How to refresh, reset, or restore your PC

Note: For information about this topic in Windows 10, see Recovery options in Windows 10.

If you’re having problems with your PC, you can:

Refresh your PC to reinstall Windows and keep your personal files and settings. Refresh also keeps the apps that came with your PC and the apps you installed from the Microsoft Store.

Reset your PC to reinstall Windows but delete your files, settings, and apps—except for the apps that came with your PC.

Restore your PC to undo recent system changes you’ve made.

If you’re having trouble starting (booting) your PC, see Windows Startup Settings (including safe mode), and go to the “Get to Windows Startup Settings in the Windows Recovery Environment” section. You can refresh, reset, or restore your PC from the Windows Recovery Environment.

If you want to back up and restore your personal files using File History, see Set up a drive for File History.

Before you start to refresh or reset your PC

In most cases, once you start to refresh or reset your PC, it’ll finish on its own. However, if Windows needs missing files, you’ll be asked to insert recovery media, which is typically on a DVD disc or thumb drive. If that happens, what you’ll need depends on your PC.

If your PC came with Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1, you’ll need the discs or thumb drive that came with your PC. Check the info that came with your PC to see if your PC manufacturer provided these discs or media. In some cases, you might have created them when you first set up your PC.

If you don’t have either of those, you can make them if you have a USB thumb drive of 16 GB or larger. Having a recovery drive can help you troubleshoot and fix problems with your PC, even if it won’t start. For more info, see Create a USB recovery drive.

If you upgraded your PC to Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1 with a DVD, use that disc. If you don’t have Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1 media, contact Microsoft Support.

Refresh, reset, or restore

Select any of the following for more detailed info.

If your PC isn’t performing as well as it once did, and you don’t know why, you can refresh your PC without deleting any of your personal files or changing your settings.

Note: If you upgraded your PC from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1 and your PC has a Windows 8 recovery partition, refreshing your PC will restore Windows 8. You’ll need to upgrade to Windows 8.1 after the refresh has finished.

Warning: Apps you installed from websites and DVDs will be removed. Apps that came with your PC and apps you installed from Microsoft Store will be reinstalled. Windows puts a list of removed apps on your desktop after refreshing your PC.

To refresh your PC

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you’re using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)

Tap or click Update and recovery, and then tap or click Recovery.

Under Refresh your PC without affecting your files, tap or click Get started.

Follow the instructions on the screen.

If you want to recycle your PC, give it away, or start over with it, you can reset it completely. This removes everything and reinstalls Windows.

Note: If you upgraded your PC from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1 and your PC has a Windows 8 recovery partition, resetting your PC will restore Windows 8. You’ll need to upgrade to Windows 8.1 after the reset has finished.

Warning: All of your personal files will be deleted and your settings will be reset. All apps that you installed will be removed. Only apps that came with your PC will be reinstalled.

To reset your PC

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you’re using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)

Tap or click Update and recovery, and then tap or click Recovery.

Under Remove everything and reinstall Windows, tap or click Get started.

Follow the instructions on the screen.

Note: You’ll be asked to choose whether you want to erase data quickly or thoroughly. If you choose to erase data quickly, some data might be recoverable using special software. If you choose to erase data thoroughly, this will take longer but it makes recovering data less likely.

If you think an app or driver that you recently installed caused problems with your PC, you can restore Windows back to an earlier point in time, called a restore point. System Restore doesn’t change your personal files, but it might remove recently installed apps and drivers.

System Restore isn’t available for Windows RT 8.1.

Windows automatically creates a restore point when you install desktop apps and new Windows updates, if the last restore point is older than 7 days. You can also create a restore point manually at any time.

To restore your PC to an earlier point in time

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search.
(If you’re using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Search.)

Enter Control Panel in the search box, and tap or click Control Panel.

Enter Recovery in the Control Panel search box, and then tap or click Recovery.

Tap or click Open System Restore, and then follow the instructions.

If you need additional help refreshing, resetting, or restoring your PC, check out the Repair and Recovery community pages in the Windows forum for solutions that other people have found for problems they’ve experienced.

Things You Need to Do Before and After Installing Windows

When your computer is not behaving as it should, re-installing Windows is sometimes the only way to go. Just insert the installation media and follow the wizard. That being said, the problem starts after installing Windows. For instance, you cannot connect to the Internet due to driver issues or you forget to install some applications, lose application settings and configurations, etc. If you have a plan beforehand, the reinstallation procedure will be much smoother.

Before Re-installing Windows

Here are some simple things you need to do before reinstalling Windows.

