Official Sony VAIO F Series i5/i7 owners thread *Part 5*

Yep just did that .. My partition predictions were correct .. They are System Reserved (which showed as empty actually, or maybe data is present but Windows cannot read it), C: and D: ... No Recovery ..

What should I do now ?

Btw, I attached images in last previous post showing the Disk Management screen and the Backup and Restore screen ..

 

Yeah maybe, although logically I dont see why this would be so .. I mean unless something about the Recovery partition changed when I was doing my custom install (and I haven't even touched that partition so far - Maybe windows poked around with it during all the OS installs), I dont see why Backup and Restore won't want to also include that .. I mean Backup and Restore doesn't care about my Windows install being a custom one does it ?

 

I'm at a loss.

Those of us who have success have all done our clean installs using the Recovery Discs NOT by installing a RTM copy of Windows.

 

Well I just remember reading somewhere that if you do a clean install from a Windows disk on a computer with a recovery partition that Windows will not recognize it in some way. Never knew if it were true, but now that you mention having this problem, I'm thinking this is related. A Sony modified version of Windows would be designed to fully recognize the Sony recovery partition.

I don't know if there is anything you can do to change this and am limited at the moment by not having my computer with me and using only my phone with a slow connection. I would do two things. Search the above issue to see if there is something you can modify to rectify this problem and/or download trial programs of backup software to see if any can overcome this issue.

 

Yeah at this stage I'm creating the backup using Macrium Reflect, which is detecting all partitions, including the Recovery partition .. I would have preferred to stay within the Windows territory as its an added hassle to restore a Macrium backup ..

Yeh this is probably it .. However I'm pretty sure there's probably some patch I can download and install which can make Windows recognise the Recovery partition .. I guess I can call Sony Support about this on Monday .. However I'm 95% sure they wont be able to help (as usual) ..

 

"Unable" and "unwilling" are two different things. Sony supports the product as sent to you. They don't have to support it once you've removed the OS they gave you and replaced it with something else. It's simply no longer they're problem, so they don't have to spend time trying to help you figure something out that would not have happened had you not changed from that they gave you.

 

Yeah I guess that makes sense too .. Good point !

 

I'm still trying to fix the #1 intermittant whistle.
Vaio link Brussels say they cannot fix the problem, even without having seen my vaio from close. They keep on saying everything might be within specs.
They did send me an email with following instructions though:

<vaiolink email>
1. Execute: "regedit"
2 .Locate: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Control \ Power \ PowerSettings \ 54533251-82be-4824-96c1-47b60b¬740d00 \ 5d76a2ca-e8c0-402f-a133-215849¬2d58ad
3. Change Attributes from 1 to 0.
4. close the registry editor
Then, through the control panel - power - in the settings mode select power management processor. There will be an option disabling idle processor. Disable this and the noise will stop.
</vaiolink email>

Did this but now the fan continuously spins around 4200 rpm, obviously no solution.

Vaiolink Brussels is not willing to take-in my F13 and try to swap the fan unit.

Sorry for asking this again, but is there anyone who can confirm that the #1 whistle has been fixed by changing motherboard, thermal unit and/or fan?

Members who had their vaio checked/planned to do it by Sony tech but for which outcome of intervention is not clear were, ao:

- jacksjw in part2 of this forum
- dan smith: http://forum.notebookreview.com/7129679-post2992.html
- mmm123: http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...7-owners-thread-part-5-a-356.html#post7229037
...seemed to be fixed for 75% then: http://forum.notebookreview.com/7215484-post3472.html
- dupontmatt2012: http://forum.notebookreview.com/7214963-post3467.html
- rogressem: http://forum.notebookreview.com/7247104-post3672.html

Only positive confirmation of any result is by mmm123, who reported fix of 75% ?

 

Is there any way to speed up or slow down the laptop fans from within Windows .. ?

I'm not sure whats up with my laptop .. Even at idle load (CPU Usage is about 4-5%), the area on the right of the mouse pad is pretty warm! .. Its actually quite uncomfortable to rest your hand on that area ..

Any way to manually tell the laptop to turn the fan up ??

 

Also, on average how many people here feel that the area on the right of the mouse pad gets quite warm ? ... I'm just asking if its a general thing present in all VAIO laptops or is it just me ... Also, I'm asking this with respect to the case where an SSD is NOT being used, as I don't have an SSD ..

