Help my hard drive on my desk top has died. Should i pay to have someone reinstall HD and programs or is this something I can do? BELOW?

Question

Never had a hard drive die before, luckily i have my laptop as back up.

I am NOT a computer geek. i'm a bit tech savvy but no pro. I'm positive i can physically pull out and replace the actual drive, but when it comes to reinstalling software not sure if there is an order to reinstall things; what should go first.... what should install besides my AV/Malware prgrams

I have/had Windows 10 pro installed (prior to that Windows 7) so any OS cd i might have would be from Windows 7 do i reinstall that and then let it update, update, update....?

Any recovery CD's i have were created when i had 7 and just before the Windows 10 upgrade and install should i reinstall those onto my new harddrive and update from there. HELP

Answer 1

The best strategy is to be prepared in advance for a catastrophic hard drive failure. Mine is relatively simple, but requires some effort on my part. I use Acronis (there is similar software from other vendors) to periodically make image backups of my hard drive. I don't have the program installed on my computer, I only use the option where I have a bootable thumbdrive. You'll need a small capacity (2GB or 4GB is plenty, and they are cheap) thumbdrive for Acronis, plus an external drive where you'll store your backup images. I'll typically only make image backups after major Windows updates and after significant new software installations and/or updates. The external drive is then also used to back up important files. Among important files, I also include several program settings files, for example, my browser bookmarks and saved log-in data, etc. If my hard drive were to fail right now, I'd buy a new drive, remove the failed one, install the new one, then boot up with the Acronis thumbdrive, and restore the latest image backup to that drive (should take half an hour or less). I then reboot the computer to start Windows. The computer is then in the same state it was when that image backup was made. I merely need to retrieve any newer files that I stored on the external drive, and let Windows and other programs perform any updates they made since my last image backup.



Such a scheme makes you immune to ransomware and other virus attacks as you can quickly recover by using your image backup, the difference is that you recover to the same hard drive. Of course just being smart about what you do will keep you away from such stuff.



If you have no backups, or even if you do but just want a clean install without all the old junk your system began with and subsequently accumulated, you'll need an 8GB thumbdrive to create a bootable Windows installer. You'll need a new hard drive to replace the failed one, and from your laptop, download from Microsoft the Windows 10 Media Creation tool. Use that to download the correct version of Windows for your other computer (the tool by default will want to choose the same version that your laptop has, so choose a different version as applicable, and select the option to make a bootable thumbdrive. Then with the new drive installed in your other computer, boot it up from the thumbdrive and install Windows. That will take considerable time, plus you'll then also have to go through the process of customizing Windows to your preferences, and then installing all of your favorite software.



You should be able to find tutorials on youtube for how to replace a hard drive (it's not difficult), and Microsoft's site should have instructions for using the Media Creation tool (though there are probably resources for that on youtube as well).

Answer 2

If you don't know what's going on, then why not take it to a computer repair place, like Geek Squad?

Answer 3

You can purchase a home for $ 50 and reinstall Windows 10 pro if that's what you had. If you know how to do it. If not ask a friend that knows how a shop will charge you $150 for the work but if you can reinstall yourself you save $100

Answer 4

Since you are not a computer geek (by your own admission in your question), how do you know your hard drive has actually crashed? There are things that go wrong on a computer that may simulate a crashed drive to an untrained eye. I am only asking this because you may be wasting money on a new HD when in fact it is something else. (you don't have to actually answer this question to me, it's a question for you to ask yourself)



Assuming it truly is a hard drive crash....it is not hard to switch out a HD. But the fact you're having to ask about its difficulty or order for installation of software, etc, makes me think you are probably going to need some help along the way with either actual hard drive installation or installation of your programs. You don't necessarily have to take it to a professional. If you have some computer geek friends then one of them could help you.



As for your Windows 10, no you do not reinstall Win 7 first. You go to this link at Microsoft's website, click the "download tool now" to make yourself a Win 10 installation DVD.



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



After you get Win 10 reinstalled, once you connect to the internet it will reactivate your copy of Windows 10 using the original product key that was used when you first upgraded from Win 7



As for order of software: you can install your programs in any order you want.

Answer 5

If you're brave enough to endure open-case surgery to physically replace the storage drive, reinstalling stuff on your computer isn't that much of a stretch.



