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| Thread ID: 99648 | 2009-05-09 21:23:00 | When is it time to reinstall | nedkelly (9059) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 772592 | 2009-05-10 05:48:00 | Hey just wondering if i should reinstall my family's pc. The pc is about 8 years old and as far as i know it has never been reinstalled. And every time my parents go on it they complain to me how slow it is and how it does not always do what it is meant to. Reinstalling will be the way to go, but how much RAM is there ? I assume its (the first version of) Win XP. |
Strommer (42) | ||
| 772593 | 2009-05-10 07:08:00 | Hey just wondering if i should reinstall my family's pc. The pc is about 8 years old and as far as i know it has never been reinstalled. And every time my parents go on it they complain to me how slow it is and how it does not always do what it is meant to. They will complain a lot worse if you forget something and lose 8 years of memories:) Rule #1 Backup all data etc to a good reliable external source. Get something like "Drivers Genius" and make a back up of the existing drivers. Check you have original windows key and the correct installation disc. Doesn't take long to wipe the drive and reinstall windows but loading programs you will need the install discs (Check they are still available first) I am also a fan of using Acronis True Image if you have external storage space. I have one .tib file (Acronis Backup file) of Win XP Home plus AntiVirus that takes only 4 minutes to do a complete restore in my old PC. With the price of Hard Drives these days it would be wise to look at replacing an 8 year old with a new one and with a fresh copy of windows and selected data restored, your parents should be delighted:) |
minster (9180) | ||
| 772594 | 2009-05-10 11:28:00 | They will complain a lot worse if you forget something and lose 8 years of memories:) Rule #1 Backup all data etc to a good reliable external source. ... With the price of Hard Drives these days it would be wise to look at replacing an 8 year old with a new one and with a fresh copy of windows and selected data restored, your parents should be delighted:) I tip my hat to Minster, as I think his reply is spot on. You MUST keep a copy of the whole drive as it is, otherwise you'll lose their email, or address book, or photos of the grandchildren, and you'll be left feeling lousy as a result. Removing the existing drive (and keeping it aside as a backup) will give you the security of a backup, plus a fresh install on a newer, faster drive - all problems covered! |
Paul.Cov (425) | ||
| 772595 | 2009-05-10 22:18:00 | You MUST keep a copy of the whole drive as it is, otherwise you'll lose their email, or address book, or photos of the grandchildren, and you'll be left feeling lousy as a result. Well no, not necessarily. You need to back up or print out any actual emails first. Back up the address book too. And all personal files. And any install files for programs downloaded (to save re-downloading), and any serial numbers sent via email for software purchased online. Check the backup before wiping the drive and you're fine. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 772596 | 2009-05-11 01:52:00 | Also was using windirstat to see where all the space has gone on it and found a folder called installers in windows. What is this folder? Can I delete stuff in it because it is currently chewing through 14.7gb | nedkelly (9059) | ||
| 772597 | 2009-05-11 02:40:00 | I think it contains files needed to uninstall. Some files may be deleted though: blogs.msdn.com And there was a bug that caused Visual Studio updates to fill up a lot of space.. Blam |
Blam (54) | ||
| 772598 | 2009-05-11 03:12:00 | Excuse my ignorance but is there any real difference between backing up with Sync Back and using Acronis? | smurf (6545) | ||
| 772599 | 2009-05-11 03:26:00 | SyncBack pretty much copies files/folders from a directory to another location, while acronis creates an "image" a bit for bit copy of the partition or drive, which can be restored later on. I image my System drive(WHS) while I use Syncback to sync/backup my data. Blam |
Blam (54) | ||
| 772600 | 2009-05-11 03:34:00 | Thanks Blam | smurf (6545) | ||
| 772601 | 2009-05-11 08:29:00 | :o I have learnt a lot from this topic which makes me want to reinstall my OS right now.lol~ | zataka (14895) | ||
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