 

Dappolo, each time I sent my notebook for repair, in the email they sent they reminded me about backing up the data and pointed out the “Data loss” warning in their “Service Terms and Conditions” document:

Email:

“Service Terms and Conditions” document:

So a backup of your data is mandatory!
I also recommend you to create a HDD backup, and delete all sensitive data from it. This way you can avoid any unpleasant surprise!

 

Most likely there is NOTHING wrong with your laptop. Most likely you have a software conflict. What i mean is that most likely you have a driver conflict, an antivirus conflict, or some other software installed and running that does not play nice with your hardware or some other software.

These conflicts are common, yet 99 out of 100 people here will comment that it "has to be the Vaio F" because they know exactly what they are doing and can guarantee that Sony sent them a piece of crap.

Four to 5% CPU usage at idle is a sign that there is a software problem. Not that the software is bad, mind you, but that there is a conflict. Again, this conflict could be an incorrect driver, a pair of antiviruses not playing well together, 100 or more running processes at startup, a printer driver that did not install correctly, or in your case, perhaps you have two operating systems competing at all times.

A Vaio F should idle at 0% usage with an ocassional spike to perhaps 1%. When the CPU usage gets to 4-5% and stays there for a period of time, the fan will be quite fast and quite loud.

I would bet that when you opened the box and plugged in your new F13, it did not idle at 4-5% CPU usage. Find all of your conflicts and your CPU usage, heat and fan speed will all decline to normal levels.

 

^^ Actually at idle it really is at 0%, with a spike sometimes to 1% .. I just checked it again now .. With no main program open (apart from Task Manager of course), and 82 processes running, the idle is 0%, with a spike to 1% occasionally ..

When I said 4-5%, i estimated it when you're not completely and trule idle .. like when your moving the mouse around or doing some very light activity ..

But anyways, even at 100% idle condition, the surface is still slightly/somewhat warm ...

 

82 processes at idle is too much, in my opinion. Many people have 100+ processes. I keep all of our machines right around 48-50 processes running at idle.

Go to msconfig and check your startup programs. You should be able to whittle it down to no more than 6-7 programs running at startup. In my case, AV, Huey Color Profile (for calibrated screen output), audio driver (Realtek), Nvidia video driver, bluetooth driver, Logitech wireless mouse driver.

Processes can be whittled down in the same way in the services tab or by typeing "services.msc" into the start search bar.

 

Hi! Do I have to install those in order to make my F13 work properly:

Bluetooth driver (I'm not using any bluetooth devices)

Ethernet driver (does Windows 7 install it's own driver or do I have to install this one?)

Intel Wireless LAN driver (I don't use wireless LAN)

Memory Card Reader Writer driver Ricoh MS / SD (I think I have to install the MS driver in order to get rid of the exclamation mark in the device manager - even if I neve use those memory cards)

SATA driver (do I have to install it and if yes - when, right after installing the chipset driver?)

USB 3.0 NEC driver (do I have to install it or will Windows 7 install it's own USB 3.0 driver)?

Do I have to install VAIO Care and VAIO location utility or can the laptop work fine without those?

Thank you!


PS: I tried and installed the new updated nVidia driver for GT425M but with it installed I was unable to change resolution to a custom 1600x900 which I like to use. The native Full HD is too small for me. I had to uninstall the new driver and install the older one from the VAIO support site to make it work again.


PPS: About the touchpad problem - I tried everything, installing drivers, uninstalling, changing them, enabling, disabling, changing power settings etc. - but with no success. Today I will format my HDD again and make a fresh install of the system but I have a feeling that the touchpad won't work. And it's 99% not a hardware problem. Do you know what else could I try?

 

Please see in my previous post somewhere in the middle (thanks to Notebookreview.com for merging and making my posts unreadable!).


EDIT: I quoted that part (in the form of the original, separate post):

 

Already told you about touchpad. I can change its settings in VAIO control management. As you do NOT have that settings under Mice and keyboard then you should try install SONY applications again, what if it will exist that time.

 

@ EVERYONE!
About Unable To Open Recovery Partition In Windows Disc Management.

I was see an "empty" recovery partition even before i manged windows clean install. I just formatted it (all info of course was deleted) put there paging file and Temp directory. So it is usual that windows may see Sony recovery partition as "empty" however it is full actually, just windows do not recognize it properly. After i used recovery discs my recovery partition was full of recovery stuff again

 

Are you attempting a clean install? If so, did you read my post here?

