Sony Z series 32bit Vista Clean Install Guide (full functions & no windows activation)

I like to first thank IsamuX for his ENOURMOUS help with drivers and utilities, great guy!

I would also like to thank orev from the HP subforum, this guide is basically based of his.

This guide is relatively VENDOR NEUTRAL. It should work on all Vista installations that were preinstalled at the factory, for both laptops and desktops.

NOTE: This procedure may look long, but I'm just really wordy at writing these things. You should get through each step pretty quickly.

Here's the deal, you're a computer guy, and you got a new laptop, but you hate that it came with all that crapware preloaded. If you only had a way to install Vista clean, you'd love to do it. But that brings up another issue: Vista activation. Why should you need to activate Vista again when you already have it activated?

The point of this guide is to be able to install a clean version of Vista, without calling Microsoft (or going online) to activate. No more, no less. I just don't like the "big brother" aspect of activation every time I re-install.

BEFORE YOU POST ANY COMMENTS: This guide is ONLY about reinstalling Vista on a system that you purchased, WITH A VISTA LICENSE. If you have questions about installing on another computer where you have no license, GO AWAY. That is PIRACY and will not be tolerated here.

Some notes:

• You can only install the SAME VERSION of Vista you already bought. If you're laptop came with Home Premium, you can NOT install Ultimate.
• This guide uses information that's ALREADY ON YOUR LAPTOP. The only thing you will need to download is a small utility to backup and restore the activation.
• This has been adapted and expanded from the original notes given for HP systems by orev (see this thread)
• This has been adapted and expanded from the original notes given for Lenovo systems by Wh1t3w0lf (see this thread)
• I am not a lawyer, but this is not a crack or break in any way. I fully believe that this is completely legal. All you are doing is backing up information already on the computer, and restoring it after you install.

A Note for Beginners:

This is not an especially difficult task, but it is a bit more technical than you may be used to or comfortable with. If you follow the guide, you should be OK. HOWEVER, this guide does cover installing drivers and possibly other things that you will need after Vista has been installed but it also assumes you know how to use Device Manager. Also, you may need to deal with situations that are not covered in this guide. If you don't feel comfortable doing that, then you should not do it. BUT, if you get stuck or something doesn't work right, you can always use the recovery discs to restore your system to the way it was when you opened the box.​

Things you need:

• Skills and knowledge enough that you are comfortable installing an OS from scratch, and maybe partitioning a disk.
• USB Flash Drive (or other external disk) Must be writable media! You cannot use a DVD or CD
• Vista Installation Media
• 2 DVD+Rs to make your recovery discs
• Activation Backup & Recovery tool, downloadable below

Disc Definitions
There is no such thing as a "Home Premium Vista" disc, or an "Ultimate Vista" disc!!!! ALL VISTA DISCS CONTAIN ALL VERSIONS OF VISTA. The thing that determines what version of Vista you have is the License Key that you have. You may have a sticker on it that says "Vista Business" or "Vista Home Premium", but IT IS A LIE. Your disc *may* be forced to install a certain version, (see "CUSTOM OEM Vista Disc" below) but it still contains all versions. It is possible to modify this disc so you can use it to install any version (that you have a license for).

There are many types of Vista discs out there, here is the "official" terminology of what they mean (each of these discs come in 2 versions, 32bit and 64bit):

• Anytime Upgrade Disc This disc contains all versions of Vista, unmodified as Microsoft is shipping it. It is sometimes included for free with your system, or can be purchased online for under $10. This purchase price does NOT include a license or serial number, it is only the installation media. It is intended so you can upgrade from one version of Vista to another by purchasing a license online. This is the type of disc you need to do a clean install.
  
• Recovery Disc These disc(s) contain an image of your computer as of when you got it. They can be used to restore your system to the EXACT state as when you first opened the box and turned it on for the first time. Vista is on these discs, but so is all the bloatware. The images are encrypted, and cannot be modified to be used for a clean install. It's best to burn these for yourself using the included recovery disc creation tools, but you can also usually buy them.
  