First up, if you can on your laptop, grab a Windows 10 ISO & a USB flash drive that's at least 8 GB's or larger to create a boot drive for your computer. With your Windows 7 disc, you might want to write down the CD key from in, just in case the Windows 10 installer asks for it (especially if the computer cannot get online to verify your digital entitlement).



Second, connect the USB flash drive to the computer & turn it on. If it doesn't load up the boot drive, you will need to change the boot order to allow your computer from that drive (as some computers will typically disable USB boots or make it a low priority as a security measure).



Once you have Windows installed, the general priority of installers are...



1) Your preferred antivirus or security software -- You should always secure your system immediately to avoid getting any viruses, malware or getting hit with some potential security exploits. Windows Defender is OK for what it is, but it's not perfect & other security programs tend to perform better.



1.B) Your preferred web browser PLUS any security-related extensions (like NoScript & Ad Block Plus) if you don't want to use (or trust) Internet Explorer or Edge browser included with Windows.



2) Any BIOS / UEFI updates for your computer -- This is typically the most critical think to update first, since it can affect nearly everything else with the computer.



3) All the recent drivers for components (Graphics Cards, Sound card, WiFi card, Ethernet card, Printers, Web Cams, ect.) -- You want all your hardware working properly first with minimal issues.



4) Main Windows Updates -- There's likely some updates (typically the "Redstone updates") that you may not have installed with the initial install of Windows & may need to be downloaded.



This will also pick up some of the minor updates & patches in the process.



5) Install desired (updated) software -- With Windows taken care of, you should be able to safely install your desired software... preferable the most up-to-date version, when available. HOWEVER, if you're unable to install the latest version for some reason... just install what you have & then look for updates within the software. Games, however, won't have this option as most PC games will be running through a digital distribution platform (like Steam, Origin, uPlay, ect.)





The main idea here is to grab updates for the lowest level stuff (like BIOS), followed by drivers, then OS & finally software updates so that the low-level stuff doesn't adversely interfere with the higher-level stuff. I will note that you don't have to follow this order religiously, so you could grab a few drivers to start (like sound, Wifi / Ethernet drivers), then install some software that's important to you to get you up to a minimally functioning system to complete a critical task (like a project that has an upcoming deadline) & then get caught up with the other stuff later.



Hope this helps!

Answer 6

After the OS you just install your programs one after the other. Think of it as an opportunity to do some housekeeping and I'm not kidding. Lots of clutter will be gone, lots of old forgotten programs won't need to be restarted.

Answer 7

I think you would have no trouble attempting these all by yourself, OS must in first obviously, setting up graphics, if that was required, ASAP, for gaming or nicer HDMI display on recently made AMD or Nvidia card if that's applicable to you, but besides OS first there's no hard sequence of reinstall you need to follow.



If I lost you on the graphics part, here's easier way to figure: if the video card, or IGP on the motherboard was on the market before the intended Windows version then it is mostly or entirely done for you as part of setup, else you need to set it up afterwards. And if gaming is involved, veto all that''s said and you still need to set it up DIY.



Since we talk about Win 10, already permanently upgraded so you need not factor in Win 7, you are permanently a 10 user already Activated.

Answer 8

If you are reasonably technically capable then I would have a go at replacing the Hard drive yourself.

You don't need to go to the bother of reinstalling windows 7 then upgrading, simply reinstall windows 10 and it will automatically reactivate.



You need to make a windows 10 Pro installer. You can do this from Windows 10 media creation tool, any working computer (your laptop would do) and a blank 8GB USB drive

download and run the tool from here on your laptop inserting the 8GB USB flash drive when needed. Make sure you select the correct version of Windows 10

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10ISO#



You need to purchase a new hard drive. Ideally take the old hard drive to the store so they can match it to the same or bigger one - it doesn't have to be identical. Reinstall the new hard drive, then insert the windows 10 USB installer then power on the computer. If it doesn't boot off the USB flash drive automatically you will get the message "boot device not found" this is normal and simply means you need to go into the BIOS and change the boot order to the USB drive

Once you get it to boot from the USB drive simply follow the prompts to get a fresh windows 10 pro installation. You will also need to allow windows 10 to download all the security patches and updates

After that what you install is up to you, windows 10 has a default Antivirus windows defender which is reasonable but if you have a licence for another preferrred AV use that. Then reinstall the rest of your programs using the licence keys you paid for or the registrations keys supplied with the programs.

HTH



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