This post, if followed, will get rid of the recovery partition, create recovery disks that can be used in place of the recovery partition, install windows on a single partitioned hard drive and correctly install drivers, utilities and programs (with two exceptions that are also explained) in the correct order so that everything works (again, other than the Memory Stick reader and the Wireless LAN, which I also explain).

 

Alright, I have prepared this series of steps explaining exactly what order to follow when installing drivers in a manually installed Windows 7 ... Special thanks to James D on his help on this .. Everybody has helped me so much here, so I thought I should give something back too .. I hope this is useful to someone else out there ..

I followed the procedure below after completion I had a system with all drivers installed, all Sony tools properly configured .. I also solved my problem of those false Battery checker alerts I got .. I managed to get everything right .. And once completed, I get about 65 processes running at idle, with 0% CPU load ... I highly recommend people try to follow this if they plan to manually install Windows 7 themselves ..

These steps assume that you are manually downloading tools and drivers from Sony's support website and you are manually installing them .. That is, you are NOT using VAIO Care to recover applications .. This is NOT recommended by me as this caused Sony applications to not work properly ..

These Instructions were made specifically around my VPCF1390X laptop. Please follow this EXACT order! All items with filenames in brackets were taken from Sony's esupport.sony.com website. They were taken for VAIO VPCF1390X and Windows 7 Ultimate-64 bit. Also, they were the latest files as of today (3/20/2011). Sections have been made below to indicate what is being done, and which sections are required and which are optional. These instructions assume you have JUST finished installing Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-bit, and are at Desktop after first boot. Also, run all installers AS ADMINISTRATOR, by right-clicking on the installer and selecting 'Run as administrator' !! Here we go:

<----- Required: Setting up Basic Settings ----->

1) Open regedit and go to this section: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE|Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\State
2) Modify ImageState variable's value from IMAGE_STATE_UNDEPLOYABLE to IMAGE_STATE_COMPLETE, if it's already not at this value.
3) Reboot computer!
4) Turn off UAC. (This is just my personal recommendation as this will make going through all these installations a lot faster. This can be re-enabled afterwards if needed).
5) Reboot computer!

<----------------------------------------------->

<----- Required: Installing Core Components and Drivers ----->

6) Enter Safe Mode.
7) Install Sony Shared Library (SOASSL-00226189-0042.EXE).
8) Reboot computer!
9) Install Intel Chipset Driver (INDOTH-00228051-0042.EXE).
10) Install Intel 5 Series 6 Port SATA AHCI Controller Driver (INDOTH-00228052-0042.EXE).
11) Reboot computer!
12) Install Realtek High Definition Audio Driver (REDAUD-00226632-0042.EXE).
13) Reboot computer!
14) Install Realtek Audio Driver PCEE Registry Patch (REDAUD-00225296-0042.EXE).
15) Install Latest nVidia drivers (from nVidia's website).
16) Install Sony Firmware Extension Parser Device Driver (SODOTH-00224384-0042.EXE).
17) Reboot computer!
18) Go to Device Manager.
19) If you see a '<something> <something> Parser' device here somewhere, right click it and choose Update and go to Step 20 below. Else go to Step 23 below.
20) Set the driver search to Windows folder.
21) Windows should find the driver you just installed.
22) Reboot computer!

<------------------------------------------------------------>

<----- Required: Installing Core VAIO Software ----->

23) Install VAIO Location Utility (SOAOTH-00179299-0040.EXE).
24) Install Sony Notebook Utilities (SOAOTH-54200000-0042.EXE).
25) Install VAIO Care (SOAVCA-00228095-0042.EXE).
26) Reboot computer!
27) Install VAIO Hardware Diagnostics Software (SOAVHD-00226869-0042.EXE).
28) Reboot computer!
29) Install VAIO Care Software Update (SOAVCA-00229335-1060.EXE).
30) Install VAIO Care Troubleshooter Update (SOAOTH-88888888-1060.EXE).
31) Reboot computer!

<--------------------------------------------------->

<----- Required: Installing Other Drivers ----->

There's no particular order for these. I'm only mentioning this order because this is the order I picked randomly and it worked for me. I assume a different order here will work too as these devices are not 'core' devices of the system.

