Re-install Windows Vista

So now, I want to do a fresh install on my Vaio. This is my first time to do a fresh install on a notebook, usually I just use recovery disk, and I want to ask some things before I do the fresh install.

- I am planning to use the bootable Vista DVD from this thread, ABR works using this DVD, correct?
- I don't have a spare hard drive to backup my files. Currently my free space is only 6gb out of 87gb. If I have to backup to DVD, it'll use too much DVDs. Can I just use Partition Magic to partition my hard drive and put my files to the second partition?
- My Vaio recovery partition won't disappear if I do a fresh install, right?
- To keep my Vaio Recovery Center, should I just copy the folder C:\Windows\sonysys\vaio recovery to my thumb drive? And after the fresh install, paste it to the same location? Or should I just copy the whole sonysys folder? Or a different approach is needed?
- To ensure my Vaio will work correctly after the fresh install, I can launch Vaio Recovery Center in my thumb drive to install some important drivers or download the drivers here?

I think that's all I'm asking, I hope I don't miss anything... Thanks in advance!

 

The files in that thread are all coming up "DENIED". I think you missed the boat on that.

 

Sorry, which thread?

 

The thread you planned to get the files from. The files mentioned there are coming up "DENIED". Unless you already downloaded them. Then you're all set.

 

Oh, I've already burned the DVD actually. Thanks for the information.

 

That's quite a tall order. You are really playing with fire here and could easily lose all of your data doing this. However, it might be possible.

First, I'd burn the recovery discs to DVD, then it's safe to delete the Sony partition. Since you want to clean install anyway, there is no reason to keep that around and it will gain you more space.

Then, you can use partition magic (Vista has this built-in too), to shrink your C: partition, then join the free space with the D: partition. Then move all of the data that will fit onto the D: partition until it's almost full. Now you will have free space on the C: partition, and can then use partition magic again to shrink the C: partition and then join that free space with D:. Then move more data, etc...

However, this is really risky. If you mess something up, or if the computer messes something up, you're screwed. I strongly suggest that you invest in an external hard drive, which are relatively cheap, to backup your data.

It may also be worth looking into some of the online backup services, like:
- http://www.thelinkup.com/
- http://mozy.com/free
- http://www.idrive.com/
some of which are free for the first few gigabytes.

As for Sony specific stuff, take a look in the Sony forum for a clean install guide that goes over that in more detail.

PS. This will probably take a long time.

 

Thanks for the reply.

Currently I'm trying hard to have more free space by deleting un-used stuff and converting my xvid files to h264. Online backup services don't work for me because of my slow internet connection. It'll take decades for me to upload gigs of data.

I have burned recovery discs to DVD, but I am afraid to delete the partition of the possibility of something goes wrong with my DVDs.

Where is the Vista built-in partition magic? Disk management? And then shrink Volume?

 

Karen - I would not delete the Sony recovery partition - I found that I used it quite a bit as I rebuilt my FZ after a clean install - to install single apps. The Recovery DVD's only allow an all or nothing (or at least that's the way mine worked). I used Vista to set up my partitions and Vista would not delete the Recovery partition anyway - you'll need something like Partition Magic to accomplish this. The ABR method did not work for me - I ended up using the key on the bottom of my FZ and then activated after everything was installed (not at the beginning of the Vista install). That way, if you have a problem and have to start all over, you don't have to worry about activating yet again which will probably require a call instead of an online activation.

Also (and orev might be able to answer) - I can shrink my OS partition or my Data partition, but I can not increase my Data partition with the built in Vista disk management. If I shrink my OS, it just makes a new partition and does not allow the Data partition to increase (options are gray'ed out). Maybe I set them up wrong?

 

How do you keep the Vaio Recovery Center to use after the fresh install?

I'm a bit confused... I have to make a call just to activate Vista? As in an international call to Microsoft in the US?

 

Vista will not touch the recovery center - so if you keep the vaio recovery folder and then install it back (as you mentioned in your original post), you will be able to access the Recovery Center by double clicking the "launch.exe" in that folder.

You can/will activate Vista as usual, but if you do that, then have to start over sometimes you have to call MSFT to activate because you just activated it with that same key. Don't worry about this so much - when you activate, if there is a problem Vista will tell you what do do.

 

Vista's built-in partition manager is under Admin tools / Computer management/ Disk storage.

Or from the start menu, type in compmgmt.msc

 

I'd go with bubbatex then. I'm not a Sony user and am only familiar with typical Vista installs. Sony may have something "special" going on.

How much space are you saving by going xvid to h264? I will bet that there's some loss of quality going on there, as you normally don't want to recode a file that's already been encoded. You might be better off moving the xvid files straight to DVDs.

There was a bug in ABR that I recently fixed that caused a problem with some people doing the backup and recovery. It should now work on all OEM systems.

I'm not sure why the options are grayed-out. I haven't done a lot of work with the Vista disk resizing, but everything I've done so far did work. Mostly shrinking and expanding a partition, but I haven't done something like what I described above.

With the fixed ABR, you shouldn't have to call. If you do, they have international numbers almost everywhere so it should be toll-free in your country. Also, if you have a problem with ABR, please report it to me so I know.

 

Thanks orev - good to know that ABR works correctly now - or works for more folks.

 

If you still have the backup files, it should work for you too. In some cases it was backing up too much, and the updated restore can get the activation back from the garbled file.

 

513 mb xvid file can be 187 mb with h264. I have tons of xvid files so this kind of help. I don't really notice change of quality when I watch the videos though. And I heard h264 can compress video much better than xvid with the same quality.

Will try it out and tell whether it works or not.

Thanks for the answers and suggestions everyone, I am now in the process of sorting important files to backup -- if it's possible I am not risking creating another partition. I hope I won't encounter any problem.