How should I "clean up" my laptop

Hi I'm getting a laptop(the e1405) and plan on cleaning all of the bloatware off once I get it. The thing is, I'm not sure which method I want to use to go about doing it. In addition to giving me feedback on what I should do I'd appreciate it if you could answer the questions I posted under each one. I 've already read all of guides on reformatting etc... and this is based on what I've read

Method #1
Uninstall everything through add/remove programs and then get a registry cleaner to remove any left over stuff on the machine. This is something I feel more comfortable doing as opposed to reformating since I'm more familiar with it. This also seems more time consuming than a clean install.

Method #2
Do a clean install of windows to get rid of everything. Though this seems more effective in the end I don't want to screw up the machine. About 1/3 of the threads on here are related to problems from reformating, especially with mediadirect. U've never done any reformatting stuff on a computer so I'm afraid I'll break something.

Do I have to reformat in order to reinstall Windows?(I'm guessing no)

Would it be possible to delete the restore partition and add it to the Windows partition as free space?

Does Method #2 do a better job no matter how well you do with #1 in tems of preformance improvements?

Your answers will most likely lead to more questions but will still be much appreciated.

 

Well I did method 1 and I am happy with it. Just uninstalled all of the bloatware, ran TuneXP and reg cleaner. All in all alot faster then when I first received it from Dell.

 

hth

Mark

 

I reinstall, instead of removing everything.

I have found many problems may occur when uninstalling items, in regards to startup items, and many other things...

 

^what doubleblack said

 

Up until last week, I've never done a reformat before. I decided to go for it since SG's Reformat Guide is so thorough. I was able to successfully reformat my E1705 without losing the Mediadirect software.

The improvements are very noticeable. Before reformatting, I just used Add/Remove and I thought that improved the speed of my laptop significantly. After reformatting, I realized how ignorant I was beforehand.

I had the same logic as you before I reformatted. I was afraid I was going to lose my Mediadirect capability or completely screw something up. However, everything is still perfectly fine with my laptop.

 

thanks for that input, some_taxpayer;

can you answer this question...

which did you find "easier" to do; going thru and unistalling every app one-by-one and then cleaning your registry and then deleting empty folders and shortcuts, etc. etc. etc.

OR

putting in your XP CD and clicking yes or no a couple times.

(is the above as biased as i tried to make it be? )

 

What the others said but a quick question: you got the E1405? How? Link?

 

Ha, even though it sounds biased, it's the truth.

When I was doing Add/Remove, I had to look up each program, figure out if it was essential to the smooth running of the laptop, and then delete it or leave it. I did the same thing with msconfig because some of them didn't show up in Add/Remove. For some of the programs, I couldn't find any information about them. So I could potentially have needless programs hogging my resources.

I admitted that I was hesitant to reformat, but it was much easier than I thought. I didn't realize before that I really didn't need to do anything since the laptop does it automatically. You practically just sit there and watch your laptop clean itself. Installing the drivers were also a breeze. The Dell website and these forums are very user-friendly so a newbie like me can simply download the drivers in each specific category.

The only problem I had was determining if I was supposed to delete the large partition first or just reinstall windows on the existing C: partition. I ended up deleting it, creating a new partition, and installing windows on that partition. Overall, I think I overexaggerated the difficulty in reformatting. The process was so novel to me I made it seem like a large task when in reality it's very minor.

 

Im in the same boat as you prime hunter. I havn't received my dell, much less ordered it yet. but i plan to. lol. anyway, im a little nervous messing with the Dell Utility Partition and MediaDirect. One thing i was curious about. if i ordered the XP MCE reinstall cd's, if i somehow do mess up stuff, can i just pop that in, and start over and try again? Im not sure if those CDs contain the utility partition and Media direct stuff on them or not, therefore, i couldn't simply put in the disc, and start all over again.

 

The only way to lose the Dell Utility and Mediadirect partitions is if you physically Delete them in the set-up. As long as you don't touch them in the partition menu, you should be fine.

 

He said he was getting the E1405, not got. I assume he means that he will be getting it once it becomes available.

To add relevance to the topic at hand, I just did the Add/Remove on my M140, but for no particular reason. I don't have any heavy-duty uses for it, and it's running pretty smoothly at this point; I'll probably reformat later just to see the difference.

Plus, and surprisingly, I didn't really have as much bloatware on it as I thought I'd find. Or at least, not as many glaringly obvious ones.

 

If the reformat isn't as bad as it seems then I might go ahead and try it since I can't actually damage the computer.

So will anything get messed up if I delete the restore partition?

Will they send all of the cd's I need to do the reformat with the pc automatically or do I have to request some of them?(and if so how)

What if I ordered it with Powerpoint, Word, publisher etc.. installed, will there be a cd that has that software on it?

Will any of this violate my warranty?

