Some laptops and PCs come with a ‘hidden’ hard drive on which is a full backup of Windows. If you can’t boot into Windows 10 and so cannot follow the steps above then try the following.įirst, turn on your computer and look for any messages which appear before the Windows logo. And to do that just double-click on the downloaded file and choose where to extract the contents. Click Update Driver in the window that opens and direct it to the drivers you downloaded earlier – you may have to unzip the files if the download had a. If yours is like this, double-click on the name of the network controller to bring up the properties. If the status says “Windows is activated with a digital licence” but says no more, then it isn’t linked to your Microsoft account. Whether you have a Windows 10 product key or not, head to Settings > Update & Security > Activation. But Windows 10 doesn’t necessarily have a product key and if you previously upgraded from Windows 7 or 8, you certainly won’t have one.

If you don’t do this, Windows 10 might not be able to re-activate after you reinstall it. If you haven’t done so already, you should link your Windows 10 product key with your Microsoft account.

Link your Windows 10 product key with your Microsoft account Download and save drivers for your network adapter (either Ethernet or Wi-Fi) to ensure you can get reconnected to the internet.Look for any activation keys you might need to reinstall apps once Windows is reinstalled.Save web bookmarks (or sign into Chrome or Firefox so they are saved to the cloud).Research how to back up progress in your games so you don’t have to start fresh.Deregister any apps which will need to be activated again after you reinstall them (such as older versions of Photoshop).Just don’t expect to use the device for a while after the reinstall process begins – your PC is likely to be out of action for up to two hours. How to speed up your internet if you think this might be an issue. An SSD will be much faster than a mechanical hard drive for reinstalling Windows 10. Considering you’ll be downloading new software, it will also take a long time if you’re internet connection is slow. There’s even one which can install the operating system fresh, without tampering with your files or some settings preferences. It also means you’ll automatically be updated to the latest version of Windows 10, which is good news if you’re a bit behind on software updates.Īs with so many installation tutorials, the speed of this process will depend on the hardware you’re working with.

That’s the focus of this article, as Microsoft has provided several different methods. Installing it is a relatively simple process, but so is reinstalling Windows 10. At this point, most people will be taking advantage of theįree upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.

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