Windows 10: Wiping my Windows 10 pro PC.What Method should I use to wipe-Reinstall

Hello Everyone,

Every so often I do a reboot of my computer. What I have done for years is use a program like DBAN to wipe my whole computer. Next, the only full version of Windows I own is XP, so I install that and that creates a partition that puts XP on it. Then I would install the current windows operating system I own and at the time of my last reboot I installed Windows 8 and then the upgrade to windows 8.1. Now I currently have Windows 10 pro that I installed by taking advantage of the free Windows 10 upgrade back when it first came out.

I am looking for a more easier method I can utilize instead of doing all that installing. What best method to get my computer rebooted again with Windows 10 pro that you guys would recommend?

Thank you very much for your help.

:)

 

Windows 10 Home install over 10 pro not working

I thought I had Windows 10 Pro installed but it was the Home version. After a failure during a pushed update, I had to wipe the drive and reinstall the OS. I loaded 10 Pro and it wouldn't activate. I then installed 10 Home but it still says it's the pro
version and won't activate.

Any work arounds to this? I'm not keen on wiping and reinstalling again.

 

reinstall after upgrade

I have a Surface Pro that originally had Windows 8.1 Pro. I have installed the free Windows 10 upgrade, but I now want to reinstall it. I want to completely wipe my hard drive and install Windows 10. I know this can be done, but I need a list of steps to
get everything necessary to reinstall Windows 10 (including exporting settings & preferences) and how to wipe my hard drive. Are there any good places to get a good detailed list of steps to do these things? Thanks.

 

Once Windows 10 is activated you can just format the whole disk and clean-install Windows 10 directly (skip key when asked). When first connected to the internet it will find your registration on Microsoft servers and activate automatically, no key needed. Just make sure you install the same version (Home or Pro) or it won't activate. You can download the latest build ISO from Microsoft Tech Bench. Be careful to download the correct language to be able to upgrade older Windows to 10. "English" is English US and "English International" is English GB. Each one can only upgrade the same language Windows. Unless you have a specific restricted version, you are looking for "Windows 10", which contains both Home and Pro (depending or serial or previous Windows version). Others are special restricted versions and can only upgrade their respective Windows 7 and 8 versions.

 

Thank you spapakons. Doing this way you suggest will this method clean out completely like the department of defense DoD Short or something in that range? Also, is this method you suggest be safe enough or wipe out the drive enough to just give the computer away etc?

Thank you!

 

You could turn on bitlocker and encrypt the whole drive. If you want to give it away just clean install again - nothing earlier will be recoverable.

 

Or you can do a full format (not quick) at each partition before you delete them and install Windows 10 at the unallocated space. You could also fill the disk with zeros, but this is too far.

 

This clean install you are recommending it sounds like the one I mentioned in my original post. Correct? If not, what clean install are you suggesting? Also, I have never used bitlocker, why and/or when should I use that feature?

Thank you!

 

This is kind of my original method I mentioned in my original post.

 

I would boot from a Windows 10 Pro installation media, select custom install, delete all the partitions on the hard drive when you get the listing, then clean install to the unallocated space. It would take a forensics expert to recover any old information left on the hard drive not overwritten by the clean install.

Let Windows 10 create it's own partitions during the install by just selecting the unallocated space to install to.

 

Thank you NavyLCDR. Since I didn't buy Windows 10 retail version and I have made a disc via media creation tool will I be able to do the same thing?

Just making sure here. It might sound stupid. By deleting and reinstalling windows 10 on my partition doesn't that not wipe out the old information to the way like a program DBAN would by writing all zeros?

Doing it this way, since I don't own a full version of Windows 10, but the free upgrade that I got when Windows 10 first came out. Don't I need to have atleast a prior operating system first before able to install windows 10?

 

If Windows 10 is activated, this information is stored in Microsoft Server. When first online after the new installation, it will detect this information and reactivate automatically (assuming of course you install the same version Home or Pro).

 

Yes.

Well, it deletes the markers to the information (Master File Table or File allocation Table). Until the old information is written over, it's still there - it just takes special software to retrieve it.

No. When you install Windows 10 on the same computer it will calculate the same Hardware ID as the previous installation of Windows 10 (calculation based on hardware installed [mostly the motherboard] not on information stored on the hard drive). The Hardware ID is sent to Microsoft activation servers, where the previous Hardware ID and activation was stored when you upgraded. When the activation server finds your matching stored Hardware ID, it will return the activation - if the version of Windows 10 also matches.

 

Thank you very much NavyLCDR and everyone.

NavyLCDR, in regards to the method you described earlier. You mentioned it will delete the markers to the information (Master File Table or File allocation Table), but will I get a very clean refreshed PC? Will this method you described remove viruses, bugs etc.?

 

To the average user it will completely erase the hard drive and start over from absolutely nothing. Yes, you will get a very clean refreshed PC and it will remove viruses and malware. (Bugs are errors in the actual operating system). What it will not do is overwrite the entire contents of the hard drive so a forensics expert examining the hard drive bit-by-bit could reconstruct some of the old files that are have not been overwritten.