• Vista Retail Disc These discs are the ones you buy at the store in a shiny Vista box. They include a license and serial number for a particular version of Vista. The contents of the disc are IDENTICAL to the contents of the Anytime Upgrade Discs. These discs are expensive because you are buying a license along with them. You already have a license for Vista on your laptop, so there's no need to buy another one to do a clean install.
  
• OEM Vista Disc These discs sometimes get shipped with your system, and are IDENTICAL to the Vista Retail and Anytime Upgrade discs. The main difference here is in the licensing from the OEM (HP, Dell, etc...).
  
• CUSTOM OEM Vista Disc These seems to be showing up more recently, especially with Dell systems. Some OEMs ship Vista discs that have been modified to include changes such as forcing the disc to only install a certain Vista version, and also include integrated drivers. You can probably do a clean install with them, but you might need to modify the disc before you do it. See the next section for details.
  
  Borrow a Disc: If you know someone else who has an Anytime Upgrade disc, a retail Vista disc, or an OEM disc, you can use any one of those as well. Make sure that you USE YOUR OWN LICENSE. The license is not tied into a DVD, it's tied to the computer and the product key you use.

Procedure:

1. BURN RECOVERY DISCS. If you don't do this you aren't nearly as clever as you think you are, and probably much less so. Use the recovery manager tool to burn them yourself!!! Burning them yourself is the preferred method to obtain the recovery discs, this so important because your sony drivers and utilities are located on the disc.
   
2. BURN RECOVERY DISCS!!!
   
3. BACK UP YOUR DATA!!! This procedure will cause EVERYTHING ON THE DISK TO BE DELETED!!!
4. BACK UP YOUR DATA!!!
   
5. Save the information you'll need later:
   1. Unzip the ABR.zip file (downloadable below) and put the ABR folder onto your USB flash drive (or external USB drive). For example, if your flash drive is on F:, unzip to F:\ABR. NOTE: You MUST unzip this file. You cannot run it from inside the Windows "compressed folder" view.
      
   2. Double-click on "activation_backup" to run it. You will see some output, and hopefully everything was successful.
      Running this will create 2 files on your flash drive:
      • backup-cert.xrm-ms: Backed-up activation
      • backup-key.txt: Backed-up product key. This product key is different from the one on the bottom of your laptop. We will NOT be using the one on the bottom of your laptop in this procedure.
      I recommend you write down the Product Key somewhere else as well. Vista may decide that it wants you to re-enter the key at some point, and it's useless if you only have it locked up on your flash drive. (You won't be needing the written down version for this procedure though)
      Your activation has now been backed-up.
      
6. Turn off the Wireless Network switch and unplug any network cables. (I always like to make sure nothing is calling home until I'm ready for it.)
   
7. Insert the Anytime Upgrade DVD and reboot the computer. "Press any key to boot from DVD" when you see that message. If you don't see that message and Vista just boots up again, reboot again and hold down the "Esc" key. Choose to boot from the DVD drive.
   
8. Choose your language, time/currency, keyboard. [Next]
   
9. Choose [Install Now]
   
10. Product Key window:
    1. Now you will be asked for your product key. DO NOT ENTER ANYTHING HERE. We'll take care of this later.
       
    2. UNCHECK "Automatically activate Windows when I'm online"
       
    3. [Next]
       
    4. You will be asked again to enter your product key. Press [No]
11. You'll be presented with choice of which Windows version you have purchased. YOU MUST CHOOSE THE SAME ONE YOU PURCHASED!!! For me it is HOMEPREMIUM. Also check: "I have selected the edition of Windows that I purchased" [Next]
    
12. Accept license terms, [Next]
    
13. Choose [Custom Install]
    
14. Partition the disk how you like. You can delete the recovery partition here to gain space, BUT ONLY DO THIS IF YOU HAVE ALREADY MADE YOUR RECOVERY DISCS!
    • On the partitioning window you will see 2 partitions, Disk 0 Partition 1, and Disk 0 Partition 2. If you have a machine with 2 hard drives, you'll probably see those also. The "Disk 0 Partition 1" is where your current Vista install is located.
      
