Sometimes the fault isn't the hardware, nor the temperature, nor dust, nor hard drives, nor memory. Sometimes... the problem is Windows, and no matter how advanced our maintenance sessions are, the most practical solution is to press the red button and start from scratch. However, Windows 10 offers us the alternative of restoration, which includes two levels of depth, depending on the user's needs. If you want to know how to restore Windows 10, here we explain it.
Restore Windows 10: Valid solution or headache?
Windows was never a shining example of automatic maintenance, and perhaps never will be. Regardless of our knowledge, sooner or later we all make the same decision: implement the “Ripley's lieutenant diplomacy”, bomb the existing installation from orbit, and work with a clean Windows. Tedious, annoying, and frustrating... but it works.
However, we must acknowledge that Windows 10 made important advances in its restoration process. I'm not referring to the traditional “restore points” (very useful when experimenting with modded drivers and other weird hacks), but to what Microsoft calls “Reset this PC”. The idea is that in a few clicks, the user can return to a state closer to what some call “factory reset in Windows 10”, without preparing pendrives or downloading ISO images, and with the option to keep personal files or not. Would you like to know how to restore Windows 10?
(Editor's note: The guide is based on Windows 10 2004, remember that there may be changes in the future)
How to easily restore Windows 10
- Enter the configuration menu, and click on Update & Security.
- Enter the Recovery section, find Reset this PC, and click Get started.
- The available options are two: Keep my files or Remove everything.
- A secondary parameter allows “clean the drive”. Microsoft recommends this if you are going to sell, give away, or recycle the computer. The process takes between one and two hours.
- Check the summary of actions, and click Reset.
Here you need to wait. The exact time will depend on the configuration and available resources on the computer. In our case, the delay between pressing Reset and entering the configuration in the new installation was 18 minutes, not bad for a quad-core with 4 GB of RAM and a basic SSD.
In summary
The rest is similar to a clean installation of Windows 10. Microsoft will recommend keeping all options enabled and using a company account to “improve the operating system experience”, but you can go the opposite direction if you wish. Now, restoring a PC with Windows 10 is not a 100% guaranteed process. If the previous installation is damaged in a particular way, it may not be enough... and you know what comes next. Good luck!
