Clean Vista install WITH NO ACTIVATION

That does not work. And especially not from Australia ie outside America. I'm now going to try to download a pirate copy via bottorrent and see if I can activate it using my PAID FOR, LEGAL key.

 

The instructions to do this came with the computer. That's why I don't cover it in detail in my guide.

 

Thanks for all the hard work Orev. Worked like a charm. Although when I installed a fresh version of windows the SwSetup folder was still there. I thought that was strange. But actually it came in to be quite handy.

I also found a driver for something in the windows.old folder. Good thing becase I had no idea what the hell it was.

I really like the 9500t thus far. The only thing I'm dissapointed with is the screen thus far. Oh well. I've never owned a laptop before so perhaps I'm not used to it. I haven't played with the settings at all so maybe I need to turn the brightness up.

Anyway, thanks again for the guide.

 

If you still had the SWsetup folder and the windows.old folder, that means you did not format the c: drive. There's also probably a bunch of stuff still in the C:\program files folder. If you do that type of setup, I'm not sure if the installer will import the registry settings from the old version of windows. Do you see programs like "muveee" and "norton" on your start menu?

The way you did it doesn't give you a completely clean install, but it does *work*. You may want to consider doing a full clean reinstall, depending on your goals.

 

Ahhh good point. It got rid of everything but the setup folder and windows.old folder. No programs were remaining from the factory install. That makes sense now. I didn't do much but install a bunch of drivers so I can do it over now knowing that importing the activation is effortless.

 

Guys, just wanted to see if anyone knew whether a Vista Business reinstall DVD could be used in place of the Anytime Upgrade disc? Thanks!

 

Yes, it probably can. Running through the process, you'll find out before you can do anything destructive.

 

Just FYI, I torrented a DVD (2.5gb) that had all versions of Windows on it, and used the method described here in post #1 by orev to painlessly reactivate. Thanks, pal

With drivers, I just downloaded my new DV9500 series lappy's drivers from the HP site on another PC and put them on a jumpdrive and transferred them across, no problem.

 

Crap! I just formated and started the Vista reinstall from scratch before I read this!

Is there any way to get the OEM certificate from the Retore DVDs? I have a Toshiba, btw.

 

Doing a recovery would be the best way to go about it. Do a restore then run ABR. Otherwise, it's most likely that your recovery discs are encrypted, and there's not way to go back and get the info.

 

Be careful getting those torrents. You never know if the distributor may have put an extra surprise in the install, like a botnet or spyware, for example. A clean image of those discs has these MD5 sums:

Code:

1008f323d5170c8e614e52ccb85c0491    32bit
11e2010d857fffc47813295e6be6d58d    64bit

 

I have a dv2500t. I'm considering doing a clean install to get rid of bloatware, that and I'm already experiencing BSOD even though I've only had the notebook for about a week now...

Anyways, my question is, after doing a clean isntall, do I run SWSETUP or can I download the drivers off the HP site to get all the functionality back?
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareList?os=2093&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3369421&lang=en

I want to make sure I can get the HP Wireless assistant, quickplay, and all that other stuff that works with the HP notebook (stuff that starts with HP xxx)

I just did a clean install on an old notebook with XP and it won't even boot up anymore (booted up fine for a while, then just died this morning)

 

Yes, you can download the drivers from HP, but there is other software on there that you can't download. Stuff like quickplay, quicklaunch buttons, and if you wanted to use some of it like roxio. It only takes 1 DVD to save it, so it's better to do that then be without it later. SWsetup is a whole folder, with lots of stuff inside that you can choose to install or not.

 

I don't mean to imply that this utility is not very useful, but could someone please explain the actual disadvantages of having to reactivate Vista (apart from the big brother aspect/any possible inconvenience this causes). I'm not fussed about having to reactivate, I just want to know I'm not disadvantaging myself by doing it.

