Can’t do factory reset

[HD_1233]

I have tried multiple times to factory reset my laptop. It always gets to 46% and then it stops saying there was an error trying to reset it. I am unable to log into the laptop as my mom does not remember any of her login information. I’m unsure on what to do at this point. 

[Alden4]

Hi @HD_1233,

Welcome to HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

It sounds like you're encountering an issue with resetting your HP 14 laptop. Since you can't log in and the factory reset fails, here are a few troubleshooting steps you can try to resolve this.

Use the Recovery Environment

You can try accessing the recovery environment to reset the laptop:

• Step 1: Power off the laptop completely.
• Step 2: Turn the laptop back on and immediately press the F11 key repeatedly until the Choose an option screen appears.
• Step 3: Select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC > Remove everything.
• Step 4: Choose either Just remove my files or Fully clean the drive.

If this process gets stuck at 46% again, proceed to the next steps.

Create a Bootable USB for Windows Installation

If the reset option still fails, you can create a bootable USB drive and perform a fresh installation of Windows:

• Step 1: On a different working PC, download the Windows Media Creation Tool from the official Microsoft website.
• Step 2: Use the tool to create a bootable USB drive with a minimum of 8GB space.
• Step 3: Insert the USB into the HP 14 laptop, restart it, and boot from the USB by pressing the ESC or F9 key repeatedly when turning on the laptop.
• Step 4: Follow the on-screen instructions to reinstall Windows.

Use HP Cloud Recovery Tool

If the issue persists, you can also try the HP Cloud Recovery Tool to restore your laptop to factory settings:

• Step 1: On a different computer, download the HP Cloud Recovery Tool from the HP website.
• Step 2: Follow the instructions to create a recovery USB drive.
• Step 3: Use this recovery drive to boot and restore the laptop.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

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Alden4

HP Support