Learn how your comment data is processed. AlmaLinux checklist: 9 things to do after installation, Comment and share: Reset your Windows 10 system with the Keep My Files option. Go to the Update & Security group of settings. i.e. © 2021 ZDNET, A RED VENTURES COMPANY. it re-installs windows 10 over itself and keeps all data where it is (including registry settings and everything else). You will just need to have some form of Windows 10 installation media, either USB or DVD. - Reinstall windows and keep my files. Be your company's Microsoft insider by reading these Windows and Office tips, tricks, and cheat sheets. If you’ve installed Windows 10 on your C drive, and have files on your D drive, they will be untouched. To help you to remember what desktop applications you had installed, the Reset This PC tool will create a list of those applications that were not saved or restored, so that you can decide whether you want to reinstall them. As long as you don't have any system file modifications, all other data will be preserved. Windows 10 activation accelerates past 200 million devices, Microsoft jettisons support for legacy software. Once everything is complete and you see the desktop, look for an HTML file called Removed Apps. Here are two ways you can go about in completing the reset of Windows 10. Now, it's important to remember that using Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option does not back up and restore any desktop applications you have installed. It only "refreshes" the system files. Using Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option will essentially perform a fresh install of Windows 10 while keeping all your data intact. If you want to be extra careful, you can find your Windows 10 product key before the reset and have it on-hand for later use. On your Windows 10, search for Backup & Restore from the search bar of the Windows icon. On Windows 10, things are a bit simpler. You can create your own Windows 10 installation media using the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool from Microsoft. To reset the Hosts file back to the default, follow these steps: Open Notepad. I've just upgraded to Windows 10 from W7 and I want to do a clean install to get rid of all the old apps and settings. There’s no tool that lets you reset the Windows registry. Which option should you choose? Resetting your computer will re-install Windows 10, but did you know it will also give you the option to keep your files. Running Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option is actually easy. If you reset Windows 10, your computer will start fresh with a new installation, but also let you choose to whether keep your files or remove them, providing two resetting options Keep my files and Remove everything. The very next dialog after the "Keep my files" or "Remove everything" asks if you want to remove the content of all drives or just the Windows system drive C:. Windows 10 asks you whether you want to keep your personal files or remove everything on the PC. To proceed, click the Reset button. If you had a duly activated copy of Windows 10, it will be activated automatically after the reset. After your system boots from the Recovery Drive and you select the Troubleshoot > Reset This PC option. Reset removed everything, including your files–like doing a complete Windows resintall from scratch. However, it will remove apps and drivers you installed, and also removes the changes you made to the settings. Or, if you are using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Search, type Notepad, and then click Notepad.. Type and search [Reset this PC] ① in the Windows search bar, then click [Open] ②. Click [Get started] ③. In the newest Windows 10 version, however, Refresh is integrated in " Reset this PC " as the "Keep my files" option. Overview of These Three Options. Any and all files related to these apps, such as settings files, will be removed. In case the text in the screenshot is a little fuzzy, I'll list the info here. This reset option will reinstall Windows 10 and keeps your personal files, such as photos, music, videos or personal files. You'll then be prompted to choose the target operating system, as shown in Figure B. Method 1: Reinstall Windows via Reset this PC in Settings; Method 2: Reinstall Windows via Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) Method 1: Reinstall Windows via Reset this PC in Settings. - I have two backup images of the system partitions; so am safe for a clean OS. You get a fresh Windows 10 installation. Microsoft went to every effort to ensure that Windows 10 is a solid OS, but you still might encounter a situation that causes your system to become unstable. Greg Shultz is a freelance Technical Writer. Be prepared: Create a Windows 10 Recovery Drive, Windows 10 Media Creation Tool from Microsoft, Rescue an ailing system: Launch Windows 10 Startup Repair from the Recovery Drive, Get familiar with the Windows 10 Recovery Drive... before you need it. Remember that apps will be removed so your Program Files and Program Files (86) folders will be much thinner if not completely empty. What's on your Windows 10 wish list for 2016? TechRepublic Premium: The best IT policies, templates, and tools, for today and tomorrow. This method