    • Under the box with the disks in it, there is a link on the right called "Drive options (advanced)". Click on that link and you will have some more options, Delete, Format, Extend, and New. Now you have a few options (pick ONE):
      • Press [Next] and Vista will install on top of your current install, leaving pretty much everything on the disk. Your old Vista install will still be on the disk, in the folder C:\Windows.old. This probably isn't what you want if you want a clean install.
        
      • Format Disk 0 Partition 1: This will erase everything currently in the Vista install, allowing you to start from scratch.
        
      • Delete Disk 0 Partition 1, then delete Disk 0 Partition 2. Then make a New partition using all the space on the disk.
    • You should be able to figure out if you want a different partition setup. I can't possibly walk through all the options.
      
    • Whatever you do, make sure you have backed up. Doing anything with partitions is not undo-able, and will cause everything to be lost.
      
    • If you get lost here, you can always restore with your Recovery Discs.
      
    • I cannot speak to what you'll have on a 2 drive version of the laptop.
15. Windows will do the first part of the install, formatting, copying, etc... Eventually it will reboot.
    
16. DON'T boot from DVD this time (you can eject the DVD now). Setup your username, password, etc...
    
17. Once Windows finishes starting, you'll notice that the video resolution is very low (everything is big). You'll need to install video drivers, but wait until later. On my system, I was able to deal woth the resolution enough to be usable without installing any drivers.
    
18. Check the activation status. Control Panel / System and Maintenance / System. At the bottom you'll see the activation status (30 days trial right now)
    
19. Plugin your USB flash drive from before. Double-click on "activation_restore to run it. Follow the prompts, and hopefully everything was successful.
    
20. Re-check your activation status, as above. You will need to close and re-open the System window to see the change. Vista should now be activated!
    
21. Download Z drivers here: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8IXWA30I (thank you IsamuX)
    
22. Download Z utilities here: http://nextlevelcomputer.com/temp/online/vaio/Z Utilities.zip
    
23. Installation order: You're going to want to download the Z Drivers from above and unzip them to your desktop in 1 consolidated folder, go through device manager and each device that didn't have a driver and update them by having windows search the APPS directory for the driver. DO NOT DO EITHER VIDEO DRIVERS YET!! RESTART AS NECESSARY
    
24. Make sure Stamina/Speed togggle is set on Stamina
    Here's the Intel X4500 graphics drivers: http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Det...strOSs=163&OSFullName=Windows Vista*&lang=eng
    
    RESTART
    
25. Make sure Stamina/Speed toggle is set on Speed:
    Here's the nVidia graphics drivers: http://support.vaio.sony.co.uk/down... 7.15.11.7449.zip&ip=Preinstalled_Drivers.htm
    
    RESTART
    
26. If you do not own an SP1 Vista disc, download the standalone here:
    http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...6D-5EBB-413B-89C9-CB3D06D12674&displaylang=en
    
    This needs to be installed after all the drivers but before the utilities. Ignore this step if you have already used vlite to slipstream Sp1 into your Vista disc
    
27. Unzip the Z utilities to a consolidated folder on your desktop, if you do not install these in the specified order, you will not get S1, S2, eject, Speed/Stamina Toggle, FN keys to work.
    
    Make sure you already have Sony Firmware Extension Parser installed, as well as Sony Programmable IO Control (both located in Human Interface Device in Device Manager, these ENABLE S1, S2, FN, Eject, and Speed/Stamina Toggle)
    
    1. Sony Shared Library
    2. Sony Setting Utility
    3. Sony VAIO Event Service
    4. VAIO Control Center (Controls S1, S2)
    5. VAIO Power Management (Controls Battery Care and Battery Optimization)
    6. Sony ISB Utility (FN Keys, and Eject Button)
    7. Sprint WWAN Driver
    8. Sony HDD Protection Filter Driver
    
    Restart if it tells you, this is important, be sure to restart if it tells you to do so. Also, you might feel that you don't want the vaio power management utility, but strangely enough, the isb utility requires it to be installed if you want the fn keys and eject button to work. Don't skip anything.
    
