Hasta la Vista Baby... but if I want my baby (Vista) back?

October 16, 2007 8:24 AM

I bought a new HP laptop. Vista is installed, I am going to install XP. If I want to reinstall Vista later on, after an SP or two, how can I reinstall w/ my legal copy's credentials?

My Vista laptop did not come w/ installation cd/dvds. XP was not an option upon purchase

posted by jacobjacobs to computers & internet (12 comments total)

Call up HP and request Vista installation media.
posted by demiurge at 8:26 AM on October 16, 2007

HP doesnt usually ship media anymore. They make you order it and pay for it. You'll see a link to it on HP's support page for your laptop. Or you can call their customer service people.
posted by damn dirty ape at 8:46 AM on October 16, 2007

Going back to XP on that machine might be more trouble than it's worth -- assembling the drivers and whatnot can totally end up being a pain in the ass when you downgrade like that
posted by ph00dz at 8:59 AM on October 16, 2007

I just got an HP also. If you are waiting for the bugs to be out of the software, don't worry. I'm having zero problems.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:08 AM on October 16, 2007

I hope you got a good discount on that laptop. I've never had a computer that went more than a year without needing an OS reinstall. The idea of shipping a computer without reinstall media is to my way of thinking just hopelessly optimistic.

(No wonder the world is full of zombie-drone computers. Without reinstall disks, you can't un-zombie your computer. So you just learn to put up with it.)

Install XP. Forget about an OS for which you don't have disks, that's just untenable. (Call HP if you really want Vista for later, and call soon, while they're still grateful for the money you spent on it.)
posted by TeatimeGrommit at 9:09 AM on October 16, 2007

Your HP laptop contains a utility that will allow you to burn recovery discs using the included burner. Burn these discs now, and put them in a safe place. If you need to reinstall your OS in the future, you can use these discs.

Click on the start button, then use the search box to look for the word "Recovery". Click on "Recovery Manager", then "Advanced", then "Recovery disc creation".

The last HP that I did this on required two DVD-Rs.
posted by toxic at 9:21 AM on October 16, 2007

I had a compaq/hp laptop for a couple of days (before I returned it) last weekend. The program to generate the backup cd/dvd only produced a cd of the extra installed software (like I need a backup copy of adobe acrobat reader), not a Vista restore DVD. (The program also generated an error message, so I'm not sure if even that content was right.) I'm not sure what they expect you to do if you need to reinstall the OS. I took it back and got a Toshiba, which I'm happy with. (It came with actual DVDs!)
posted by DarkForest at 9:33 AM on October 16, 2007

Toxic has it. I bought double layer media so the thing would fit on a single disk. Also the recovery disk is on the hard drive in it's own partition. As long as you don't blow that partition away when you install xp you can do the reinstall from the hard drive.
posted by Mitheral at 9:52 AM on October 16, 2007

If you have any familiarity with BitTorrent, there are genuine HP recovery DVDs on some trackers. I just checked OiNK and they have the Vista Home Premium 32-bit system HP recovery DVD (note: OiNK search string was hp vista).

This isn't illegal because it's just the media - you already have the license key on the MS sticker on the bottom of your laptop. It's exactly the same as getting it from HP, except easier.

It won't hurt to call HP; if your laptop is still under warranty it's quite possible that they'll send it to you - you might have to bug the agent for it, but it's not uncommon to get them to ship one out to you.
posted by sprocket87 at 10:20 AM on October 16, 2007

I had exactly the same problem:

1. Install all the software programs you definitely want (Photoshop, Acrobat, MS Office, etc).

2. UN-install all the crappy trailware they try to push on you, stuff you most definitely won't need/want.

3. Update your computer using Windows Update. Make sure all your drivers and software updates are current.

4. Download and buy Acronis True Image Here. It's ~$50.

5. Install Acronis True Image.

6. Save a .tib file with your fresh, updated Vista install. Keep it on an external hard drive.

7. Burn an Acronis True Image Boot Disk (so you can revert back to your Vista Install when you are ready to upgrade).

8. Wipe the hard drive, and install Windows XP.

-----ALTERNATIVELY ---------

1. Spend about the same ($50) and get a comparative Hard Drive at NewEgg.

2. Pop out the Vista Hard Drive, pop in the fresh OEM drive.

3. Install Windows XP.

4. Keep the Vista Hard Drive until you are ready to upgrade. When you are, remove the XP hard drive (and maybe even put it in an extrnal case to use as a removable Hard Drive), and pop in the Vista Hard Drive.

5. When you're done, do a Windows Update and bring your (original) Vista install up to speed.

Either way, you can get it done, safely and reliably, for about Fifty Bucks.

Not too bad a deal.
posted by Master Gunner at 10:40 AM on October 16, 2007

The program to generate the backup cd/dvd only produced a cd of the extra installed software

This is not true (or you didn't run the same recovery disc creator that I'm talking about -- the one that warns you that you're only able to burn the discs once).

I restored a unit from bare metal using those discs just last week, and had no problems going from blank, unpartitioned drive to fully bootable Vista system. Of course, it reinstalls all the trial and crapware that came with the system, too. It also reinstalls the recovery partition, if there's room for it.
posted by toxic at 4:43 PM on October 16, 2007

This is not true

Sorry, it is true. I was here, you weren't. It was the recovery disk generator that only runs once.
posted by DarkForest at 5:36 PM on October 16, 2007