 

There is no disadvantage of having to re-activate it again besides calling up and wasting time. With this utility, it does it in an instant and you can do it over and over again. Instead of calling Microsoft over and over again for an activation key everytime you reformat

 

But the activation is done instantly over the internet isn't it?

 

No, If you use the key stuck to the bottom of the notebook you will have to call up and activate. Plus the online activation works for a finitie muber of times before the phone activation takes over.

 

Wait, is quickplay from the website or from swsetup? If it's from the folder, I can't seem to locate a folder named "quickplay"

Also, is there a recommended order for installing the drivers/software again?

What would I need to install from the HP site and what would I need to install from SWSETUP?

Thank you so much for your help. I've been trying to locate a guide on a clean install of vista for a while now.

 

The Quickplay software setup fildes should be located in SWSetup/QPW folder.

There is no general order as such but start off with the chipset drivers and work you way with the other devices.

Download the drivers from HP website or direct from the manufacturers of the devices. The Swsetup folder contains the installation files for the software which HP ships with their systems(for example - Roxio, muveeplayer, HP help/support add on etc). So, if you need any of those software you can find them in there.

 

HP uses some cryptic names for the folders. You have to explore them to figure out what's in them. I think quickplay buttons is on QLB, and quickplay is QPW. If you have the fingerprint reader, the software that runs that is in there too.

Really, just keep a copy on DVD. You may not need it, but a DVD is very cheap, and it's a good idea to have, just in case.

 

Is it possible to do this without the upgrade dvd?

 

How long does compusa take to ship the dvd! Mine shipped like a week ago and it still isn't here. Anybody know what kind of package it comes in? Like a normal yellow envelope? A USPS box?

 

You need some sort of media that has Vista on it. That's the only way you can do it. Acceptable media are:
- Anytime upgrade dvd
- Vista retail dvd (home, premium, business, ultimate)
- Vista OEM dvd

 

It takes a couple of weeks (5-10 business days) after they actually ship it, which can also take a week or s0. Mine came USPS in a 9 1/2" x 11" white cardboard envelope.

 

Quick question:

Not to antagonize anybody here, but why exactly is this necessary? Can't you just uninstall all the bloatware that comes shipped with the notebook? Isn't that a lot easier than having to wipe everything and start over?

 

No. Read the F.A.Q.

 

I ordered my anytime upgrade DVD from CompUSA on the 16th and it just shipped yesterday (24th) and they said to give it 10 -14 days.

In total, expect to wait half a month or so from the time you order the DVD to the time it's in your hands.

 

Can this post be made a sticky?

 

This should be made a sticky.

 

I don't seem to be getting a lot of responses on the poll though .

 

I haven't had a chance to try it yet because I've been waiting...and waiting for my anytime upgrade disk to arrive from Comp USA. Maybe Comp USA has the same distribution chain as Dell.

When I do the clean install I'll participate in the poll, though.

I haven't been able to find another company that sells anytime upgrade disks, which is strange. It can't be exclusive to them, but my searches turn up nothing.

 

should definitely be made a stickly. i still need to go get a copy of the vista cd/dvd first. would i be able to use the vista ultimate cd to do a clean install of my current premium or should i just go ahead and install a 32 bit ultimate?

 

I just formatted my brand new DV2500T and reinstalled Vista Premium but i just found this thread. Is there any way i can get the SWSetup folder? Would my only choice be to purchase the recovery CD from HP and do a recovery.. then make a backup of the folder?

Or.. can anyone upload it somehow? I'm in the bay area, ca by the way.

 

No, if you only bought Premium with your laptop, that's all you can install. All of the Vista discs are the same, so there is really no "Ultimate" disc vs a Premium disc. The only difference is the key you use when you install it.

 

Do you still have the recovery partition on the system?

 

When i reinstalled.. i erased the C drive partition and the storage partition since i needed C to be bigger than the size HP gave it. I didn't see any other partitions. Is there one that i may see using fdisk or something of that sort?