I found SG's guide a bit confusing,(no offense SG) so I'm still not 100% sure exactly how to reformat.

Oh and I would leave the utilities partition intact

If I reformatted the only thing I'd delete is the restore partition so I could use that space for data.

Just one other thing that popped into my head, someone posted that they were making a partition for the windows software and another for their data. Is that possible? I though you couldn't jump between partitions while windows was running so how would you save anything?

 

wrt the Delll Utility Partition... If you accidentally delete it during a reinstallation, it is not a 'trivial' task to restore it. The utilities which are on the partition are also avalable via Dell CD or download, but to get them back into a partition properly takes a bit of work.

Don't let this scare you off, just take your time and double check your selections before you commit to anything esp when it comes to deleting partitions.... Don't mess with the smallest one which is about 40MB. That's your Utility partition. It is in your best interest to leave this partition alone!!

IF Dell sends you the correct Resource CD [aka Drivers and Utilities CD], the MediaDirect 2.0 REPAIR utility should already be on it... If not, then you can download the utility from the Dell web site. You'll have to make your own CD from the downloaded file. I'd recommend ISORecorder as that's a pretty simple way to get that done....

hth

Mark

 

hth

Mark

 

So I'd need these cd's:
Windows reinstallation cd(in my case XP pro)
Drivers cd
Mediadirect repair cd

You mentioned some other steps if I deleted the restore partition, what are they?

What would be the advantages of having 2 separate partitions for Windows and data vs having them on the same one? aren't they on the same partition by default?

I read that if you delete the restore partition then it gets Mediadirect messed up.(that's why I asked before)

 

hth

Mark

ps Here's the link to the referenced post about partitions

 

So the only other thing I'd need to do if I deleted the restore partition would be to resize the windows partition with the unallocated space from mthe restore partition.

wrt to having a partition for windows and one for data it seems like more of a matter of personal preference. To me(as of now at least) it seems like a bigger hassle than it's worth since you have to micromanage more.

I just realized... If you were planning to reformat couldn't you save $150 by configuring your system with Xp Home and the get the Xp Pro reinstallation CD, or does it check that you have the correct version when you reinstall?

 

vr

Mark

 

Thanks for all your help, you filled in all the gaps for me. Now I feel more confident about doing a reformat if I decide to take that route.

Once I have a laptop I'll be able to give back to this forum all that it has given me.

P.S What does being "monkish" mean?

 

im still deciding if i should reformat if i get a dell (either now, or summertime). so let me get this straight. if i delete just the windows partition (pretty sure thats all i need to delete right?), then i wont have a problem with media direct? or do i have to repair media direct regardless?

 

If you alter any of the partitions, you will have to repair Mediadirect, which is easily done by burning the software from the Dell website. Follow SG's guide step-by-step and you'll be okay.

 

You will need to do a REPAIR regardless. Maybe a 'brief' explanation may help to understand why....

MediaDirect 2.0 uses special Dell boot code to function. It is the boot code that recognizes you've pressed the MediaDirect button and it runs the MediaDirect application in the host-protected area [HPA] of the drive.

When you reinstall Windows a critical portion of the boot code is overwritten by Microsoft boot code. This effectively 'breaks' MediaDirect. This is true even if you didn't change ANY partitions. What the MediaDirect 2.0 REPAIR utility does is re-write the 'Dell' boot code to the hard drive.

One other 'note'.... Do NOT delete the Dell Utility Partition [~40MB]. The Dell boot code is VERY particular about the structure of the hard drive partition table. You can reinstall Windows to its original partition w/o problem, just so long as you leave the Utility partition in-place.

hth

Mark

 

This may have been mentioned but the Media Direct repair utility is also on the resource cd that has the drivers, I'm still not sure where you get it though. I think you can order it with your system but I checked earlier today and it wasn't an option for the system I configured.

I still need to know whether Dell will send you a backup cd for any Windows software you bought with your system since it comes preinstalled(Word, Powerpoint, Publisher etc...)

 

hth

Mark

 

So it's possible that thet'd send it if I orderred the XP (Pro) cd. I know I saw it listed as an option somewhere, I think it was the D620. Meanwhile I still need to know the answer to my other Q.(see my previous post)

Update:
I just configured a D620 and the resource CD is an option, but I can't get the XP reinstall disc as well.

Also what's the difference between having XP "with media" or "no media"? Is it the same as MCE or does it refer to some software that isn't part of the OS.

 

I think they're trying to say that you can get your computer delivered with XP installed and shipped with (or without) the optional XP resinstallation DVD [aka 'media'].

Mark

 

So the "media" refers to the reinstall CD? and not media software or XP MCE.

A lot of people think that the MCE can be added to XP Home or Pro, thus the "media" label on the order page.

Dell really needs to make that more clear.