mike13 Posted May 25, 2016 Share Posted May 25, 2016 When my friend turned on her 3 year old Gateway this morning, she got this message about Windows 10. Did she want to GO BACK, INSTALL. or DO NOTHING (she thinks). She chose GO BACK. The computer rebooted and then gave her TWO choices. Hit any key to boot to a DVD etc. (doing that does nothing) gets the same two messages. The other choice was to insert boot media, and then boot to that media. That does not work either. I now have the computer here at my house. I inserted a Win 10 disc that I had previously made into the DVD reader. Then I had the computer boot to the DVD. All was good. It started the Win 10 setup etc. Then I got to the section where you choose to UPGRADE, or CUSTOM. since I do not want to loose everything on her computer, I chose UPGRADE. In a few seconds I got a message that another upgrade or whatever was in progress (I think) and that I should remove the media, and restart Windows normally. I did that but got the same two original messages. I tried again, and this time instead of choosing UPGRADE, I chose REPAIR at the bottom. I then got a few different choices, none worked. I tried to do a RESTORE to an earlier point, but no restore points were set up. At a loss here. Should I put the Win 8 disc in the DVD and try that ? Help please, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Evil Overlord Posted May 25, 2016 Share Posted May 25, 2016 If you have another computer handy, remove the <busted pc> hard drive, connect it to the working computer as a second drive, (or a usb docking station if you have one) copy off all the files she wished to keep reformat, re install the <busted pc> hard drive, and start over, your key should still be valid I think +Raze 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Warwagon MVC Posted May 25, 2016 MVC Share Posted May 25, 2016 11 minutes ago, The Evil Overlord said: If you have another computer handy, remove the <busted pc> hard drive, connect it to the working computer as a second drive, (or a usb docking station if you have one) copy off all the files she wished to keep reformat, re install the <busted pc> hard drive, and start over, your key should still be valid I think Great advice. I'm going to add to it. Instead of copying the files, make a clone of the drive onto a spare hard drive. That way you don't have to worry about forgetting anything after you erase the drive. The Evil Overlord 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike13 Posted May 25, 2016 Author Share Posted May 25, 2016 Thanks guys for the replies. However it looks like a task to get to the hard drive to remove it. Question..When I boot to the Win 10 disc, I can't do an upgrade like I said because it tells me to remove the disc etc. however if I choose REPAIR, I see an option to RESET This PC. Then it says that Resetting will 1). Remove all apps and programs that did not come with this pc. 2). It will change the settings back to their defaults, 3), It will reinstall Windows without removing your files. Does this mean that her pictures, favorites, contacts, Excel documents, Word documents will still be there after the reset ? I know I will have to reinstall Excel and Word, not a problem. But I worry more about her pictures. Will they still be there ? Thanks, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike13 Posted May 25, 2016 Author Share Posted May 25, 2016 Another option. I tried to REFRESH YOUR PC. However when I tried that, I got a message that the drive where Windows is installed is LOCKED. Unlock the drive and try again. Maybe that is the problem. How do I unlock that drive where Windows is installed. Thanks, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike13 Posted May 26, 2016 Author Share Posted May 26, 2016 OK, the hard drive is out. I connected it to my computer and nothing. I checked in disk management and the drive is not recognized. If I listed closely I can hear a light clicking or rubbing sound every second or two. I guess the hard drive is shot. Is there any recommended software programs that might recover the data ? It looked like easeus might work ?? Any suggestions ? Thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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