28. Run the "Windows Experience" tool. This will re-enable Aero Glass and all that other nice stuff.
    
29. If you want the SmartFi Utility (which controls the Sprint WWAN Card built in) You need to install that from your recovery disc
    
30. If you want the Arcsoft Webcam Companion (cheesey webcam software) You need to install that from your recovery disc

F-A-Q

• Why do a clean install? Because a lot of the software on your new computer is stuff you probably won't use, but it's installed and using up resources (hard disk, memory, CPU). Also, some of the software is "trialware", and will keep bugging you to spend more money.
  
• Why not just uninstall things you don't want?
  • Uninstalling software does not always work properly, and almost always leaves behind stuff that should have been removed. Once you have installed a program, it is virtually impossible to remove it and have your system identical to before you installed it. THE ONLY WAY to get rid of it completely is to do a clean install. This is because there are items left in the registry and on the disk that simply do not get removed during an uninstall.
    
  • Also, the amount of time it takes to manually remove software by hand is comparable to, if not longer than, the time it takes to do a clean install. You could easily spend the same amount of time (or more) removing everything by hand, and still not be sure you got everything.
    
  • Finally, manually uninstalling is just that, a manual process. You have to actively sit there and uninstall each thing, waiting and clicking through uninstallers. Most of the time spent on a new install is an automatic process, so you can go off and do something else while it runs
• Can I use this method to install Vista on another computer? NO! This only works on the same computer/laptop you already have a license for.
  
• Is the product ID number the same as the one on the bottom of my laptop?. No, these numbers are different. The number from activation_backup is the one Sony used in the factory to install your version of Windows. The Windows activation is bound to the factory product ID, not the one on the bottom of the laptop.
  
• Why not use the key on the bottom of the laptop? That key is not "pre-activated" and you will have to call Microsoft to activate it. (some people have mentioned that you cannot activate online with this key) And you will have to call them again if you decide to do a reinstall... and again if you reinstall... and every time hope that you have an explanation that they will agree to, even though you already have a license for it and shouldn't be treated like a criminal suspect.
  
• ...BUT if you have no problem calling Microsoft to get your system activated, you can use the key that's on your laptop. But that method isn't what makes this guide special .
  
• I'm doing this on a Desktop computer, and I changed my hardware. Can I use this method to reactivate Vista? If you are being asked to reactivate because of hardware changes you made, this method will probably NOT work, but I don't know.
  
• Can I install a 32bit or 64bit architecture if I have the other one? There is no technical difference between the 32bit and 64bit architectures with regards to activation. That means that if you backup your activation on a 32bit system, then clean install a 64bit version, it will technically work. However, there may be licensing issues with this, so you must determine if you are licensed to do this by looking at the license you have.
  
• Will I still be able to get support from my OEM me after I do this? Probably not. They are not obligated to help you out with SOFTWARE problems that might come up as a result of this. In reality, if you have a driver problem or something, they will probably never ask you if you had done a clean installation. However, having done the clean installation, it is assumed that you are able to resolve these types of issues without calling support.
  
• Does a clean install void my warranty? No. I am not a lawyer, but a warranty generally only applies to hardware on a computer. In fact, almost all software license agreements explicitly state they don't have a warranty. However, your OEM might complain that you cannot access some of their diagnostic tools or something because you have reinstalled, and will probably blame the problem on you... until you can prove them wrong. That's the fact of how these things work, and why making the recovery discs are so important. Restore from the recovery disc, then call them up again and they can't complain about it. If they still complain that something you did caused the failure, you can refer them to the Magnuson - Moss Act which puts the burden on them to prove that any third-party changes caused the failure.
  
• How can I make another set of Recovery Discs? For whatever reason, you were not able to successfully create recovery discs for the first time, or you lost the ones you made. Now the software won't let you burn another set. To fix this, open an explorer window (my computer, etc..) and go into folder options. Make sure "Hide protected operating system files" is not checked, and also make sure "Show hidden files and folders" is enabled. Then do a search for the file "hpcd.sys" on all local disk drives. Delete all of the ones that you find.
  