32) Install Alps Pointing Device Driver (SOAOTH-88888888-1060.EXE).
33) Install Broadcom Bluetooth Driver (BRDBLT-00226617-0042.EXE).
34) Install Marvell Yukon 88E8057 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller Driver (MRDETH-00226626-0042.EXE).
35) Install Marvell Atheros AR9287 Wireless Network Adapter Driver (MRDWLL-00225308-0042.EXE).
36) Install Ricoh PCIe SD Bus Host Adapter Driver (RIDFMC-00226629-0042.EXE).
37) Install Ricoh SD CPRM Memory Card Reader/Writer Driver (RIDFMC-00226631-0042.EXE).
38) Install Ricoh PCIe Memory Stick Host Controller Driver (RIDMSC-00226628-0042.EXE).
39) Install Sony TransferJet Driver (SODOTH-00226716-0042.EXE).
40) Install Renesas Electronics USB 3.0 Host Controller (UNDOTH-00226615-0042.EXE).
41) Reboot computer!
42) Install Renesas Electronics USB 3.0 Host Controller Update (RNDUSB-00229663-1042.EXE).

<---------------------------------------------->

<----- Required: Installing Webcam driver/software ----->

43) Install WebCam Companion 3 Software (ARACCU-00225713-0042.EXE).

<------------------------------------------------------->

<----- Optional: Installing PS3 Remote Play Functionality Related Software ----->

44) Install Remote Keyboard with PlayStation 3 (SOAOTH-00226753-0042.EXE).
45) Install Remote Play with PlayStation 3 (SOAOTH-00227146-0042.EXE).
46) Reboot computer!
47) Remote Play with PlayStation 3 Update (SOAOTH-00242243-1040.EXE).

<------------------------------------------------------------------------------->

<----- Optional: Installing Software not found on Sony's Support Website ----->

Install anything that's not been covered so far from the VAIO Care's 'Reinstall Applications and Drivers' process:

48) Check BD Region Setting Tool.
49) Check Magic-i Visual Effects.
50) Check Corel WinDVD BD.
51) Check VAIO Manual.
52) Check VAIO Media plus.
53) Check Color Setting File.
54) Proceed forward to install the checked tools/programs.
55) Reboot computer!

<----------------------------------------------------------------------------->

<----- Optional: Finishing Off! ----->

56) If you installed Corel WinDVD BD in the previous step, install Corel WinDVD BD Software Update (CEAOTH-00230953-1040.EXE).
57) Reboot computer!
58) Update all VAIO Software.
59) Reboot computer!
60) Done .. !!!! You should have drivers for everything in Device Manager now.

<------------------------------------>

 

Are you serious? Regedit for a simple clean install? Starting in Safe Mode? Over a dozen reboots?

Wow! And to think that I waste nearly an hour creating recovery disks and another 45 minutes installing a clean factory copy of windows and all needed drivers, utilities and desired third-party programs that came with the machine.

Really?

 

Ahh you shouldn't, I believe +rep for us would be just fine

Bravo. It looks ideal installation instructions as for me. I was going to type the same for a half of a year but I was too lazy to write all that stuff . If you will add the permalink to your signature I will + rep you.
PS For other people remember! That turning off UAC and many other steps as installing Sony remote control (for example) are not necessary so DO NOT AFRAID looking at this instruction.

 

Well I actually had a need to install my own copy of Windows 7, and so I couldn't use the recovery options too much .. Regedit was need for my case only maybe .. Its the issue which I discussed 2 days ago when I got errors that Windows is in Audit Mode .. Its just a check .. I actually made a copy of this for myself as well, and I put it in there so that whenever in future I need to go through this, I have instructions for me so that I dont have to perform multiple installs just to get everything right like in the 5th time .. Safe Mode is not needed as such .. Its just recommended for the very first installation, for Sony Shared Library .. This is a core component on which quite a few other things depend, and so to ensure its installed properly, I went into Safe Mode .. Reboots are probably quite a lot, but I only put them in so that the changes are 'committed' to the OS often, so that problems don't come up later ..

 

Yep thats why I put 'Optional' for those steps .. Only the first few sections are required really ..

 

Just added a sig .. should show up now ..

 

Hi! Thank you for typing down this huge clean install guide (without using the recovery partition, recovery discs etc.). I have some questions tho:

1) Open regedit and go to this section: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE|Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\State
2) Modify ImageState variable's value from IMAGE_STATE_UNDEPLOYABLE to IMAGE_STATE_COMPLETE, if it's already not at this value.
3) Reboot computer!

What does that do exactly? Could that mess something up and turn my Windows 7 to not genuine? My Windows state is IMAGE_STATE_UNDEPLOYABLE, is that normal? Does that mean that I am in audit mode or not? Is this really necessary to change in the regedit?