1. Back Up Files, Application Settings, and Configurations

This is the first thing you need to do when considering a re-installation. Skim through your C: drive and back up any personal files like images, videos, and documents. Especially, look in general folders like Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Downloads, etc.

After that you need to back up the settings and other data of your favorite applications. For instance, if you are using the Thunderbird email client, you can back up the profile folder. This helps you restore the Thunderbird application without manually adding all the email accounts again. Each application has its own way to export settings and configurations, so take your time and back up those settings. Since you can easily import those settings and configurations with just a few clicks, it helps you save a ton of time after re-installing Windows.

2. Make Sure You Have All the Product Keys

To activate some premium software like Windows, Office, etc., you need to have product keys. It is a good idea to have those products keys beforehand. This lets you activate the software as soon as you install it. You can use free software tools like ProduKey or Belarc Advisor to quickly find and copy the product keys of different software. One thing to keep in mind is that you might not get the product keys of all your premium software. If you find that the you are missing a product key for premium software, you can try to recover it from your email inbox or simply contact the developer.

3. Download Drivers

Device drivers are a big issue for Windows systems. Though Windows 10 tries to install generic drivers automatically, it is good to have all the required drivers beforehand, especially video and network drivers. Head to your laptop or motherboard manufacturer website and download their latest drivers. The drivers contained in the CD/DVD you get when you buy the laptop or motherboard are usually outdated and may sometimes cause unnecessary problems.

4. Make a List of All Installed Programs

This is one of the most overlooked parts, but it always helps to make a list of all the software installed on your system. Besides the installed software, also note down any portable software you are using.

5. Make Sure You Have Up-to-Date Installation Media

Unlike Windows 7, Microsoft is updating Windows 10 twice every year. So before you proceed to reinstall, make sure you have the up-to-date installation media. If you are unsure, you can download the latest ISO from the official Microsoft website and create a bootable USB drive.

After Re-installing Windows

1. Install Device Drivers

The first thing to do after installing Windows is to install all the drivers you downloaded earlier. This will ensure that all the hardware devices work properly and that you can connect to the Internet.

2. Update Windows

After installing hardware drivers, you need to install Windows updates. More often than not these updates contain bug fixes, security patches, and feature updates. To update a Windows 10 machine, open the Settings app by pressing the keyboard shortcut “Win + I,” navigate to “Update and Security -> Windows Update” and click on the “Check for updates” button.

3. Download and Install All Your Software

Next, download and install all the required software. Use the list you created earlier to make sure that you are installing all your favorite applications. For general purpose software like browsers, media players, image viewers, etc., use Ninite. This free software automates everything and installs common software with just a single click.

4. Configure Windows and Application Settings

After installing all the required software, it is time to configure the Windows settings. When I say Windows settings, I’m talking about common settings like unhiding file extensions, disabling unwanted startup items, setting up Windows Hello, changing default apps, etc.

Restore all the backed-up application settings one by one. Every app has its own way to import the settings and configurations. For instance, to restore Thunderbird all you have to do is copy the profile folder to the “AppData” folder and you are done.

5. Create a Backup Image for Future Use

This step is optional. However, creating a backup image after installing and configuring your system is always the best thing to do. This backup image lets you quickly restore Windows if anything bad happens in the future. Of course, you still have to update Windows and other software after restoring Windows, but that is much better than actually re-installing and going through the whole process.

Do comment below sharing your thoughts and experiences about re-installing Windows.

Vamsi is a tech and WordPress geek who enjoys writing how-to guides and messing with his computer and software in general. When not writing for MTE, he writes for he shares tips, tricks, and lifehacks on his own blog Stugon.

5 comments

Fantastic guide! Thank you!

Before: Are you going to completely flush your data and format the drives (to get rid of malware)?
Scan your system and all files for viruses and malware. You don’t want to go to all this effort and time, just to move bad stuff right back onto your fresh installation.
Backup wanted downloads, music, videos (and what else. ), browser favorites, email contacts and passwords. Have the product keys, logons and (router!) passwords on paper and drivers and basic system protection (anti-malware) application on thumb drive.
Check router for security updates.
Think of privacy and security settings that you want to set during installation, like account email logon. Do you want a private new account?
Test your installation and backup media BEFORE you wipe it out!

Before installing Windows check your sanity, after installing Windows just remove it. “joke”

Before installing Windows: Think twice.

After installing Windows: Uninstall Windows, install Linux.

That’s the right way of repairing a defective or broken windows installation.

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