Windows 10: Reinstall win 10 to get rid of HP software

Well, I know the keyboard works at bootup because occasionally I can call up HP Settings by madly thumping F2 and F9. Anyway, mouse and keyboard are connected through a dongle.

 

Windows 10's Fast Startup can make it a PITA to access the BIOS. The PC never really powers on from a cold start. It powers up from a hybrid sleep mode. What I've done in the past is power down, unplug the towers power cord, then press the power button for say 5 seconds. Then plug it back in, boot up, and spam the key for BIOS access on the keyboard.

 

Good idea. Tried it and got a UEFI option on a menu. But the resulting page was HP's limited options, which did not include any choice to boot from usb or dvd. So actual interface with bios or uefi is still not possible.

 

Hurrah, I hope. It works at least for usb. (I thought a dvd of Windows iso would be bootable but perhaps not.) I found that when in the sub-menu of Change Boot Security you can change the options by hitting right arrow and left arrow. Having removed boot security and fast boot I can now hit esc and/or F10 to get a menu. I still long for the days when the system would detect a dvd and ask if I wanted to boot to it. But I'm gonna call this solved.

Thanks to all for your patient and accurate suggestions.

 

Sorry for the belated response. There are indeed 2 identical recovery partitions, both called Recovery (D and identical in all respects. I don't begrudge the extra 11 G but if it doesn't harm anything I will delete one.

 

I understood you wanted to remove the HP software from the beginning but maybe I am wrong. Delete all the recoveries (If you don't want HP software to load during install) and Install fresh from a usb. By the way on most HP laptops (i know you have a desktop) you can enter the recovery system at boot with F11.

 

SonicBlue the F11 method I was not familiar with and just checked it on the HP notebook. Repetitively clicking the F11 key on boot displays a black screen with these options:
F1 System Information
F2 System Diagnostics


F7 HP SpareKey
F9 Boot Device Options
F10 BIOS Setup

F12 Network Boot

ENTER - Continue Startup

For more information, please visit: HP Personal Computer Startup No-Boot | HP® Official Site

The link has multiple languages and if English is chosen it opens: HP PCs - Resolving Diagnostic Errors that Appear During Startup | HP® Customer Support