How to reset to factory settings if settings app is no longer opening

[Saira_S]

Hi HP community, 

I am looking to reset my laptop to factory settings before selling.  I started with Windows 8, and then upgraded to Windows 10. Intel Core i3 processor.   I haven't used this laptop in a while, but am ready to reset settings, and have removed all documents I may need onto an external harddrive.  The settings app button does not work.  What is the best way to recover this function, given the rest of the laptop and functions work just fine?  Thanks for your help! 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

See if you can use the F11 factory reset option...

Turn on or restart the PC and tap the ESC key at the beginning of the HP welcome screen to get the menu of options.

Select the F11 Recovery option and press the enter key.

There you should be given an option to factory reset the PC.

Windows 8 will be reinstalled, so if you want to upgrade back to W10, you can do so as follows...

After W8 installs, if you want to go back to W10, you can click on the blue Update Now button at the link below and reinstall W10.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

If you are asked to enter a product key during the installation, select the 'I don't have a product key' option, and W10 will install and automatically activate once you are connected to the internet.

[Saira_S]

Hi Paul,

Thank you for responding. I was able to refresh/repair the PC and then reset the PC to factory settings through the ‘settings app’ which started to work again after the repair. 

However, I received a message near the end of reset, that some files were not completely removed, despite me picking the option to ‘clear and remove everything’ (as I would like to sell/recycle the laptop). 

So, I ran the reset again through f11 as suggested.  Unfortunately the same message came up. 

I logged into the laptop, and there are no documents of relevance. Most the hardrive (445GB) is empty from what I can see, except the Revovery (D) Drive which is using 17GB of 18.9GB within that drive. Not sure if that recovery drive should be kept for any future user or deleted, and whether it is safe to sell the laptop as is, if I am being told otherwise by HP during the reset process.

Any insight into how to fully clear the laptop another way to make it data cleared and safe would be great. Thank you! 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.

Unfortunately, I don't know how to get that message to disappear.

You can always clean install W10 and during the installation process, delete all partitions, create and format one partition to be sure no files are left that could be easily accessed.

Give the user a generic name, no password, and the buyer can change the user name to whatever they want.

The only way to completely ensure some unscrupulous person is not buying your notebook simply to try and steal any info off the hard drive, would be to remove the drive, and destroy it with a hammer.   And I am not kidding.

From time to time, I buy off-lease PC's on eBay once used in a corporate environment, and many do not come with hard drives specifically for that reason.  The drives are sent to commercial shredding facilities where they are ripped to pieces to prevent data theft.

[Saira_S]

Hi Paul, 

Thanks so much for your prompt response.  

re:  You can always clean install W10 and during the installation process, delete all partitions, create and format one partition to be sure no files are left that could be easily accessed.

Q. What is the simplest way to achieve a clean Windows 10 install, and at which point during the installation process are you referring?   

Q. How do I delete all partitions, and format one partition?

I suppose I am wondering if there is a step by step guide somewhere, that you may have found useful to take you through these steps (I am willing to give it a shot, but in your opinion will this become far too expert a process for someone with standard Windows/PC knowledge?)

Thanks for all your help so far, looking forward to hearing back.  

Best, 

Saira 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome, Saira .

Here is how you create the W10 installation media for a clean install of W10...

You can make a W10 USB flash drive installer with the Microsoft Media Creation Tool, using an 8 GB flash drive using another Windows PC, if your PC is not working.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

If you are asked to enter a product key during the installation process, select the 'I don't have a product key' option, and W10 will install and automatically activate once you are connected to the internet.

Here are the steps to create the W10 USB flash drive installer...

Select Download tool now, and select Run.

If you agree to the license terms, select Accept.

On the What do you want to do? page, select Create installation media for another PC, and then select Next.

Select the language, edition, and architecture (64-bit or 32-bit) for Windows 10. You want W10 64 bit.

Select which media you want to use:

USB flash drive. Plug in a blank USB flash drive with at least 8GB of space. Any content on the flash drive will be deleted.

When you get to this installation screen window pictured below, You will see something similar with several partitions.

Highlight each partition, and click on the Delete (X) icon (2nd from the left in the top row of icons).

Delete all of those partitions until there is only one partition remaining.  Then you can format it (the icon next to the Delete icon), then just go ahead and install W10.   I have continued writing below this picture...

Here is the complete guide from where I got this picture from...

https://techverse.net/install-windows-10-bootable-usb-flash-drive/

After W10 has completed installing, you can install the drivers and available software from your notebook's support page.

[Saira_S]

Hi Paul,

Thank you so much for taking the time with this. Will give it go and, let you and the forum know how it goes to help anyone else along the way.

Saira 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Anytime, Saira.

Glad to have been of assistance.

Paul