4) Turn off UAC. (This is just my personal recommendation as this will make going through all these installations a lot faster. This can be re-enabled afterwards if needed).
5) Reboot computer!

How do I turn off the UAC?

6) Enter Safe Mode.
7) Install Sony Shared Library (SOASSL-00226189-0042.EXE).
8) Reboot computer!

Can this be done in normal mode, not safe mode?


9) Install Intel Chipset Driver (INDOTH-00228051-0042.EXE).
10) Install Intel 5 Series 6 Port SATA AHCI Controller Driver (INDOTH-00228052-0042.EXE).
11) Reboot computer!
12) Install Realtek High Definition Audio Driver (REDAUD-00226632-0042.EXE).
13) Reboot computer!
14) Install Realtek Audio Driver PCEE Registry Patch (REDAUD-00225296-0042.EXE).

The European (UK) support site for my VPC-F13S0E/B has no registry patch, only the Realtek audio driver. Is that enough?

15) Install Latest nVidia drivers (from nVidia's website).

I have to install the older driver from the VAIO support site or else I can't set a custom 1900x600 resolution. Weird, huh? But it's true...

16) Install Sony Firmware Extension Parser Device Driver (SODOTH-00224384-0042.EXE).
17) Reboot computer!
18) Go to Device Manager.
19) If you see a '<something> <something> Parser' device here somewhere, right click it and choose Update and go to Step 20 below. Else go to Step 23 below.
20) Set the driver seaReboot computer!h to Windows folder.

(Here's a typo.)


21) Windows should find the driver you just installed.
22) Reboot computer!

23) Install VAIO Location Utility (SOAOTH-00179299-0040.EXE).

Is VAIO Location Utility really needed for the laptop to work properly?

24) Install Sony Notebook Utilities (SOAOTH-54200000-0042.EXE).

The EU VAIO support site offers only the components of Sony Notebook Utilities (all except the batter checker which I think I won't need), so I'll just install those 4 components instead of Sony Notebook Utilities.

25) Install VAIO Care (SOAVCA-00228095-0042.EXE).

Is VAIO Care really needed? Will it be constantly running in the background and eating my RAM?

26) Reboot computer!
27) Install VAIO Hardware Diagnostics Software (SOAVHD-00226869-0042.EXE).
There's no such thing on the EU support site.
28) Reboot computer!
29) Install VAIO Care Software Update (SOAVCA-00229335-1060.EXE).
There's no such thing on the EU support site.
30) Install VAIO Care Troubleshooter Update (SOAOTH-88888888-1060.EXE).
There's no such thing on the EU support site.
31) Reboot computer!

32) Install Alps Pointing Device Driver (SOAOTH-88888888-1060.EXE).
33) Install Broadcom Bluetooth Driver (BRDBLT-00226617-0042.EXE).
34) Install Marvell Yukon 88E8057 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller Driver (MRDETH-00226626-0042.EXE).
35) Install Marvell Atheros AR9287 Wireless Network Adapter Driver (MRDWLL-00225308-0042.EXE).
36) Install Ricoh PCIe SD Bus Host Adapter Driver (RIDFMC-00226629-0042.EXE).
37) Install Ricoh SD CPRM Memory Card Reader/Writer Driver (RIDFMC-00226631-0042.EXE).
38) Install Ricoh PCIe Memory Stick Host Controller Driver (RIDMSC-00226628-0042.EXE).

Do I really have to install all of those? Doesn't W7 install it's own drivers for those?

39) Install Sony TransferJet Driver (SODOTH-00226716-0042.EXE).

There's no such thing on the EU support site.

40) Install Renesas Electronics USB 3.0 Host Controller (UNDOTH-00226615-0042.EXE).
41) Reboot computer!
42) Install Renesas Electronics USB 3.0 Host Controller Update (RNDUSB-00229663-1042.EXE).

What about installing just the updated version of USB 3.0 driver? I think that would do.

43) Install WebCam Companion 3 Software (ARACCU-00225713-0042.EXE).

Is this the driver for the webcam or just some an application which can be replaced by an other webcam application? If it's the driver, I think it's not on the EU support site: VAIO : Sony Europe

SUPER THANX!

 

Is my Vaio button supposed to mute the audio? thats what it does but I thought it was a shortcut to Vaio control or something like that.

 

ASSIST => VAIO Care, or the VAIO Recovery Center when pressed while unit is powered off.
S1 => VAIO Control Center
VAIO => VAIO Media Center (or whatever its name is). If the media center is not installed, then it will default to the Mute function.

