Need help backing up files before restoring HP Pavilion

[Pavilionowner99]

It seems my hard drive crashed and I will have to restore to factory settings. I want to back up my files first but when I try I get this error message: "There is currently not enough space available on the system partition on the hard drive for temporary storage during data compression. You must free up some space on the system partition on the hard drive to continue the task." How do I access the hard drive to free up space when my computer is stuck on this recovery page? I have also plugged in an external hard drive hoping it would free up space but that hasnt worked yet.

[WAWood]

@Pavilionowner99 

Several issues here ...

A crashed hard drive can not be fixed using a reset; instead, it has to be replaced.  So, you need to plan to remove the drive and replace it.

I would not use the HP recovery tool to do backup of files, instead, I would follow the directions below to make a boot USB stick using a free utility and back up your files to a USB stick -- understanding that all you are going to be able to back up is personal files, not settings, not applications, not accounts.

If your PC can not boot into Windows, a way around that is to follow the instructions below to create boot media from Macrium Reflect (MR) that can be used to boot your PC even if the hard drive is not working:
1) Download and install Macrium Reflect (MR) from this link: http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx
2) Use the option to create a boot USB stick or CD

That will create MR bootable media. Then, you can boot your PC into WinPE using that media.

Have patience, as that can take a while to start and bring up the screen.

Once the screen is there, read this thread about using PE Explorer -- a simple file explorer: https://forum.macrium.com/PrintTopic15803.aspx

If your disk still works, you might be then able to retrieve some files and folders from it.

Good Luck