• How can I make sure my Anytime Upgrade DVD has not been modified? If you are concerned that the Anytime Upgrade disc you have might be hacked or corrupted, you can verify the "md5sum" of the disc. The md5sum numbers and volume names for the two official Microsoft Vista discs are (these were generated from ISO images of each disc):
  • 1008f323d5170c8e614e52ccb85c0491 LRMCFRE_EN_DVD (32-bit)
  • 11e2010d857fffc47813295e6be6d58d LRMCxFRE_EN_DVD (64-bit)
  With integrated service pack 1:
  • b09267740ddd1a08d80b04ec6bbc232a FRMCFRE_EN_DVD.iso (32-bit)
  • e4ce0b193d94279e4dce1098d6b5afeb FRMCXFRE_EN_DVD.iso (64-bit)
• Will systems activated using ABR still work with SP1? Yes! SP1 contains a few fixes from Microsoft that allow Vista to detect a pirated version of Vista. ABR DOES NOT CREATE A PIRATED VERSION OF VISTA!!! In fact, ABR is not "getting around" activation AT ALL. It activates the system the same way many OEMs activate the system when using their Recovery Discs and factory installation process. ABR is NOT bypassing activation, it is backing-up and restoring it.
  
• How can I do a clean install with SP1 already integrated? The procedure for installing is the same, but you will need to obtain a Vista disc that already has SP1 integrated. These discs are currently available from Microsoft if you are an MSDN subscriber, but otherwise they are not available to the public. Hopefully you will be able to get one in the future, but for now I'm not aware of any place to (legally) get them.

abr
Activation Backup & Restore (ABR)
This is a utility that allows you to backup and restore your Windows Vista activation for systems that are pre-installed from the factory, allowing you to reinstall the system without having to call Microsoft. It saves the activation to a file and allows you to restore it once you have done a clean install.

Here are the MD5 and download links:
The .exe file is a self-extracting archive, and the .zip file is a zipped version of that in case you are unable to download files ending in .exe.

82c86253a2d704f38c6b8efbd8606f43 ........ ABR-1.0.exe
decbcbc360944bb7140b173a0f8334fc ........ ABR-1.0.zip Please do not link directly to these files. If you like this utility and want to tell people about it, please link to this web site, and not directly to the zip file.

Or visit the ABR homepage

Other clean install guides:

• Wh1t3w0lf 's Vista Clean Install with offline OEM activation for Lenovo
• Stallen's Clean Install Guide for Lenovo (Based on this guide)
• A version of this guide (as of July 15, 2007), with screenshots, at Dave's Computer Tips.

 

This is a very helpful thread. Thanks.

 

is it workin in Z570 ?!
and what about the drivers and utilities can i use them on the Z570 or they r diffrent?

 

Nice tutorial megaman!!... but i have a few questions...

a) Will the drivers give work on Z's with lower resolution screens? Since the video drivers provided are from the Z590

b) I need to get an original Anytime upgrade disc for this to work at all??? (just confirming...)

Thanks again!

 

Will a retail Ultimate upgrade DVD work?

 

Yes, you can use them on the Z570, they should actually work for any of the Z series notebooks currently out. I just happen to own the Z590

a) Yes, they will work on 1366x768 resolution screens no problem. I've posted high quality drivers direct from manufacturer.

b) yes, an original anytime upgrade disc will work just fine.

Yes, a retail Ultimate upgrade DVD will work.

 

Wouldn't be better to post as well how to create the apps directory, instead of downloading it? If I remember well IsamuX wrote about it before...and as time will go, new drivers will come out, so I believe it's better to do recovery discs with the current drivers and extract the apps directory from that. (Same goes with the utilities, where to get them?)

Anyway thanks a lot for this...it's very interesting and easy way how to do the clean install

Just one note "Make sure you already have Sony Firmware Extension Parser installed, as well as Sony Programmable IO Control"...this will be installed while installing drivers in device manager for the unknown devices?

 

Honestly, I posted the drivers and utilities for those that didn't make the recovery discs.

The apps folder can be found under windows/temp/app when installing the first intel chipset driver DURING the installation (since its in temporary folder, it will disappear after the installation) when installing from the recovery disc. These will contain the drivers for everything in the system.

The utilities are found in the programs tab when reinstalling from the recovery discs.

