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- HP Community
- Notebooks
- Notebook Operating System and Recovery
- Re: cant get os and drivers to install

Create an account on the HP Community to personalize your profile and ask a question
01-26-2020 12:23 PM
01-26-2020 12:45 PM
Hi @karenz64
Thank you for posting in the HP Support Community.
I will try to help but before that I will:
- ask you a couple of questions
- provide a disclaimer
Note that your PC model is very old. It must be slower than the average home or home-offce PC that operates today.
Running unknown 3rd party discs from ebay is risky.
Also, the operating system which you would like to install - Windows Vista is long ago unsupported by PC vendors and by its vendor Microsoft >> https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/22882/windows-vista-end-of-support
Therefore,
- No support is guaranteed
- No 100% success is guaranteed by vendor
- Your PC may be more vulnerable to latest security threats
- There are certain popular apps which will not run on Vista and may even fail to install or fail to start
If you agree on using Vista, let me know
I see there are several version of dv6409 - post back your full exact HP product model and product number - here is how to find the information >> http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00033108
*** HP employee *** I express personal opinion only *** Joined the Community in 2013
01-26-2020 12:47 PM
I don't know what you mean by "recovery tool" but HP has not provided such an item for Vista for some years now and the one they do provide that is downloadable only works for selective PCs built after 2016.
HP also no longer provide online support for Vista-era PCs, so there is no HP page you can go to to download drivers or other software.
The unfortunate situation is that you really need to consider replacing this really old, and now unsupported, PC with something newer.
I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor represent, HP
01-27-2020 01:28 PM
my hp is a dv6409us could i instead of vista could i do win10 if i got a good version of it with everything it takes the ios and the drivers required i do understand my device is old and risks are apparent i really like the laptop and would really like to fix it and use it thank you for your input and any other advice or help you can give to me
01-27-2020 04:18 PM
My best guess is that it would NOT work well on Win10 -- primarily because the hardware is so old there are not likely to be any drivers for it that will work under Win10.
Also, there is no Upgrade Path from Vista to Win10 -- that means there is no way to transfer your settings, data, and applications from Vista to Win10. Instead, you would have to install fresh and you would lose everything in the process.
I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor represent, HP
01-28-2020 05:36 AM - edited 01-28-2020 05:37 AM
Hi @karenz64
- Not recommended but... If you decide to use Windows Vista on this PC , you should use original discs - HP Recovery discs such as the ones provided by this supplier - this is the one tailored for your machine model >> http://www.computersurgeons.com/p-13489-recovery-kit-451547-001-for-hp-model-number-dv6409us.aspx
If you want to restore Vista, its drivers, etc -> purchase the recovery kit from CS, use the kit (first disc) to boot from it [F9] and install Vista, HP software and drivers.
If you decide to give Windows 10 a try .....
I agree with @WAWood that Windows 10 may not work well on your PC due to the slightly higher requirements generally, your PC's old and slow hardware and the potential lack of some drivers. You have two options:
-1- give Windows 10 a try on this PC and decide on your own how it runs and if is OK for you
-2- purchase another HP computer - new one or a second hand refurbished option
Let me/us know which one you will want to try/proceed and further details will be posted based on your choice and needs.
*** HP employee *** I express personal opinion only *** Joined the Community in 2013