Getting Back To Reinstalling Windows 10 with a Windows 7 Recovery Partition

[johndoc]

I have a Compaq CQ 61-421SA laptop purchase in 2010. I have Windows 7 Recovery Discs from that time.

I upgraded to Windows 10 from Windows 7, early 2016.

I do not have Windows 10 Recovery Discs.

I have installed every Windows 10 update as soon as each one has been released.

I have recently experienced the 'Windows 10 100% Disc Usage' issue.

Installing the most Windows 10 update (within the last couple of days since 8 Nov 2016) resulted in a failed update and my laptop has been unuseable since.

I am presently attempting to recover my laptop to Windows 7 using the recovery partition. The recovery process is proving to be extremely slow (i.e. leaving the laptop running overnight produces no progress).

There is no data which I need to recover from the laptop.

MY QUESTIONS:

1. Should I be looking to get back to Windows 7 first before Windows 10?

2. Can I get back to Windows 10 (since I downloaded/installed Windows 10 during the free upgrade period) once Windows 7 has reinstalled on the laptop?

Any and all assistance with my issue will be most appreciated.

johndoc37

[DavidPK · Accepted solution]

Hi,

Considering the nature of the error ( 100% disk usage ) and the fact that the recovery to Windows 7 is taking much longer than expected, it may be wise to run a test on the hard drive as follows.

Shut down the notebook.  Tap away at the esc key as you start the notebook to enter the Start-up Menu.  Select the Bios option ( f10 ) and under the Advanced or Diagnostic tab you should find the facility to run tests on the Hard Drive.  Note:  If the option to run these tests is not available in the Bios Menu, use the f2 diagnostic menu instead.

If you get any failure codes, post back with the details.

Otherwise, if the drive tests pass, there's no need to reinstall Windows 7 and then upgrade to 10 again. As the machine has been previously upgraded to 10, a hardware profile ( Digital Entitlement ) will have been recorded by the activation servers.

As long as the previous installation of Windows 10 had activated Ok after the upgrade from Windows 7, you can just perform a clean installation of 10 as detailed in the guide on the following link.  Note: At the activation screen, select 'I don't have a Product key' - Windows will activate automatically once the installation has completed.

http://www.howtogeek.com/224342/how-to-clean-install-windows-10/

Regards,

DP-K

[johndoc]

Hi DavidPK,

Thanks for your very quick response to my post.

I did as you suggested:

• Shutdown laptop
• Power on again pressing [esc] to boot into the BIOS
• Select f10 and,
• Under Diagnostics, ran hard drive tests.

The result of the hard drive test is Hard Disc 1 Quick (303)

A quick trip to Google tells me that I should now replace the hard drive. I don't think replacing the laptop's hard drive is a sensible thing to do since the laptop is 6 years old and perhaps should be replaced.

What do you think of this Hard Disc 1 Quick (303) outcome?

Kind regards

johndoc

[DavidPK]

Hi,

The 303 error code is basically a failure of the short Disk Self Test and would indicate that the Hard Drive is failing and needs to be replaced. 

At this point, you may well prefer to purchase a new notebook, although replacing the HDD is fairly inexpensive - an example of what you would require is on the following link ( I've assumed form the Model No. that you're in the UK ).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-Black-500GB-Portable-Drive/dp/B004LR1RPK

The replacement procedure is on Page 53 of your Maintenance & Service Guide.

You can still use the clean install method described in my previous post to load Windows 10 to the new HDD.

Regards,

DP-K

[johndoc]

Thanks DavidPK,

I am following the instructions given on the How To Geek webpage right now.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get the laptop back in working shape.

However, I've also checked out the Amazon UK webpage with the harddrive and downloaded the Maintenance and Service Guide which you signposted me to.

Many thanks for your assistance.

johndoc

[DavidPK]

You're more than welcome

All the best,

DP-K

[johndoc]

Hello again DavidPK,

It's all good news from this end!

Turns out that my laptop hard-drive promptly failed shortly after your last post. I bought another on Amazon UK, as per the hyperlink you offered.

This afternoon, I installed the new drive, swiftly followed by Windows 10, all with no probs whatsoever.

So, no more laptop gremlins for the foreseeable future

Once again, thank you for taking the time and trouble to point me in the correct directions.

Best regards

johndoc