Looking for Windows 8 license or serial number for my new HP Notebook before setting up the OS

[numetro]

Mr. HP Support Agent,

The first link that you provided is the one I've already been working from, and I've encountered all the conflicts that I just wrote about in detail.

The second link that you supplied describes the same thing, but it also includes instructions about burning the Recovery thing to DVDs, which, according to everyone who has done this before, it will not do at all... the USB flash drive is the only option.

As I recall with Windows 7, it would not burn to DVDs at all either... it only saw an erroneous, smaller DVD size than the larger, blank DVD that I actually had in the drive, and it never worked that way.

There are conflicts between doing it with or without the box checked, and without the box checked, it actually shows my inserted USB flash drive, and it tells me that I only need 512 MB of space, and it gives me the "Next" button, but that is not the way the instructions say to do it.

Otherwise, with the box checked, it tells me I'll need a 32 gig USB flash drive, but I'll actually need a 64 gig USB flash drive because these flash drives don't have the actual capacity they say on the package, but it is not showing my inserted USB flash drive that correctly shows up in the "This PC" window.

This does not help in any way... it is as if all the things I just wrote about in detail have been a complete waste of time here.

Thanks,

numetro

[Futoji]

Hi,

I apologize, I had no idea you had the first document already.

However, the second document does more then tell you how to create the media using DVDs. I'm guessing on your reply you only skimmed or read the title.

This entire section provides another way entirely to create the USB recovery:

Creating a recovery image on media for your HP notebook computer

HP recovery software allows you to make only one recovery backup. These backup files contain the original operating system, drivers, and application software that shipped with the computer.

Depending on the type of media you selected, use one of the following sections to save a recovery image on media.

Show all | Hide all

Creating a recovery image on discs

Saving a recovery image to a USB flash drive

Follow these steps to save a recovery image to a USB flash drive.

Before you start

• Use a blank, high-quality USB flash drive no greater than 32GB and displays as an external device in Windows.

• The recovery image creation software allows only one recovery image to be created. If you created a recovery image on other media, you can not create a recovery image on a USB drive.

• The recovery image creation software requires an uncorrupted recovery partition (FACTORY_IMAGE D. Uncorrupted means that the recovery partition has not been modified or removed.

• The recovery image creation process takes about 30 minutes.

NOTE:Your computer screens might vary slightly from the screens shown below.

1. Disconnect from the Internet and close all other programs. Creating a recovery image on media is a resource-intensive process. You should not use your computer for other work while the computer is saving the recovery image.
2. From the Start screen, type recovery manager to open the Search charm, and then select HP Recovery Manager from the search results.
   Figure 10: Recovery manager search

   
3. Under I'd like to take safety measures, click Recovery Media Creation.
   Figure 11: Recovery Media Creation

   
   

   NOTE:If Recovery Manager sends the following message, a recovery image has already been created. Due to license restrictions, only one recovery image can be created. If the first recovery media set is incomplete or damaged and this message opens, use another method to obtain a new recovery image.

   Figure 12: Recovery media already created message

   
4. In the warning screen that appears, click I Accept, and then click Continue.
   Figure 13: Recovery media creation warning

   
5. If you are prompted for an Administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation. If a User Account Control window asks if you want to allow the program to make changes to the computer, click Yes.
6. The computer prompts you to insert a DVD or USB flash drive. Insert the USB flash drive into an unused USB port, and then click Yes.
   Figure 14: Insert USB

   
   

   NOTE:If the USB flash drive does not appear in the list, make sure to use a drive that appears in Windows as external storage media.
7. Follow the on-screen instructions to save the recovery image to the USB flash drive.
8. Click Finish to close the recovery image creation program.
9. Store the USB flash drive in a safe, protected place.
   If you attempt to save another recovery image on other media after successfully saving one recovery image, a screen displays stating that only one recovery set is allowed. The only choice is to click OK and exit the program.

 This is using the HP Recovery Manager, not the default Windows application for creating the media. The above information is why I orignally suggested the document. I'm sorry you missed this.

[numetro]

Okay, thanks... I did not see the thing about doing it through the HP software.

But why isn't it working correctly via the Windows system software... is it not showing my USB flash drive to select when I have the box checked because it needs 32 gigs, so it just doesn't show my USB flash drive at all?

What about the option of unchecking the box for "Copy the recovery partition from the PC to the recovery drive" ... what is it doing when that route is selected, when it then says it only needs 512 megabytes, and it actually sees and shows my USB flash drive in the Windows system Recovery Software window, as well as in the "This PC" window? 

But anyway, going the route you are telling me, now in the HP Recovery Media software... I've plugged in the 16 gig USB flash drive that I bought for this purpose, and now it is saying "The capacity of the inserted flash drive is insufficient. Please insert another drive.".

According to someone who had done this before, that's the size I need.  But apparently, he did it after he did his own Windows 8.1 installation from a disk her purchased, and not on a factory installation, so I guess all the extra software included on this HP Notebook is what is jacking up the needed drive size.

So, if I need the 32 gig USB flash drive size that the Windows system Recovery drive software said I needed before whey I was trying to do it through the Windows system Recovery software, then I'll actually need a 64 gig USB flash drive, since these drives actually have a smaller capacity than they say they do.

But per your instructions, I should use a USB flash drive no bigger than 32 gigs.

Ah, another conflict!  Why aren't I surprised?

Any solutions?

Thanks,

numetro

[numetro]

Hi Futoji... so here's the simplicity of what worked...

I was originally trying to make the recovery drive via the Windows system software, and it told me I needed 32 gigs of space to make it... erroneous message number one... it turns out that I needed only about 20 gigs of space to make the recovery drive, but it should have been telling me, in reality, that I needed a 32 gig flash drive to get the job done, not 32 gigs of space... so, that was a poorly worded, misleading message from Windows 8.1.

If I had actually needed 32 gigs of space on the flash drive to make the recovery drive, then I would have actually needed a 64 gig flash drive to do it because a 32 gig flash  drive actually only has a little less than 30 gigs of space on it.

The HP software for making the recovery drive only told me that my 16 gig flash drive was insufficient... no spec on how much space I actually needed... so, insuffient information provided by the HP software.

Somehow, my tech guru friend only needed a 16 gig flash drive to create his recovery drive through Windows, and since this thing is being created from the backup partition, it seems that any software or files installed before creating the recovery drive would make no difference in the size of the flash drive needed from one computer to the next, or from one Windows 8 installation to the next... ah, the mysterious world of Microsoft and HP, the people who decided it was a good idea to make their customers go through all of this and pay extra to do it.

I had a hunch that I actually need less than 32 gigs on a flash drive to make the recovery drive, so I exchanged my 16 gig flash drive and got a 32 gig model, and it finally worked through the Windows system software.

And this is amusing... based on someone else's info, you aren't supposed to use a flash drive that has the "Designed for Windows"  on it... conversely, some firewire hard drives and RAIDs come formatted for Mac, and you have to reformat them for Windows.

There is a process that the Windows recovery drive creation process goes through at the beginning where it says it's formatting the flash drive, so, it seems any drive that shows up at all will be magically transformed in to the type of drive that it needs to be for this process... not sure about that, though. 

Thanks for your reply.

numetro

[K7AAY]

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[K7AAY]

Does not work with Windows 8.1 with Bung on an HP Stream Notebook 11-d010wm .