Yes, those 2 should be installed, I just wanted to note that they needed to be installed in case anyone jumped the gun and went straight to the software first.

 

OK, thank you for making it clear

 

Awesome guide!!! Thank you!! Just might want to re-word some of the HP words.. like "HP Recovery partition will be erased!" and using hp recovery program > might be different than sony's..

I am trying to buy an anytime upgrade disc but amazon is a bit overpriced, and ebay - i m scared of - lol

 

MegaManX,

When running the Smartfi, it askes for the Data2.cab that is not in the zip file - can that be corrected ?-thank-you, very very much. This is a great thread!

 

I'm at work and won't be able to upload said data cab file till I get home....tomorrow. But I could have swore it worked for me, and that those were the only files in the folder when I cut and pasted them out.

Your recovery disc should contain this utility as well. See if you can install it from there first.

 

Hey X, how are Zero and Axl?

Sorry I'm a long time fan of that series and couldn't resist. Awesome guide! Anyway, I have a question about using the recovery function after installing with your method. I'm trying to refine my clean install guide for the FW and am thankful that I read about ABR in your post. So for my question, IF you install and activate using the ABR method, will you be able to install programs off of the recovery disk? When i clean installed Vista 32 bit home premium (the exact same which came with my FW) and used the activation key at the bottom of the laptop, neither the Sony recovery disk, nor the installers from Sony supports web site would work without me bypassing the model check via the extraction method. Any ideas?

 

LOL, I love that series as well, and if megaman was a robot, I could see sony as the manufacturer Hahahaha

Yea, the ABR method works, I've done it, and installs all the sony drivers and programs without a problem. Drivers and utlities both from website and recovery disc works, and I'm guessing it only works because its a sony oem key. However, if you've already done a clean install and used the key on the bottom of the laptop, ABR will back up that key and not the sony oem one.

If you have the recovery disc, do a full restore, bloatware and all, and back up the key with that install, then redo your clean install. It'll be tedious but guaranteed to work in the end.

 

MegaManX,

Thank-you. I made the stupid mistake of making two sets of recovery disks, testing them with the restore partition - of course they worked!

I then deleted the recovery partition only to find out that the DVDs had bad areas. My ADVICE to others after making the recovery DVDs are to copy them to the hard disk to ensure integrity.

I just need the Smartfi, the Novatel driver is installed.

Thanks again for your great support and very informative input to this forum. It makes a dummy like me very appreciative of knowledgable people. Isamux is also a great contributer.

Sony Z rocks! I love it with the 1600x900 resolution - you can always scale up. screen is not tiresome.

 

I am SO confused now, thanks.. lol..

I am downloading Acronis Exact-Image or something now - looks promising..

 

Don't pay attention what I said to him, it relates to his fw question and sony oem vista key.

Just follow the guide and enjoy.

 

This needs to be linked in the first post of the Z owners thread. But the OP hasn't done much with that thread after starting it. Maybe a mod can do it because this is very useful for all Z owners. Thanks Mega Man!

 

Megaman,

Ok i might have messed up already, but was hoping you guys could help me out on this one..
what if i have not made recovery discs..I think have not made them and have tried the fresh install with the OS DVD that came in with my Dell XPS. Now i have problems with the installing the nvidia driver..
My current status is that i have opened up the laptop have removed the OEM 250GB@5400rpm hard drive and am waiting for the Toshiba 200GB@7200rpm drive i ordered. I have also got a Vista Business DVD from my friend and was hoping to do a fresh install once i get the new hard drive..

 

You're in luck, I posted all the links in my guide. You should be fine, you just won't have the ability to make recovery discs at all.

 

Thanks Megaman

 

Sony ISB Utility is the Battery Checker utility, whose only purpose is to give a pop-up warning when a third party non-OEM battery is inserted. I don't believe it's related to anything essential, like the FN keys and eject button.

 

thanks a lot for this guide, I always wondered what was the utility of the disc "windows anytime upgrade"
I didn't know I would be able to reinstall vista with it !

I have two questions left, I have a sony SZ and I was wondering in which part of the process it will be better to reinstall the SP1 (before the drivers, the utilities ? after them all ?)

my vista is actually in french, will I be able to install it in English ? will the key work ?