 

Is there any way to get my ram to 1600mhz?

 

No. the motherboard only supports a max speed of 1333.
I'm assuming you've already seen the BIOS.

 

Well as I think it is actually, your computer is NOT in Audit Mode, since Windows's own tools regarding Audit Mode indicate that the computer is not in Audit Mode, but this value in the registry (IMAGE_STATE_UNDEPLOYABLE) indicates to other programs that your computer might be in Audit Mode. So to fix this you simply need to change IMAGE_STATE_UNDEPLOYABLE to IMAGE_STATE_COMPLETE. This is what it should be anyway. There is no danger in making this change (provided you ONLY change this in the registry). Restart the computer after making this change. Not doing this will cause problems down the line, as many programs won't install if you don't do this now. It has nothing to do with Windows being genuine or not genuine.

Instructions can be found here: How to Disable and Turn Off UAC in Windows 7 My Digital Life

Although yes you can do it in normal mode, to ensure its installed properly (as a lot of other Sony programs depend on it), I would highly suggest you take the additional 2-3 minutes to install this from Safe Mode. But theoretically, you should be fine if you did it from normal mode as well, I think ..

Yeah I guess thats fine. I only did the patch as it was available for my model.

Fixed in the original writeup !

According to Sony's website, yes it is something required for installing VAIO Care later on. It needs to be installed before VAIO Care is installed.

I would actually recommended installing the entire Notebook utilities package if its available to you in that form. The Battery Checker application isn't a resource hogger at all as it runs completely in the background, and if later on it turns out to be something good, why not install it ?

Then you don't need to worry. It was available for me and was indicated on Sony's website that its a required install AFTER installing VAIO Care, so I installed it. Just have a look at the specifics on the EU Website regarding which components are required and which are not. What I've said here is specific to my case (US VPCF1390X Model, Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit), for other regions things can be different.

I would recommend installing them as drivers provided by Windows have a high probability of being generic, or outdated. These drivers are specifically meant for your system, so why not install them ? Also, if you don't install them you might have some devices in Device Manager which don't have a driver.

I assumed the update requires the original thing to be there, which it can go in and update. I mean why would Sony place 'old' drivers on their website ?

You're quite welcome !

 

You're not supposed to be able to see the recovery partition as a volume within Windows. You should be able to see the partition in Disk Management, but that is all. There is no filesystem on it that Windows can recognize so it shouldn't show up in under My Computer or in Windows Explorer or Windows Backup. This is by design, to prevent anything other than the VAIO recovery tools from accessing the recovery partition.

To back up the data on the recovery partition, burn a set of recovery DVDs. That's what they're for. It doesn't hurt to separately save an image of the partition to a backup HDD using a 3rd party backup tool, but that's optional.

 

Yep thats all fine .. What I'm wondering is how are others here able to see the Recovery partition in Backup and Restore and I'm not able to see it there ...

 

We've already speculated that it's because you have installed a RTM copy of Windows along side your Recovery Partition. It does not know how to look at the partition, perhaps?

The majority of us here have not installed RTM copies of Windows, but have performed Clean Installs using the OEM copy supplied with our lappy. Some have upgraded that copy using the Windows Anytime Upgrade.

OUR copy of Windows DOES allow for the partition to be included in the image.

 

True, but all of my clean installs have been with a multi-licensed copy of Windows. I don't care to keep the recovery partition, especially on an SSD.

I have had NO problems with any of the installs and it can be accomplished in under two hours, including the creating of the recovery disks. All drivers and utilities install with no goofy problems and all neccessary parts of the laptop function as desired. Also, the machine benchmarks extremely well, starts and shuts down quickly and runs with minimal resources in use...cool and quiet.

With a dozen or so F series laptops in use, I am happy to say that they are incredible machines. A year after purchasing the first one, I am still very happy with the performance and our church is very happy with their ease of use, speed, quality ande durability.

It seems that most everyone here who has used Joe Bleau's clean install of factory OS and software is quite happy also.

 

Willscary - my comment wasn't directed negatively toward installing RTM copies of Windows. I'm commenting specifically on ahmadka's complaint that his RTM Windows cannot see the Recovery Partition.

 

I know! My response was actually in favor of your comment, even if it did not come out quite sounding that way!

It seems like a lot of work to me when I consider how easily I can install a clean copy of W7 Pro 64 on a machine. Registry changes and safe mode installations are above the average Joe's ability and I find it really hard to believe that any of it is needed when I look at my benchmarks and the simplicity of the installs I have done successfully.

