Reformat a Dell pre-built...

[Anomaly1964]

My friend has an old Dell and wants to totally reformat it and reinstall Windows XP...

Is there a trick to getting all the DELL stuff? The programs, the Dell logo that shows up when it boots?

What is the best way to reformat the HD so NOTHING is on there and do a totally fresh install of XP?

Thanks!

 

[janas19]

The Dell splash screen won't be affected by reformatting the hard drive - it's a part of the BIOS ROM.

As for programs, that's easy you can basically get anything you want. The tricky part is finding the correct drivers for the hardware.

If you want to absolutely wipe the hard drive for security, you can use DBAN. Otherwise fdisk should work.

 

[MadScientist]

Go to Dell support and type in the computer's Service Tag, a five to seven digit alphanumeric (letter and number) code, which is found on a white bar-coded label affixed to the computer. You will find all the necessary drivers.

https://www.dell.com/support/drivers/us/en/19/DriversHome/NeedProductSelection

 

[fixbsod]

I've found that those Dell drivers can be very outdated compared to what is available mainstream. ie--obsolete chipset drivers, network drivers, etc. Still worth checking to see about an updated bios tho.

 

[janas19]

I've found that those Dell drivers can be very outdated compared to what is available mainstream. ie--obsolete chipset drivers, network drivers, etc. Still worth checking to see about an updated bios tho.

True. The best thing about going to the OEM's site, I've found, is id'ing exactly what hardware you have. Once you are armed with that info, if you can find the hardware OEM drivers, all the better.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Just get a hold of a dell OEM XP restore/install disc, and a copy of DBAN on a disc, and go to town.

 

[Charlie98]

I did a fresh reinstall of Xp on all 3 of my Dells, WITHOUT all the Dell bloatware... it made a big difference.

The OS install disk has just the basic XP OS, the extra Dell utility disk has all the crap on it (including the original set of drivers.) Instead of using that, like Mad suggested, I went to the Dell page and downloaded all the drivers for each of the computers and dropped them in after the new OS was up and running. I was able to pick and choose what I installed, it was very nice. Not only is the new install very quick, it takes up less space. My single core laptop now goes from power on to useable in 1 minute flat.

I would start with the basic drivers Dell provides, and upgrade them after you know everything is running well... and then go through the tedious Windows upgrade/restart parade.

 

[Anomaly1964]

GREAT info guys...thanks!

 

[Brutus04]

Recommend run WIN7 if you can; most of the drivers will be native. I have an old 600M that runs 7 fine...

 

[Matt1970]

Check to see if there is a recovery partition first.

 

[Charlie98]

Check to see if there is a recovery partition first.

AH! I forgot that. When I was installing my versions of XP, it was on a new HDD, or a completely reformatted HDD.