Clean Vista install WITH NO ACTIVATION

"Install drivers, etc... from the C:\SWSetup area that you saved before. I recommend downloading drivers from HP."

Sorry, I'm a noob, but how do I install the drivers from the flash drive? Do I just move the folder from my flash drive to the computer?

 

Inside the SWSetup folder there are folders that contain setup files. Usually these setup files will install the drivers. My suggestion is to explore the folders and you'll start to learn what's in them.

You can install them from wherever you like, if you put it on your flash drive or on a DVD, but you need to run the install programs - just copying the files to the drive won't do it.

 

So you've saved drivers from HP.com to a Flash drive? You should be able to install them right from that drive, or could copy them to your hard drive before installing them.

The correct order would be chipset drivers first, then generally graphics drivers then other stuff.

 

thanks for confirming.

 

I'm looking for a few testers for a new method that should work for everyone. Please PM me.
Thanks.

 

Any news on this new method?

 

yes i'm very curious about the new method without the cert folder...can it be done??

 

Thanks Orev for these steps... going to try the clean install tonight.

 

my 9500 came with the Vista Anytime DVD but not the oemcert. I already owned a copy of Vista 64 and decided to do a clean install with that. Other than the IR port, HP had all the 64 bit divers to get the system back including the quickplay.

 

I just received my dv9500 yesterday and found this post today and applied and it worked great! However, I forgot to copy the QuickPlay. Does anyone know where I can obtain? Also, having one driver issue with an "Intel ICH8M LPC Interface Controller - 2815"device that shows up unknown. Thought the chipset should cover this, but guess not. Anyone have any idea where I can get the Quickplay and driver for the Intel?

Thanks again ... guide worked great!

 

FYI ... the driver was actually referring to the HP Quick Launch Buttons and not necessary Intel drivers. Download from HP installed and the "unknown device" is gone.

 

Can't most of this bloatware stuff be dealt with using uninstall, startup folders, and msconfig. Following this procedure is like doing brain surgery to cure a mild headache. Can't we just take an aspirin?

 

Uninstalling NEVER gets rid of everything. Programs leave all sorts of stuff behind, folders, registry junk, etc... Especially very intrusive programs like Norton are almost impossible to get rid of without a re-install.

Honestly, doing this procedure will probably take about the same time as it would to manually uninstall everything, and you are assured to have a clean system.

As far as how big the guide looks, don't be discouraged at the length. It's a very wordy walk through, and most of the stuff is self explanatory. I have documented pretty much every step and every mouse click you need to make. Just because it's long doesn't mean it's hard (unless reading is hard!).

Anyway, feel free to handle it as you wish, but many people, including myself, prefer to have an install they know is clean, instead of having leftover bits all over the system.

 

I just finished the guide and it worked just fine on my dv6500. The oemcert folder did not appear to exist with the factory install of windows. However, it did show up for me after I reinstalled using the recovery discs. I then copied it and reinstalled windows with the anytime upgrade disc using the guide.

It's possible that the oemcert folder only appears when windows has been installed from user-made recovery discs.

 

Interesting observation. I had not thought of that!

 

Just checked my dv9500t that I restored from the recovery discs. Mine doesn't have the folder, so I guess you were lucky .

 

NANDREW555,

What HP package did you install to get rid of your unknown driver issue?

 

My HP Compaq 6715b didn't have any discs, the only thing I can do is create some recovery disks. So, how can I get a copy of Vista in order to do a clean install? Does someone has experience of doing this operation in this model?

Thanks!

 

Hey guys,

I know you've all been waiting for this... I just updated the guide, and it now covers the dvx500 series, BUT, it should also work for ALL laptops that come pre-installed from the factory, even non-HP ones.

The ABR files are in beta, so test them out and let me know if you have any problems. I would especially like to hear from people who are successful on non-HP systems.

Thanks everyone for being patient!

 

Thanks orev for such a nice guide. I haven't received my laptop yet, but I plan on doing a clean install with this guide as soon as I get it.

On my first read, I missed the information about ABR. I see now that you have "downloadable below" but I missed it in the first reading. I kept asking myself "what the heck is an ABR.zip file?"

The only thing about the guide I might suggest is putting the link for Activation Backup & Restore right in "Things you'll need." And, maybe even putting download, install, and run ABR as step 1 or step 5 (??? which ever is appropriate).

I'm not trying to nit-pick. This will be incredibly helpful when my laptop arrives. I just see that you've put a lot of thought and work into it and I thought you might appreciate a little constructive feedback.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I updated the guide to make it more clear.

 

Can any Vista disk function as an anytime upgrade disk? I have a Vista Business DVD that I have installed on my desktop, will it work for clean installing Vista Home Premium on my lappy (with its serial)?

 

You could boot off the disc, then go as far as the screen after it wants you to enter a serial number (don't enter one). Then you will be able to see the choices you have when installing from that disk. Don't go any further unless you want to reinstall though! My guess is that it will be the same.

I'd be interested to know the results.