 

There are only 2 partitions on the drive when you get the system. If you erased both of them, then no, you don't have it. It's not a huge loss, as you can find most of what you need from HP. If you have a fingerprint reader, I'm not sure where you can get that software though.

 

Hi Orev, I have a HP DV9310CA, I formatted the HD and re-installed windows Vista, My laptop run very good now, one more question I would to ask you, Can I make another new set of RECOVER DISKS, I already made one set with all the HP crap-ware on it, now I want to make one set with flesh windows Vista anyway I can do that.

 

Hi. I have dv9410us. I had upgrade dvd for vista and did a clean install before i read this thread. I DID activate and got a 48 character code. Wow. I had to give 88 numbers (including my key code)and characters to tech and he gave me back 48. Then I had to give 48 and and get 48 for the XP install. These appear to be permanent activations as I experimented and it accepted a 2nd time. I'll have to look at beginning of thread for how this happens without activation.

 

Not really. "Recovery Discs" specifically refer to those that you burn with the HP tool, or the ones you can buy from HP. They are a specialized type of Windows install that.

What you're talking about is taking an image of the system. Your options are to use something like Acronis Trueimage or Ghost, or if you have Vista Ultimate, you can use complete PC backup.

 

I have Norton Ghost 8, Is that work for Vista?

 

Hey orev,
Thanks for the quick reply. I'm running my system right now and i've gotten all the drivers to install except the quick launch beep doesn't work at all anymore.

The mute button didn't turn amber at some point but i figured out that the mute amber button had a little something to do with the 'sound drivers' that i downloaded from conexant.

Now, i've finally gotten the quick launch drivers to work but the beep that is suppose to happen when clicking the quick launch buttons just don't work! I've tried enable/disable in bios and the darn thing won't beep.

And yes, you're right about the thumb print software.. its' nowhere to be found. I have the drivers but no software.

WARNING RANT***:I feel like i may be missing some functionality from HP and i haven't realized it yet. Maybe its OCD, or maybe i'm just nit-picking but i want those that setup folder!

Would it be possible to get that folder by ordering a set of recovery DVDs from HP?

Thanks again,
Jon

P.S. If i find anything regarding any issues i've encountered i'll be sure to come back to this thread to let all know

 

Heres what you can do:
-Order the recovery disks of HP
-Restore your system back to factory standard
-Backup the C:/SWSetup folder
-Do the Clean install of vista
-Load SWSetup Drivers

 

Thanks orev. i have just completed the clean install, and everything is running faster than ever. My laptop's start up time is less than one minute, and sometimes it only takes 45 seconds.

 

did you burn the recovery disks of your ntoebook? if so, restore your notebook to factory condition then burn the SWSESTUP folder and then do the clean install.

 

I can't vote in the poll again, but this has just worked again for me. A Compac v6000 this time. Before it was so loaded with crapware and security software conflicts that it could barely function. Afterwards it is fast and efficient. From useless to fast, wow. How can Microsoft allow these major suppliers to cripple there operating system this way? Not good for PR. Get a clean install and Vista is incredible.

 

So does anyone know how to get around this fingerprint reader software problem? I'd like to try this clean install thing, but I don't want to lose the ability to use my fingerprint scanner, since I did pay a little extra for it..

 

it's in the SWSETUP folder mate. one of the last few folders will contain the software

 

Orev:Thanks, worked great.

Datman: Do a search on these forums, I know I saw a link to an HP site that had the software, but I can't remember where.

Walt

 

I never received any recovery disks for my notebook. If there was an option to do so with the pre-installed OS.. i did not think to do it. I've formated my Dells countless times without a hitch. I had no clue an HP would be such a pain to install a fresh OS.

Anyway, i ordered the HP recovery disks on the HP website the other day. I should be getting it next week and do a recovery.. save the setup folder and reinstall vista once again. Luckily midterm week is over

-Jon