allows you to reinstall Windows 10 and keep programs, but only if your computer is bootable. Using Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option will essentially perform a fresh install of Windows 10 while keeping all your data intact. It co-exist with the other option "Remove everything", which evolves from "Reset your PC" feature in older versions and will remove all your personal files after reinstallation. Reset This PC is a repair tool for serious system problems and it is available from the Troubleshoot menu or the Recovery page in Windows 10 Settings.If your PC cannot run properly, resetting your PC may solve issues without requiring the internet connection to work. The Windows Registry is one of those essential components of Windows that you shouldn’t tweak too much. - I have three other partitions on this drive. The ‘Keep my files’ option needs a little more detail. Select [Local reinstall] ⑤. If your Windows 10 system goes awry, it's good to know that you have tools to help revive it--without losing any data. During the next stage of the procedure, the system begins installing Windows, as shown in Figure E. When the percentage count hit 99%, I thought it was ready to finish--but it actually sat at the 99% mark for quite a long time. It will then install a fresh copy of Windows and restore the data, settings, and the apps that were installed with Windows 10. But I suppose if I had a dual-boot configuration, this step would make more sense. More specifically, when you choose this option from the Recovery Drive, it will find and back up all your data, settings, and apps. In technical terms, this is a “clean reinstall.” This is a good option if you are selling or donating your device, if your PC is infected with a virus, or if you've already done a Keep my files reset but the problems remain. Ransomware attackers are now using triple extortion tactics, Ten Windows 10 network commands everyone one should know, 9 things to know about cryptocurrency such as Cardano, Binancecoin and Ethereum, How to blur your background in a Zoom call. In this guide, you will learn the steps to restore the previous version of the Registry manually from its automated backup on Windows 10. Files in other drives: The reset does not remove files from drives that your OS is not installed on. Select the Recovery tab and click ‘Get Started’ under the ‘Reset  this PC section. Important: Remember that modifying system files can further damage the installation if it is not done correctly. Share your comments in the discussion thread below. You can also go to Control Panel, find and click System and Maintenance, and then select Backup and Restore. The only exception is with Windows 10. I tried to ask this once but my question kind of disappeared into the void. To do this, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Search, type Notepad, and then tap the Notepad icon. Whatever the cause, Windows 10's Recovery Drive tool can help you revive an unstable system without losing your data. About 10-15 minutes ago I noticed (ashamed that I didn't notice this sooner) that my background picture was the exact same as before the factory reset. Files On Your OS Drive: If you have files and folders saved to you OS drive, they will not be removed. Third-party apps: All third-party apps that you installed will be removed. When your PC restarts, just log in with your same username and password and find all your data. The reasoning is that a recently installed desktop application could be the cause of the instability. AppData: Everything in this folder will be moved to a Windows.old folder. Windows 10 has a neat reset feature that fixes most, if not all problems. This means, you will have to install them again when you start using your system. Windows 10 Reset This PC. Remove everything. You'll select the Keep My Files option, as shown in Figure A. If this sounds familiar, we have covered a similar process using Windows 10's built-in " Reset this PC " option, but that removes your programs and … Windows 10 includes an option to Reset this PC which can be accessed in Settings → Update and Security → Recovery. When you choose to reset, you're given some options: The "Keep my files" option says it "keeps your personal files", but which files does it actually keep? It will take some time to complete, but it is a straightforward operation. The "Reset this PC" thingy gives me two options: Keep my personal files. Step 1: Find the location of the Windows 10 ISO file, then right-click on it and select Mount to continue. As soon as you click, ‘Keep my Files’ option, the reset process starts. Refresh kept all your files and personalization settings, but set your PC settings to the default and uninstalled your desktop apps. It’s also why you should back it up before you edit it. 2 level 2 Now that you know how Reset This PC and the Keep My Files option work, you'll be ready to use it should the need arise. Delivered Mondays and Wednesdays. On my test system, the entire procedure took somewhere around 40 minutes to complete, and of course the system restarted several times. That’s precisely why you shouldn’t edit the registry unless you know what you’re doing. Previously, he has worked as Documentation Specialist in the software industry, a Technical