 

You can buy genuine anytime upgrade DVDs for $5 from CompUSA (32-bit pr 64-bit). This is the link for 64-bit: http://www.compusa.com/products/pro...le&cm_ven=froogle&cm_cat=&cm_pla=&cm_ite=feed

 

Worked like a charm on the new directions for my hp 6000 CTO. Thank you very much!

 

I just looked at my disk and it actually has "Includes Windows Anytime Upgrade" printed on it. This was from the PowerTogether promotion, but I expect that all Vista disks probably have it.

 

Nice guide, orev. Sorry I couldn't test it out before you released it! I will definitely try it when I get back home and have my DVD's on me.

 

Orev, you rock!

Just got in an HP 9500tx . . . tried to install my own programs on top of the bloateware . . . dumbest thing I have ever done! Hours and hourse trying to get little programs like iTunes to work . . .

Printed off your step by step guide . . . followed it step by step . . . shazam!

Fastest machine I have ever owned . . . cut my start up time by 75% . . . and now I can hear my iTunes too!

You noted the only three real nervy "do not forget" steps. . . 1) running the ABR program on a flash drive; 2) saving that swsetup file to a flash drive; and 3) reinstalling the Quick Launch Buttons from the swsetup file saved on the flash drive to get rid of the "unknown driver" issue. I did just as you said and had "0" problems!

I am all activated without a single phone call to activate Vista, without a single call to HP tech support; and without a single e-mail on this forum for help!

My dv9500t feels like a new . . . new machine!

Thanks, Orev!

 

How do I run the "windows experience" tool?

Everything else worked great!

Never mind . . . for dummies like me, Vista self-installed it. Looks great!

 

Tested this method on my DV6500T and everything worked out perfectly. All necessary drivers are installed, no more bloatware, and startup times have decreased significantly. Great job on this guide, Orev!

 

This guide worked perfectly on my dv6400 without a glitch. Thanks Orev! :laugh:

I think this should be a sticky, as it can help many HP owners with their Vista clean installs. IMO

 

Just a quick question, when I do a clean install, which folder has the driver for the webcam in the swsetup folder on a dv6500t?

Edit: I looked at the driver details for the "HP Webcam" device from the Device Manager. The only driver file that it shows is "usbvideo.sys". The provider is just from Microsoft, so does that mean that the new webcam in the x500 series laptops just use a generic driver from Microsoft?

 

I followed these procedures for a Sony Vaio FZ this weekend, and everything worked perfectly. The only difference was that Vaios hide their recovery partitions, so I have to wipe it a different way (through the OS). FZ's come with so much crapware installed, so this guide was a lifesaver. Thank you SO much, orev!

 

What AV softweare are you guys using ?? I'm sure its not the Norton's crawling Internet suite... People have talked about Avast, NOD32 etc. Which is the one that shouldnt increase the bootup times and provide a good security for a latop in a wifi environment.

But orev.. ur article rocks.. I've even printed out ur guide and distributed it to guys with laptops at my workplace... And guess what.. they love it..

 

I use the corporate version of Symantec Antivirus

 

I now use Avast home version which is free with a simple registration. I used to use AVG Free, but switched after waiting for them to fix the start up issue where the control center doesn't always load when Vista starts. It's been months and the issue is still there, so I dumped it and went with Avast in the last clean install.

Avast is quick to load during boot, and it runs quickly without hogging resources. Avast also works in the 64-bit version of Vista if you need it.

 

when i run the ABRbeta1.zip it can't find the key. why?

 

This is the first report I've had from a 64bit system. I will investigate and see if I can figure it out.

 

This procedure worked perfect. Thanks Orev.

 

It should be noted that the HP Pavilion 6000 Series allows BIOS access to the hard drive(s) that the dv9500t does not. Thus fresh-OS installation measures such as the one mentioned in this thread will only work if want to re-build your machine using ONLY the exact opsys HP sent/pre-installed. You will likely NEVER be able to install other operating systems, not Linux, not Windows Server, and almost certainly not Longhorn or whatever else comes after Vista. See my earlier post from the XP-Pro/Vista dual-boot thread.
-------

HP Pavilion dv9500t

I sent my dv9500t back - it's junk because of what they did with the BIOS!

I'll explain. HP has had Phoenix make a "locked down" BIOS in the dv9500t. It does not give the option to control the SATA drives which means you can NOT un-hide the hard drives.

I bought the dv9500t with dual drives so I could dual-boot Vista Ultimate (64-bit) and Windows Server 2003 R2. It came with Vista Ultimate pre-installed. When I ran the Windows Server 2003 R2 (Genuine MS) setup DVD, it reported "no hard drives found." So I ran the excellent freeware program VistaBootPro 3.3 and it reported that the hard drives were either missing or "hidden." I'll explain. See, HP tries to lock the consumer down into using only their "factory" installation which includes their tweaked version of the opsys and lots of "crapware" from vendors such as Vonage and Vongo and AOL who pay HP to include their software on every machine sold.

