoft MVP [Windows Server] Datacenter Management

    Disclaimer: This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees, and confers no rights.

    • Proposed as answer by Just Karl Wednesday, February 22, 2017 3:00 PM
    • Marked as answer by Dave PatrickMVP Friday, March 3, 2017 2:31 AM
    Tuesday, February 21, 2017 8:20 PM
  • Thanks! Did the question get moved to the Windows 10 Forum? It says that it got "moved by Dave Patrick". If so, how do I find it?
    Wednesday, February 22, 2017 8:07 PM
  • No, you'll need to re-ask in forum I linked. We cannot move it since a different platform.

     

     



    Regards, Dave Patrick ....
    Microsoft Certified Professional
    Microsoft MVP [Windows Server] Datacenter Management

    Disclaimer: This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees, and confers no rights.

    Wednesday, February 22, 2017 8:16 PM
  • Try these steps:

    Navigate to Settings
    Select "Update & security"
    Click Recovery in the left pane.
    Click Get started under Reset this PC.
    Click either "Keep my files" or "Remove everything,
    Select "Just remove my files" or "Remove files and clean the drive"
    Click Reset windows when prompted.
    Click Continue when prompted


    Wednesday, July 10, 2019 5:21 AM