Editor's notation: In the video, Brandon Vigliarolo walks through the steps as if you were booting from a USB; also, he'southward using a virtual machine, and so in that location are slight differences from the following tutorial by Greg Shultz.

In last week's mail, Reset your Windows 10 system with the Keep My Files option, I showed y'all how to reset your Windows 10 system to a new installation state while keeping all your data files intact. This option is a great way to revive a Windows 10 organisation that has become unstable due to a virus infection or some other unfortunate circumstance. Nonetheless, Windows 10 also provides you with the Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option. Dissimilar its counterpart, this option removes all your data and settings and then reinstalls a fresh re-create of Windows 10. This arroyo comes in handy if yous want to scrap everything and start over from scratch or you're getting prepare to decommission your PC and desire to pass information technology on.

Let's see how the Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option works.

SEE: Windows 10 ability tips: Hugger-mugger shortcuts to your favorite settings (Tech Pro Research)

What you lot need

To run Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option every bit I'll describe in this article, you'll need to have created a Recovery Drive. (See Be prepared: Create a Windows x Recovery Drive for a description of that process.) If you're using an optical disc Recovery Drive–or for some reason you couldn't utilize the Support System Files To The Recovery Drive option–yous tin can still use Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option. You'll only need to take some form of Windows x installation media on either USB or DVD.

If you notice yourself in this situation, you'll be glad to know that you can create your own Windows ten installation media using the Windows x Media Creation Tool from Microsoft.

Running Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option

Using Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option will accept some fourth dimension to complete, only in the terminate, you'll observe that information technology is a straightforward performance. To begin, boot your system using your Recovery Drive. Next, select the Troubleshoot | Reset This PC selection and cull Remove Everything, every bit shown in Figure A.

Figure A

Later on yous select the Reset This PC tile, choose the Remove Everything selection.

Now you'll be prompted to choose the target operating organisation, every bit shown in Effigy B. Just select the Windows x tile. The Reset This PC tool will and so perform some preliminary piece of work and will momentarily display a message telling yous that it is getting things ready.

Figure B

Y'all'll select the Windows 10 tile to go along.

Choosing a cleaning method

Afterwards you choose a target operating system, you'll see the screen shown in Figure C, which prompts you to cull how thoroughly you want to clean your drive. You can remove simply your files or fully clean your drive. The pick you lot cull will depend on the reason you're resetting your PC. For instance, if you are resetting it to give yourself a completely new beginning, you'll probably want to select Just Remove My Files. On the other manus, if you're going to be passing your PC on to someone else, you lot may want to choose Fully Make clean The Drive. Let's take a closer look at these two options.

Figure C

You lot can choose how thoroughly you want to make clean the drive.

If you lot cull the Just Remove My Files option, the Reset This PC tool volition perform a Quick Format operation on the hard disk and and then reinstall Windows 10. This procedure deletes the file table that contains pointers to the data files. It doesn't actually delete the information or modify the disk sectors containing the information in whatever manner. As such, yous could recover some or all of the data files using an appropriate data recovery tool if you were so inclined.

If you lot choose the Fully Clean The Drive pick, the Reset This PC tool volition perform a full format of the hard disk that will involve a much more methodical and secure erasure of your data. This includes several passes over the hard disk writing 0's and and so other random numbers to every sector on the hard disk. This near ensures that you lot'll never be able to recover whatever of the data files. Equally you'd expect, this option will have a long time to complete.

Resetting

In one case you've made your choice, you lot'll meet the screen shown in Figure D.

Figure D

After you select an option, click Reset to begin.

When yous're ready, click the Reset button and the reset operation will commence immediately. Regardless of which option yous selected, you'll see a screen like the one shown in Effigy E. As the format portion of the reset performance chugs forth, a counter indicates the percent of the operation that is complete. The Just Remove My Files option will have somewhere in the neighborhood of two hours, while the Fully Clean The Bulldoze option can take as long as 4 hours. Of course, your mileage may vary.

Figure East

The percentage counter tells y'all how the reset operation is progressing.

When the percentage counter hits 100%, the system will reboot and display a series of screens, like the one shown in Effigy F, indicating that Setup is installing device drivers and configuring settings. The system will restart a couple of time during this phase of the reset operation. Once this step runs its class, the organisation will restart once again.

Effigy F

During the second stage of the procedure, the Reset option reinstalls Windows ten.

When information technology boots back upwards, yous'll go through all the steps in the first-time prepare procedure. You'll demand to have the license, cull a network connection, check for updates, gear up a Microsoft account, and so on. Your system volition restart a couple of times during this part of the installation.

When it is consummate, you'll take a new installation of Windows 10.

SEE: Make clean out junk files in Windows vii, 8.i, and 10 (Download.com)

What's your take?

Now that you know how Reset This PC with the Remove Everything option works, y'all'll be gear up to use it should the need arise. If you've already tried this procedure, did information technology work similar you expected? Share your comments and advice in the discussion thread below.

Likewise read…

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