Support Specialist in educational industry, and a Technical Journalist in the computer publishing industry. - My main question is (just for my knowledge) when the OS is "Reset", would it delete the other partitions and make the drive as one drive to become a one-partion reset drive (OS)? are files moved to windows.old when we choose remove everything, Your email address will not be published. Therefore, to reset Windows 10 without losing data, select ‘Keep my files’. How to install Open Broadcaster (OBS) in Ubuntu, What Is Checksum (Definition): How to Generate a File Checksum, How to Fix the DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN Error (Full Guide), How To Upload Music To Google Music On Linux. Have you ever had to use this procedure? Your User  Folder: Files in this folder are not removed when you reset Windows 10 and choose the Keep my files option. Click Restore my Files from the given options and follow the onscreen instructions on how to restore your files completely. If you are using an optical disc Recovery Drive--or for some reason couldn't use the Back Up System Files To The Recovery Drive option, you can still use Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option. And you need to download the Windows 10 ISO image file before proceeding (you can jump this step if you have a Windows 10 ISO image file). If you mess with it, your apps might stop working or Windows might start giving you trouble. Let's take a closer look at how Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option works. To reset Windows 10, open the Settings app. At this point, you can begin reinstalling your desktop applications. Required fields are marked *. In fact, if your Windows installation has become particularly buggy you’re going to have to do a fresh install. In a moment you'll see the Reset This PC screen, which outlines what this option will provide (Figure C). See the tutorial: Reset Windows 10 - Windows 10 Forums, Option Two steps 5 & 6. When you reset Windows 10, you can do a full reset that removed everything or you can keep your files. You just need to wait for a while until the reset process is completed. Everything, your files, your apps, and your settings are removed. You can then get right back to work on a stable system. What’s important is files kept after a Windows 10 reset. To run Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option as I'll describe in this article, you'll need to have created a Recovery Drive. Public Profile Folder: Files in your public folder are moved to the Windows.old folder. Your email address will not be published. If your apps have licenses that you need in order to use them, you should back them up or make sure you have them. This includes the files you have in your Windows libraries i.e., the Document, Music, Pictures, etc., libraries. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. At first this seems to be a redundant question. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. If so, did it get your system back into a stable state? Is "Keep personal files" an equivalent of clean install but without deleting my user folder? Also, keep the power adapter connected if you are resetting Windows in a laptop to avoid interruption due to low battery. Choosing to reset the Surface Book reinstalls Windows 10 on the computer, and gives you the option to keep your personal files while removing any … (If required, you will be prompted to insert your Windows 10 installation media at this point.) You will not have to activate Windows 10 again. Because you want to keep your personal files, you should choose "Keep my files (Removes apps and settings, but keeps your personal files)." A Keep my files reset can take up to 2 hours to complete. The ‘Remove everything’ option is pretty obvious. Choose Keep my files when resetting your PC Then, your PC needs a few moments to get everything ready. This isn't really a problem, more of a curiosity. So I factory reset my asus laptop with windows 10 just a few days ago. This is a feature named Reset this PC included in Windows 10 Recovery options. You could suffer a nasty virus infection, install an incompatible software application, or possibly even install a rickety device driver. Open the file in Microsoft Edge and you'll see a display similar to the one shown in Figure F. As you can see, this list shows all the applications that were removed from my test system during the Reset operation. You have two options for resetting Windows 10; Keep my files, and Remove everything. When you log in for the first time, some of the standard screens associated with Windows 10's first run will appear. This folder is created at the root of your OS drive. For example, if you have driver files on your C drive, they will still be there after a system reset. Remove everything. Select [Keep my files] ④. More specifically, when you … (See Be prepared: Create a Windows 10 Recovery Drive for a description of that process.) After the final restart, your Login screen will appear and you'll be able to log in with the same username and password, just like you always have. With both options you need to be sure to select option to “ Keep your files ” after selecting to do the reset. 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