Thanks again.

 

Sooo.... the purpose of the recovery disc created at the beginning is so that i can come back to original state wenever i want?... so assuming im not satisfied with the clean install for example a driver doesnt work then i can just use the recovery discs??

If this is the case then this sounds good...

 

yes, it's the simple utility of those discs

 

i manage to got everything working , but why i dont see my sony webcam capture utilities or any webcam software? Please help please =]

thanks for the guide btw

 

Has anyone purchased a new Z with the "fresh start" option? Is it still necessary to do a clean re-install even with fresh start?

 

Yes, this is originally what I thought as well, but vaio control center is a finicky utility that requires every sony software it incorporates to be installed before it is fully functional and allows the fn keys and eject buttons to work. I tested this myself because I like having a lean clean install, but without installing it, only ejects works and fn brightness doesn't.

On your recovery disc, the program you're looking for is called arcsoft webcam companion and arcsoft i-sual effects (I'm not home to double check the name of the programs to be sure, but its something to that effect). The reason I didn't include it in this clean install is...because its a clean install, and you don't need that program to use the webcam. I tested it with both msn and aim messenger and the webcam works fine.

Yes, that is exactly the case. So it serves 2 purposes, contains drivers & utilities, and can restore system back to factory condition.

 

do you know where exactly i might find it on the disk? i tried launching recovery console but it just gona reinstall stuff .. and i tried seaching for it , it not label or anything .

 

In your c drive, program files/sony/ is there a folder called vaio recovery center? There's a launcher in that folder that will launch the reinstallation od drivers or programs.

Otherwise, if you want to wait till tomorrow, I can see if I can post the software up as well as the smartfi utility.

 

and also when i tried to install smartfi it kept telling me i cant do that , clear internet files and some sorts ..

 

wow u answer my next question lol.

lol i dont even have a C:sony ...

and i never did once use the sony recovery disk i made... to install drivers and those sorts

 

If # 26 enables SPEED/STAMINA switch, wouldn't it have to be done before you install the video drivers, which require use of the switch???

 

aznboinghia, i'm afraid I have bad news, but its not terrible for you. From my assumption from extracting utilities like sony shared library, and vaio event service, I assumed that extracting programs like SmartFi and Arcsoft would be the same.

I was wrong. The SmartFi and Arcsoft folders that I pulled out of my windows temp folder are both missing the data2.cab It seems like the data2.cab comes from recovery disc, so I researched this a bit more.

When reinstalling sony shared library and the other utilities from the recovery disc, it makes a temp folder in the hard drive where all these utilities comes from and I can easily just cut them out the temp folder and paste them somewhere else.

When reinstalling SmartFi and Arcsoft, it makes a temp folder in the hard drive that contains MOST of the installation programs, then recovery center asks to put in disk 2 of the recovery disc where the rest of the installation file ares held. I won't be able to extract those files for you since they never leave the disc.

All is not lost though. See if this works for you.

Download this: http://nextlevelcomputer.com/temp/online/vaio/vaio recovery.zip

Extract this to: C:\Program Files\Sony

So the full file path name is: C:\Program Files\Sony\vaio recovery

Inside vaio recovery, execute Launcher.exe, this should switch the Recovery center into a mode where you can reinstall whichever program/driver you want.

Navigate yourself to reinstall drivers or programs, under the program tab, just select SmartFi, and both Arcsoft programs

Well, before you install the switch, both video drivers need to be functioning. In the beginning of the clean install, both video drivers run at a standard vga driver adapter at 800x600 resolution on the intel x4500 chip. It won't recognize the nVidia chip until drivers have been installed for the intel one.

That's why you need to install both drivers for both graphic cards before you attempt to install switch utility, otherwise you have nothing to switch to and from if you don't have the GPUs installed

 

Makes good sense, thanks a lot!
I am going to leave off the fingerprint stuff and the Sprint WLAN drivers, I assume that will be fine?

It is interesting that SONY claims that ALL drivers need to be installed in a certain order, including Network, Wireless, modem, sound, bluetooth, etc. etc.

