Re-installing Windows 1

[robofactory]

Hi...

I've noticed a lot of users are unaware of a very easy and safe solution to a multitude of Windows problems - just re-install Windows! Layering Windows on top of itself (by inserting your Windows CD and clicking 'Setup') gives you a fresh install, without the hassle of formatting your C: drive or hunting for drivers. Sure, you might want to re-download the various updates from Microsoft, but this is a small price to pay for a problem-free operating system. Try it - you'll like it!

John

http://robofactory.mybravenet.com/

 

[Mulga]

Its always worth a try as it usually does no harm, however in my experience it is of limited use in solving problems as it does not remove corrupt registry entries or configuration settings

 

[edfair]

And depending on what version you are using you'll find that it will not reinstall without major pruning of the current install. Some require the registry to be removed first, some require the desktop to be gone. It appears that there is nothing common about how you can do it.
SE seems to be the best in this regard. Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[Daire]

Will a reinstall like that lose all installed applications and data files?

 

[edfair]

Depends. If this is a version where the registry has to be removed you lose program links that are there. You might have to reinstall application, but data should be OK. If SE, I've done it several times with no loss. Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[SPYDERIX]

When you re-install Windows over top of itself, you run the risk of your OS becoming corrupt, slow, and very un-stable (This is for Windows ME), and there are the occassions when some of your programs will cease to work.

I received this info from Dell Tech Support, and they all say the same thing. Every time I've needed help from them, and a re-install was my option, they warned me that doing a re-install is good for only one thing. GETTING ACCESS TO YOUR FILES TO BACKUP. Then once all your files are saved your should format and re-install windows.

I wouldn't recommend just re-installing at the sight of any problem. There are variuos other ways of fixing things. ie-System Restore, Changing something in the registry, etc.
Nate
"If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space!"

 

[robofactory]

Reply to Leptonite:

I've never had any problems re-installing - all of your applications, programs, data, etc., are unaffected by the reinstallation...

John

http://robofactory.mybravenet.com/

 

[robofactory]

Reply to DellComputerUser:

Agree with you about ME, but, seeing as how this is a "Win95/98 Forum", I was referring to Win95/98 - IMHO, WinME is the worst thing Gates has done for quite a while...

 

[Mulga]

Another Reply to DellComputerUser
I thought corrupt, slow, and very un-stable described Win ME as it is "out of the box" :-D

 

[egli]

Re-installing Windows 95 has royally screwed me!
It's done something to the registry and I don't know how to fix it. (Didn't know it wouldn't get backed up) When I try to open Word it tells me that the document can't be registered...
More importantly, my cut & paste and drag & drop functions are almost dead. Reinstalling might help some programs, but I can't even move the icons on my desktop!
I've posted this problem yesterday and by searching back I see others have had the same problem, usually after re-installing Windows 95! However, no one seems to have posted a solution yet...

 

[edfair]

Generally I start with an EBD for that specific version (some utilities are different between versions) and add deltree to it. I also add the install files to the hard disk so I don't need a CD.
Boot from the EBD, deltree windows, go to the install files, and setup.
You lose drivers, registry, links to programs, and various other stuff that you can add back.
Some versions can be reloaded without wiping everything out but I've come to the conclusion that it is easier in the long run to clean house than to have to try multiple times because I've forgotten to delete something specific to this version. Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[egli]

Thanks, Ed
You seem to be the expert on this - your name kept coming up in my searches. How about an FAQ?
Just a couple of questions before I attempt this:
What does EBD stand for and is it the same as the Windows 95 Startup Disk I create when re-installing Windows?
Is there any chance just deleting the Windows/Desktop directory and reinstalling Windows will fix all my problems?
How do I re-create the registry or is a basic version made when I re-install Windows?
What "various other stuff" might I lose? I have copies of my most important programs, but not all.
Lastly, do you know why this happens at all? I can understand the "unable to register document", but not being unable to move my desktop icons!

Cheers
Michael

 

[spacekowboy]

i have reinstalled, a year ago, and its still running fine.

:-Q x->

 

[edfair]

Not the expert. Just a bloodied up guy who has been there, done that more times than I can count.
EBD is emergency boot disk, the startup disk with other stuff you may need, diskcopy , deltree, and the cd drivers.
You try with desktop gone. If it still fails blow away the registry and try again. On some I've had to blow away windows directory.
Registry will be created on the install.
When you install programs they get info loaded into the registry. If you don't have copies of the programs to reinstall you won't get the entries so some things might not work correctly running from the executable. All the hardware entries will be get loaded in but it is possible things won't sort out right if you have something that requires an install sequence. But generally you delete the problems and they will install correctly the next time you boot.
Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[egli]

OK, I've managed to rework everything to get near back to normal, and here's how it went:

Tried getting rid of just the desktop, then the registry. Neither fixed things, so I created a startup (EBD) disk with Deltree and Diskcopy, and erased the Windows directory.


My only problems (so far) were:

-I did have Windows 95 on the hard drive, which is divided into C, E, and G drives. When trying to start up without Windows my computer couldn't see the G drive Windows 95 was on.

-Himem was deleted as it was in the Windows directory, so I had to reload it to get things working.

-I had another copy of Windows on another drive and the Win.com file meant I got the "already have Windows loaded so you can't load Windows etc" error. Would have been a smaller problem if I had some way to search for Win.com, which I didn't seem to have, after deleting Windows. Did find it and changed it to Win.bak.


On the minor side:

-Reloading Netscape 4.7 was a pain. When you re-install it, it wants to create a new user profile but it will give you a chance to go to your original user profile instead of overwriting it. Now that it is up I keep getting annoying messages about Netscape wanting to reload the bookmark file!!

-I still have the problem I originally was trying to get rid of! When Windows starts up it mentions that the System.ini file or Windows registry is trying to find a file which no longer exists. It isn't in System.ini, which may mean another fun Windows adventure...

Hope this summary helps and lets people know that you can recover from reloading Windows (and post the results for others benefit!)


Michael

 

[edfair]

On the second copy of windows installed, I rename anything win*.* to

http://www*.*.

This keeps the file but lets the check pass. This is a carryover from multiple installs of 3.1 that had the same problem.
The netscape probably should have been (or should be) deleted, then reinstalled. Should get rid of the problem. Ed Fair
unixstuff@juno.com
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[egli]

Deleting Netscape (after relocating my user file) & re-installing Netscape seems to have fixed it.

Thanks
Michael