 

Yep I agree with you .. Its probably not something that everybody would want to do ... But I guess I personally do this because I feel I have more control on what I'm installing in my system .. Plus, the hassle of iteratively figuring out what sequence of installs works best for me is a one time thing .. Now that I know what sequence to follow, its a 30 minute thing now, or probably even less ..

 

It is enough to install the last version. It is mostly to make the VAIO updater happy, otherwise there is no difference between the two version (v2.0.4.0 and v2.0.4.1) - see my previous post.

 

If you want more control you should extract the .exe and install the drivers only from Device Manager. That way you don't get the extra Utils installed with the Wifi, Bluetooth, Chipset, Audio, etc drivers which aren't needed as Windows7 can manage these devices.

Also I've done many clean installs and never needed the registry hack, when do you get the error?

Never installed drivers in Safe-Mode either and I reboot only once after ALL drivers have been installed. I only reboot when the Sony Notebook Utilities ask.

 

The memory controller is built into the CPU, so the CPU used gives the supported maximum memory frequency.

The i5 CPUs used in the F Series support maximum 1066 MHz. Example: Intel’s page for i5-540M (Memory Specification “DDR3-800/1066” ).

The i7 CPUs used in the F Series support maximum 1333 MHz. Example: Intel’s page for i7-740QM ( Memory Specification “DDR3-1066/1333”).

Please note that this is CPU specific and not valid for the entire range of i5 nor i7 CPUs! There are i5-s which support “DDR3-800” only (ex: i5-520UM, …), and also there are i7-s which supports “DDR3-800/1066” and not the 1333 MHz (ex: i7-640M, …)! So always check your CPU.

I hope this helps!

 

The Recovery Partition is a standard NTFS, hidden, RE partition. That’s why it is not showing up as a drive.
It has the partition ID 27h (hexa) which is named “Windows RE hidden partition”.

If you want to make it permanently visible (not a good idea), then you can change the partition ID from 27h to 07h (which is the ID for the Windows NT NTFS partition). If you want to change it back, you can reverse the IDs.

On this NTFS partition you have a bootable Windows RE (Recovery Environment) installed + data files. The Windows RE automatically runs the VAIO recovery tool.

On the Sony F, to boot this partition, you power on you notebook using the ASSIST button instead of the power button (anseio already mentioned this).

It is possible to create your own OEM recovery partition, with a bootable Windows RE which could run your preferred backup tool (example Acronis, …). See Microsoft’s page Windows 7 OPK for the required tools. Also Windows 7 OEM Recovery Partition tools creator from MyDigitalLife forum (+ Google is your friend).

There is nothing on that partition which you can use directly (Sony proprietary packed/crypted? files, exactly like on your recovery DVDs), but if you really want to peak and see what is on this partition, you can mount this windows volume as a drive (like any volume), using the Windows built in “mountvol” tool! Also you can un-mount with the same tool afterwards. It is not a persistent mount.

To know the volume path to use when you mount, just run “mountvol” without any parameters. In the list displayed, you will have two Volume Name marked “*** NO MOUNT POINTS ***”. One is the Recovery Partition, the other is the 100MB System partition (usually this is the first). So use the second Volume Name marked, and issue this command in a command line with administrator privileges (I mount the volume as drive Q: - use what you like):

Code:

 mountvol Q: \\?\Volume{...}\ 

To un-mount :

Code:

 mountvol Q: /D

I hope this helps!

 

Exactly!

One observation also...I install my own copy of windows, then throw in the recovery disk #1. I simply check each driver, check the utilities THAT ARE NEEDED (leaving others that I don't want or need unchecked...such as SmartWi) and any factory installed third-party software that I may want (for example, one of the machines that we bought last week was a bare-bones install with no 3rd party software while the other two each needed Elements, Premiere Elements and Acrobat 9, each of which were installed seperately).

Once checked, I just begin the install and Vaio Care automatically installs everything in the correct order. I simply change the disk when told. the important thing to remember here is that when it tells you that a restart is needed, DON'T restart. Tell it to restart later. This happens twice (if I recall correctly) and I decline both restarts. When everything has been loaded, it tells me it is finished and to restart. The machine then restarts...not once, but I believe three times. Vaio Care continues to tell me to restart until it is done.

This is quick, easy and nearly foolproof. The only problem I have found is that two drivers never install...one is the PCIe Memory Stick Reader and the other is the Atheros AR9287 Wireless LAN. These I download from the Sony site. Done.

