Windows 10: Best way to perform a clean installation...

I'm running Win 10 Pro Insider 2004 (19564.1005) and I've been noticing little problems here and there. These are very small, but at the same time, can be frustrating. Performance degradation to the point of being non usable and having to reboot, windows update doesn't always work, programs in the notification area will either freeze temporarily or permanently, requiring an "end process" command via task manager to revive/restart said program, etc...

Currently, the "Evaluation Copy is set to expire on 7/31/2020" message that pops up every 15 seconds is what really motivated me to write this post and start planning a clean install.

I use my computer for work as a web developer. I have a lot of programs running on my computer at a time

My strategy for storage has always been:

• Primary Drive for OS & Programs
• Secondary Drive for Downloads/Documents/Pictures (my Library folders
• Tertiary Drive for Media/Personal Files/etc
• Quaternary Drive for Client/Business Related Files

The only folder I have never messed with is the user profile folder (ie. user/cntquinn/) - You know, the folder that contains Documents/Downloads/Favorites/AppData etc...

I have a few questions regarding a clean installation:

What is the best way to backup individual program settings? I'm guessing I should load each program individually and see if there is a way to save/backup settings manually and then do so to a storage device not going to be used for Windows?
How often should one do a clean install of Windows? The last time I did a clean install of Windows 10 was at least 2 years ago. I'm concerned that there are unnecessary "Services" / "Scheduled Tasks" / stray files & registry entries in every area of my system drive.



Is there a better way to manage the user profile folder mentioned above? Can you explain what that folder is for and if it's better to reuse that folder? My "Library" folders are stored on another drive, along with any files/folders that are created by me. Files created by installed programs or by other means, are stored in their default location within the user profile folder located in the system drive.

Are there any other folders you can suggest to have backed up and readily accessible? Of course I will be backing up the entire system disk, just in case.



A tutorial on this site that uses a powershell command to list all programs installed on a machine and then export them to a txt file is going to be my starting point/guide for what needs to be installed after Windows, so that's handled.

My computer specs are listed in my profile and are up to date.

Maybe someone out there has a checklist or similar structured guide for performing a clean install of Windows for maintenance reasons. I want to do it, but I don't want to miss something or waste a lot of time because I had to do a full restore from the backup I created.

After all that typing I realized that there are plenty of tutorials on what to backup/steps to consider and basically any and all you need to know before and after doing a clean install. I'm going to post this anyway...in hopes that you will participate.

List your before and after tasks when it comes to doing a clean install

:)

 

Best way to perform a clean installation...

I'm running Win 10 Pro Insider 2004 (19564.1005) and I've been noticing little problems here and there. These are very small, but at the same time, can be frustrating. Performance degradation to the point of being non usable and having to reboot, windows update doesn't always work, programs in the notification area will either freeze temporarily or permanently, requiring an "end process" command via task manager to revive/restart said program, etc...

Currently, the "Evaluation Copy is set to expire on 7/31/2020" message that pops up every 15 seconds is what really motivated me to write this post and start planning a clean install.

I use my computer for work as a web developer. I have a lot of programs running on my computer at a time

My strategy for storage has always been:

• Primary Drive for OS & Programs
• Secondary Drive for Downloads/Documents/Pictures (my Library folders
• Tertiary Drive for Media/Personal Files/etc
• Quaternary Drive for Client/Business Related Files

The only folder I have never messed with is the user profile folder (ie. user/cntquinn/) - You know, the folder that contains Documents/Downloads/Favorites/AppData etc...

I have a few questions regarding a clean installation:

What is the best way to backup individual program settings? I'm guessing I should load each program individually and see if there is a way to save/backup settings manually and then do so to a storage device not going to be used for Windows?
How often should one do a clean install of Windows? The last time I did a clean install of Windows 10 was at least 2 years ago. I'm concerned that there are unnecessary "Services" / "Scheduled Tasks" / stray files & registry entries in every area of my system drive.



Is there a better way to manage the user profile folder mentioned above? Can you explain what that folder is for and if it's better to reuse that folder? My "Library" folders are stored on another drive, along with any files/folders that are created by me. Files created by installed programs or by other means, are stored in their default location within the user profile folder located in the system drive.

Are there any other folders you can suggest to have backed up and readily accessible? Of course I will be backing up the entire system disk, just in case.



A tutorial on this site that uses a powershell command to list all programs installed on a machine and then export them to a txt file is going to be my starting point/guide for what needs to be installed after Windows, so that's handled.

My computer specs are listed in my profile and are up to date.

Maybe someone out there has a checklist or similar structured guide for performing a clean install of Windows for maintenance reasons. I want to do it, but I don't want to miss something or waste a lot of time because I had to do a full restore from the backup I created.

After all that typing I realized that there are plenty of tutorials on what to backup/steps to consider and basically any and all you need to know before and after doing a clean install. I'm going to post this anyway...in hopes that you will participate.

List your before and after tasks when it comes to doing a clean install

 

Clean Install Workaround for Vista

You may remember this news story on techPowerUp! a couple of days ago relating to the lack of clean installs when using the Upgrade Editions of Vista, which required an old OS to be installed. However, Paul Thurrott has managed to find a workaround for this issue, which ironically lets users do a clean install Vista without any previous version of Windows, albeit a little tedious. Here are the steps:

• Boot from the Windows Vista Upgrade DVD as normal
• When prompted for a product code, leave this blank
• Select the version of Vista you have purchased and let Vista install
• When you boot to your desktop for the first time, run the Vista setup from Windows
• This time enter your product key
• When asked whether you want to do an Upgrade of Custom install, select custom and choose a clean install
• Windows will now install for a second time and you should be able to activate it

Remember, these steps are only advised for use in order to achieve a clean install of Vista, it is only legal to use the upgrade editions if you have previously purchased the appropriate version of Windows.

Source: DailyTech

 

System freezes at the desktop even after performing clean installation of Windows 10

Hi Peter,

Do not worry we will help you with this issue.

Provide us with additional information to assist you better with this issue:

• Which is the current version of Windows 10 installed on your computer?
• What are the troubleshooting steps you have tried to resolve the issue?
• Were you able to see any error code/ error message when the system freezes?
• Does the same issue persists while booting the system in Safe mode with networking?
• Have you installed all the pending Windows Updates and drivers after performing clean installation?

To identify the issue, try few of the troubleshooting steps below and check if it helps.

Step 1: Now to troubleshoot on it, after the computer boots, I suggest you to check the performance of the system in Safe Mode.

Refer: Start your PC in safe mode in Windows 10


Step 2: Also, I suggest you to test the issue by placing the computer in a Clean Boot state helps in eliminating software conflicts.

Disclaimer: Putting your system in
Clean Boot state helps in identifying if any third party applications or startup items are causing the issue.

You need to follow the steps from the article mentioned below to perform a Clean Boot.

How to perform a clean boot in Windows

Note: After troubleshooting, refer to the section “How to reset the computer to start as usual after troubleshooting with
Clean Boot” to return the computer to a
Normal startup mode.

Step 3: Follow the below steps to
place the computer in normal mode.

• Press Windows + R keys to open Run
  command.
• Type msconfig and press Enter.
• In the System Configuration window, click on
  General tab.
• Select Start-up selection as Normal startup, click on
  Apply and Ok.
• Follow onscreen instructions.

Hope it helps. Get back to us with an updated status of system freeze after reboot for further assistance.

Thank you.