Does your Dell laptop run slowly or get hacked? Factory reset is an efficient and straightforward way to help you completely fix the problem. Factory reset will bring your Dell back to the status when you brought it. Everything saved on the hardware would be erased. Don't forget to backup important files to iClound after logging into the desktop. For more details, we will show you how to reset a Dell laptop to factory settings Windows 7, 8, 10.
Reset a Dell Laptop to Factory Settings on Windows 8/10
No matter you can login Windows 8/10 or not on Dell laptop, you can factory reset it easily. Now let's walk you through the two situations to factory reset Dell laptop.
Situation 1: Login Windows8/10 with password and factory reset Dell laptop
For the Windows8/10 users, they can login the Dell laptop and backup the important data before factory reset. As there are different settings between Windows 8 and Windows 10, we will illustrate it one by one.
- 1. Factory reset Dell on Windows 10.
Login Windows 10 computer and click on StartSettings > Update & SecurityRecovery, click Get Started under Reset this PC section. Then follow the wizard to reset Dell laptop to factory settings.
- 2. Factory reset Dell on Windows 8.
When you successfully login Windows 8 laptop, you can move your mouse to the right brim of the screen and click on SettingsChange PC settings. In the PC settings window, click General tab and tap on Get started. Then the wizard will guide you how to reset Dell laptop to factory default.
Situation 2: Factory reset Windows 8/10 without logging in
Step 1: Repeatedly hit F8 while starting or restarting Dell laptop.
Step 2: Click on Troubleshoot when the Choose an option window prompts.
Step 3: Click on Reset your PC in Troubleshoot window to reset Dell laptop to factory settings without logging in.
Factory Reset a Dell Laptop on Windows 7 from Startup
If you still use Windows 7, you can factory reset Dell laptop by using Dell Backup and Recovery Managers.
Step 1: While booting Windows 7, hit F8 until the Advanced Boot Options window shown on the screen. Use your arrow keys to locate to the Repair Your Computer option.
Step 2: Select your preferences in the System Recovery Options window.
Step 3: Then you will see a list as the image below, select "Dell Factory Image Restore". In some Dell laptop, you would see "Dell Datasafe Restore and Emergency Backup" or "Dell Backup and Recovery Managers" instead.
Additional tips: How to reset Windows password to backup data before factory reset
If you forgot Windows 7/8//10 login password and want to retrieve its password to back up the important data before factory reset, you can use iSunshare Windows Password Genius to reset Windows password in four steps:
- Download, install and run the software on another computer, choose the media type to build up a password reset disk.
- Utilize the reset disk to boot the locked Dell laptop.
- Choose the windows,user account and reset Windows login password. Reboot Dell in the end.
Related Articles:
When you get some problems with your Dell laptop/desktop computer, such as the computer is crashed and can't log in normally, you may need to restore your Dell PC to factory settings to fix problems. How to reset Dell laptop/desktop to factory settings without logging in? Follow this article and choose the appropriate method that depends on what system on your Dell Inspiron, XPS, Latitude, Vostro, Alienware, Studio, Venue, Precision, and OptiPlex computer, like Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP.
Tips:
After you restoring your PC to factory settings, PC settings, the apps you install, or the personal files will be erased. So, it may be a good idea to back up your data and keep them to a safe place, like an external CD disc, USB flash drive, or Cloud storage service.
Reset Dell PC to factory settings for different Windows:
- Windows 10/8.1
- Windows 7/Vista
- Windows XP
Windows 10/8.1
1. Boot computer to Windows Repair Environment [WinRE]
If your computer is crashed and can't boot to the logon screen, start the computer for several times. On Windows 10/8.1/8 laptop/desktop PC, if the system can't boot normally, it will boot to the WinRE mode automatically.
If you still can boot to the Windows logon screen, press and hold on the "Shift" key, click on the power button and select Restart. [Please hold on the "Shift" key until the Choose an option window appears.]
2. When boot to the WinRE mode, click on Troubleshoot.
3. Click on Reset this PC.
4. And then you will see two options to choose: Keep my files or Remove everything.
Keep my files: This option will remove apps and settings, but keeps your personal files.
Remove everything: This option will remove all your personal files, apps, and settings.
5. Choose the account that you often log into your PC.
6. Enter the user account password, and click on Continue.
If there is no password for this account, leave the text box blank, and click on Continue.
So, if you have set a password for your administrator account, and forgot your Dell computer password, you won't be able to reset the computer to factory settings.
7. When all things are ready to go, click on the Reset button, this will begin the resetting process.
Tips: Make sure your PC is plugged into power source, to prevent your computer battery running out during the resetting process.
8. Wait for the resetting process to complete, and set up your computer.
Windows 7/Vista
1. Restart your Dell PC, and press F8 key repeatedly until the Advanced Boot Options menu appears on screen.
2. Use the arrow key [↓↑] to select Repair Your Computer, and press Enter.
3. Select a keyboard layout on the System Recovery Options menu, and click on Next.
4. Select your account, enter the password and click on OK to continue.
If you forgot the administrator account password then you won't be able to restore your Dell laptop to factory default.
5. Select Dell Factory Tools or Dell Factory Image Restore depends on your Dell PC configuration.
6. Click on Next to go on.
7. Check the box next to "Yes, reformat hard drive and restore system software to factory condition", and click on Next, to begin the resetting process.
8. Wait for the resetting process, when it is completed, click on Finish to restart computer.
Windows XP
1. Restart your Dell computer, press and hold down the "Ctrl + F11" keys until the Dell logon appears and then disappears.
2. Click on Restore.
3. And then click on Confirm, this will begin the resetting process.
4. Wait for a while, when you see the massage saying System restore was successfully, click on Finish to restart your Dell computer.