This takes no more than about 15 minutes. The majority of the time (about an hour) is in making the verified recovery disks. Windows loads in about 1/2 hour, including the partition deletion and the full format of the SSD. Five more minutes to install Microsoft Security Essentials and another 10 minutes to install Microsoft Office 2007 Pro Plus and in two hours, half of which is time to make recovery disks, all of our computers are fully loaded, working without errors and waiting for all of the Microsoft Updates.

What I am saying is that I have had no problems in delaying the restarts. Vaio Care must understand the correct order needed and then it restarts several times in a row to complete the process. If I restart when it tells me to, then I would need to begin again and check to see what all was installed and what still needs installation. This would need to be done after each restart, taking more time and effort.

 

Reboot takes 1.30 minute. Installing driver - 15 seconds. Installing VAIO application may take longer. Turning save mode even faster than reboot but it is not even so necessary (I prefer install shared library in safe mode, it does not bothering me). Install all I need for clean Windows will take no longer 25 minutes for me.

Guys. I had 2GB MS Card Sony which I do not use at all and put it in my VAIO for covering that little hole from dust However yesterday brilliant idea came into my head. I can use it for ReadyBoost! I understand that I have 6GB of RAM however I believe it will do little improvement because system said that it will be useful for readyboost. Remember that it will copy HDD's cache and will use it faster then HDD. Readybosst is not simple RamReplacement or RamAdditional. Sony F has 2 card readers so it will take no additional space like USB flash drive would.
What you guys think?

 

Thanks for the good info. I knew it was hidden NTFS, but didn't know it was mountable in Windows. That's good information, because you can download tools to extract the packages from the .mod files, which opens up the possibility to install 3rd party bundled software directly off the recovery partition without going through VAIO Care (for the clean install purists).

 

ReadyBoost is supposed to work well if you have a slower HDD and a fast memory card. The card has to be faster than a certain speed to qualify.

If you have an SSD, ReadyBoost is turned off by Windows and is not available.

I would like to use a very fast memory card as a paging file area, but it has to be seen as permanent (paging file can not be mounted on removable disk) and I would have to find a memory card that can handle millions of writes without failure. This is very hard to do at the moment. Most SD cards will fail in the matter of weeks if written to thousands of times daily.

 

Yeap. If you have SSD you will not need anything. I have 5400 rpm HDD. MS card is of cource slower than HDD but advantage of them is in use of little files (like browser cache). Also a list of such files is monitored by your system after you turn ReadyBoost on. My card is slow lil bit:
Sequential Read : 7.767 MB/s
Sequential Write : 3.154 MB/s
Random Read 512KB : 7.808 MB/s
Random Write 512KB : 1.542 MB/s
Random Read 4KB : 5.107 MB/s
Random Write 4KB : 0.022 MB/s
However my HDD drive C shows:
Sequential Read : 90.598 MB/s
Sequential Write : 88.517 MB/s
Random Read 512KB : 34.692 MB/s
Random Write 512KB : 34.250 MB/s
Random Read 4KB : 0.422 MB/s
Random Write 4KB : 0.727 MB/s
As you see my card reads MUCH faster 4K files. Also remember that Access time must be also much faster using MS card.
I can see how ReadyBoost cache is working in performance monitor

 

I usually do the same, especially when the tool installed with the driver is getting more in your way than helping you. Also when the resulting space is critical, I slipstream the drivers and the new updates into the installation CD/folder. This for example, on a Windows XP system saved more than 15 GB of space (downloaded files, unpacked files, files stored to be able to uninstall the update and the space required in the System Restore).

+Rep from me!

 

Welcome dmk2! Feel free to +rep me .

You are right. I didn’t look for a tool to extract the .mod files. I was looking for how to create a slipstreamed Windows 7 SP1 image with all the drivers and tools I consider useful, and replace the data on this partition with this new Recovery Image (also create recovery DVDs with this). Initially I didn’t find any useful information, till I looked for tools to extract the .SNY files . This was addressed on Notebookreview forums. After reading the threads, it turns out that it is easier than I expected! Here are the links to the threads and how to extract:

Extract software new s.o.n.y format image ( Post #21)
S.o.n.y Recovery Disc Cracked!! Feels like heaven...

I will give it a try when I will have some time …

 

You sure it's an easy process to extract the .MOD files? I looked into it a few months ago, using Windows Imagex and it was a nightmare on Win7. Stuff about headers and stuff.