reformating

[Guest]

I have a dell 8600 laptop purchased in December. Now 6 months later its slowing down and lagging on a computer game I like to play. Instead of dealing with all this troubleshooting garbage I'd like to just reformat it and get it over with. The only problem is I have no idea how. Can anyone help me.

 

[Michael D. Alligood]

Did Dell give you a recovery cd with your purchase?

--
Best of luck!

Michael D. Alligood
MCSA, MCP, CCNA, A+,
Network+, i-Net+, CIW A, CIW CI

I have a dell 8600 laptop purchased in December. Now 6 months later its

slowing down and lagging on a computer game I like to play. Instead of
dealing with all this troubleshooting garbage I'd like to just reformat it
and get it over with. The only problem is I have no idea how. Can anyone
help me.

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

The Dell Reinstallation CD is bootable and contains all the tools necessary
to partition and format your drive. Follow this procedure and allow
Windows XP to partition and format your drive:

NOTE: It would be best to physically disconnect all your peripheral hardware
devices, except the monitor, mouse and keyboard, before installing XP.

1. Open your BIOS and set your "CD Drive as the first bootable device".

===> Accessing Motherboard BIOS
===> http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/bios_manufacturer.htm

2. Insert your Windows XP CD in the CD Drive and reboot your computer.
3. You'll see a message to boot to the CD....follow the instructions.
4. The setup menu will appear and you should elect to delete the existing
Windows partitions, then create a new partition, then format the primary
partition (preferably NTFS) and proceed to install Windows XP.

5. Clean Install Windows XP
http://michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

[Courtesy of Michael Stevens, MS-MVP]

6. After Windows XP is installed, visit the Windows Update website
and download the available "Critical Updates".

7. After installing the critical updates, be sure and visit the support website
of the manufacturer of the computer to download and install any
available Windows XP compatible drivers, such as video adapter
and audio drivers.

8. If you happen to run into any installation difficulties, use the following resources:

How to Troubleshoot Windows XP Problems During Installation
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;310064

Troubleshooting Windows XP Setup
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_setup.htm

[Courtesy of MS-MVP Kelly Theriot]

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

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|I have a dell 8600 laptop purchased in December. Now 6 months later its slowing down and lagging on a
computer game I like to play. Instead of dealing with all this troubleshooting garbage I'd like to just
reformat it and get it over with. The only problem is I have no idea how. Can anyone help me.

 

[JohnM.]

Been thinking about doing this myself. Have not done it
yet but found information here:

http://www.cyberwalker.net/faqs/how-tos/reinstall-faq.html

Hope it helps.

-----Original Message-----
I have a dell 8600 laptop purchased in December. Now 6

months later its slowing down and lagging on a computer
game I like to play. Instead of dealing with all this
troubleshooting garbage I'd like to just reformat it and
get it over with. The only problem is I have no idea how.
Can anyone help me.

 

[The Black Wibble]

I have a dell 8600 laptop purchased in December. Now 6 months later its

slowing down and lagging on a computer game I > like to play. Instead of
dealing with all this troubleshooting garbage I'd like to just reformat it
and get it over with. The only

problem is I have no idea how. Can anyone help me.

I reinstalled WinXP on a mate's Dell PC just a month ago, and it really is
in the "just-follow-your-nose" category once you get the computer to boot
off the installation CD. So, you put the CD into the drive, and right
after restarting the PC the key to press for changing the device to boot off
will be displayed in the top right hand corner of the screen. I think it is
F2.

Just a couple of tips for when XP is installed: Make the first drivers you
install the chipset (or motherboard ) drivers; and the first place visited
after the firewall is running and the PC is setup for connecting to an ISP,
the Windows Update site.

To use XP's own firewall, go to the Control Panel at select "Classic View",
then click on "Network Connections". Right click on the entry representing
your internet connection and select "Properties." Click on the "Advanced"
tab and activate the firewall from there.

Tony.