Since you said to go through device manager and install drivers for the question marks, obviously you did not find that to be the case?

 

Are these two utilities necessary, since everything should be working before they are installed?

7. Sprint WWAN Driver
8. Sony HDD Protection Filter Driver

Thanks!

 

Yea, that is not the case, all the drivers can be installed in any order except the video drivers.

The default one in use before the drivers are installed is the Intel X4500, so that one needs to be installed first before the nVidia one.

Not necessary at all actually, but the Sony HDD protection filter, if you use it, is accessible from the vaio control center, and will turn off the hard drive if your drop it to prevent it from being damaged

 

I am using my own Ultimate copy with license (not from the Z), so I have VISTA and SP1 installed already.

Your list showed to do:

1.) Drivers in any order
2.) Then the VIDEO drivers
3.) Then Firmware Extension Parser and Sony Programmable IO Control
4.) Then the switch and key utilities, etc.

Correct?

I hope so.
I botched it once along the way, and had to blow the drive away and start from scratch.

 

Yea, basically it, just make sure you follow the order for the utlities, that's really the most important part.

 

Great guide, +1 rep!

I guess you may just specify that this is written with a US Z in mind, and will be slightly different for non US Zs (for example, no SPRINT driver and utility, but WWAN driver in Europe), so it may be better/safer to get the drivers and utilities from the Sony support website of your country, for your model if you can.

Also the comments for the drivers archives say "Apps, japanese" which I guess can be a bit misleading when you download... Hopefully they are English drivers, not japanese ones!

 

Megaman I followed your guide to the T however whenever i push the Fn + brightness buttons i get nothing. eject works, s1 and s2 work. the volume works but i get no graphical confirmation from the screen. the black and white text does not come up on the screen. what am i doing wrong here.

 

Most probable cause: you didn't reboot after updating the drivers for the Sony Firmware Extension Parser and Programmable I/O Control Device. Try uninstalling the Sony utilities. REBOOT. Update the drivers for the devices above, REBOOT, then reinstall the VAIO utilities in the proper order. The control software is finicky with these controls... if the installation doesn't initialize and associate with the proper Sony IO / Firmware devices *during* installation, it usually won't work without removing / reinstalling.

 

does somebody know ?

 

So I had an extra hdd that I wanted to make sure was working, so I installed it on my Z and I wanted to test something out....

Sp1 must be installed slipstreamed, or after all the drivers but before the utilities, otherwise fn brightness doesn't work.

Another alternative if you're lazy to reinstall, is to assign either s1, s2 to windows mobility center, and it controls the brightness from there.

Application: C:\Windows\System32\mblctr.exe
Option: /open

I believe there's a choice somehwere in the the installation of vista that lets you choose language...or it might be keyboard, sorry, I never paid any attention to it. ABR should work with reactivating the key.

If you haven't slipstreamed SP1, I would install the standalone after the drivers but before the utilities.

 

The Broadcomm Bluetooth driver appears to have installed a folder called WIDCOMM and under that is a folder called BLUETOOTH SOFTWARE with folders under that, but there is no tray icon for Bluetooth or anything in the Device Manager.

What do I need to do now to enable Bluetooth?

Thanks!

 

ftp://download.sony.com/US/pc/BRDBLT-14403000-US.EXE

 

Wow this is great. If only someone would make it for the FW, with these great instructions... I still can't figure out the "Official FW one" correctly.

 

Thanks a ton MegaMan X!!
I used the standalone SP1 after installing my own Ultimate with license, but before any drivers or anything else. Maybe I just got lucky, but everything works.

One question: what the heck does the Fn + F12 key do?
It took me to a black screen.
What do you do to reverse that keystroke combination???

Thanks!

 

fn + f12 = sleep mode...just press the power button to turn back on.

well, that's good news on the SP1 install, I always install SP1 after drivers because it might provide me with bug fixes for window drivers and hardware, but either way, it needs to be installed before utilities.

 

Great guide! -- but do we really need to rehash the same steps for every model that sony puts out? -- this is almost the same as the multiple guides that were released for SZ clean installs (although the drivers are different)

as you credited: orev's guide http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=120228/