With older Pavilions, you could go into the BIOS and turn off what HP calles "SATA Nativity" mode which woould then allow other operating systems to see the hard drives. But on the dv9500t there is no such option to change the "SATA Native" mode which really ought to be called "HP Hidden Drive Mode."

This has worse implications than just keeping the iser from having a dual-boot machine. It also means you can't run Linux. Worst of all, it almost certainly means you'll never be able to upgrade to whatever comes after Windows Vista! This, because other operating systems simply can't see the hidden drives.

Now the average consumer might not care about this, but nobody tells ME what I can and can't do with MY $4400.00 computer! HP's tech support people are terrible too. Most have no idea what SATA is, none among the dozen I suffered with had ever heard of (TPM) Trusted Platform Modules, and all said dual boot is "possible on the dv9500t but not supported." Finally my support ticket (about the hidden drives) was "escalated" to a Case Manager. This guy was a technical lightweight of goosefeather proportions! HP's tech support people, especially the Bangalore-outsourced script-readers, are useless.

Their totalitarian attitude and design decisions are sad because otherwise the dv9500t is a fine machine. The integrated fingerprint reader was very nice, the UltraBright (two bulbs) screen was gorgeous, the Lightscribe DVD burner was great, and the 4GB RAM option were reasonably priced. Perhaps best of all, the dv9500 is one of the only machines available anywhere right now, along with the Toshiba Qosmio, which is DirectX 10 compliant, both having the new nVidia 8600M GS GPU. (None of the other big brands are bothering to mention that none of their laptops will ever support DirectX 10, as all other GPUs are of the old DirectX 9 architecture.)

But nice as the dv9500t is, it's got the FATAL DESIGN FLAW of the hidden drives, locking the user in to only using the HP factory-customized operating system. Buy the dv9500t and it's Hp's way or the highway - and your support will stink.

I will stand by all I have said and will answer any questions.

- [email protected]

 

Any time a problem like this shows up, I of course want to investigate it before replying. However, on the other thread that you posted to, there are already people who have posted a solution (marmion, taktakb) -- which is solution that I was suspecting that it is.

The "hidden drive" mode that you're complaining about is the difference between SATA legacy and native mode. Legacy mode has been around for a while so older OSes could handle SATA drives without drivers, BUT THIS IS A WORKAROUND MODE AND NOT A LONG TERM SOLUTION. In Native mode, an older OS will need the SATA drivers loaded during installation, otherwise it cannot see the drives. In XP, you could either press F6 and load them from a floppy, or you had to slipstream them into the install CD. I'm sure Windows Server 2003 works in a similar, if not identical way.

There is a very good explanation of the difference in modes you can find here, but I'll quote the good parts:

It's really not unreasonable the HP has removed the legacy SATA mode from such a modern laptop. It may not even be supported in the Santa Rosa (ICH8 southbridge) chipset.

Also, as the poll attached to this thread can attest to, if not also all the posts from people who have had success, you can do a clean install without any of the crapware. And as long as you have SATA drivers, you should have no problem installing Linux or any other OS as well. HP does nothing of the kind in "locking" down the system to only their software image. It would be a very stupid thing to do, as people would pick up on that very quickly and their sales would drop down to nothing.

The fact that NO ONE else has complained about this problem should be a good indicator that maybe you're doing something wrong, instead of the rest of the world doing something wrong.

Basically, you have no idea what you're talking about, so please stop spreading FUD around the forum.

PS: You think that $600 is a good price for 4GB of RAM, when it can be had elsewhere for about $200?

 

4GB (2GB x2DIMM)= $170 for me but I'm not braggin'

Hey orev, I plan on going from 32-bit Ultimate to 64-bit Ultimate. Since the product key is supposedly the same between x64 and x86 your ABR should work right? I think I saw a post yesterday that you were checking into something 64-bit related.

If nothing else, I'll be giving it a try as soon as my laptop arrives and I'll post the results.

 

ABR does not work when backing up the product key on a 64bit system. It does work when restoring the key to a 64bit system though. So if you already have the key, you can restore it, it's just the backing up part that doesn't work.

 

Thanks Orev!

 

Wouldn't just slipstreaming the SATA drivers into the Window 2003 Install Disk fix the problems like Orev suggested work? I did that for a Windows Vista install disk when I did my clean install, that worked beautifully.

 

question: once you've done the 'activation_backup' once and have that saved. Can the 'activation_restore' use the same files if you had to do a clean refresh again? thanks

 

Yes, once you have done the backup once, you won't need to do it again every time you reinstall, as long as you save the files from the first time. All you would need on each subsequent install is to run the restore.

 

This worked perfect, thanks Orev!

One question: If I want to clean everything up later, and do another clean install over this one, I assume I'll be able to repeat the process agian with no problem?

Thanks again

 

Sorry, didn't read the last post that answered my question. Thanks!

 

Yes, you can repeat the same process. If you keep the files from the activation backup, you can skip that step and use those same files the next time, and only have to restore it