I just got a laptop from Best Buy and I think I was duped into buying their “Optimization Service.” I left the laptop over there and it will be ready to pick up tomorrow. When I got home I looked it up in on google and it appears to be a scam and it may actually make it slower.

The reason I got the service is because I didn't know that laptops don't come with their install disks anymore and I have to create my own Resource Disk. That made me very nervous and I wanted to make sure that the laptop wouldn't have a cluttered registry if I needed to reinstall everything.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Does it really slow down the computer? Should I call Best Buy up immediately and tell them not to fuck with my computer?

Btw, does anyone know why venders don't pack the laptops with the install disks anymore? Is the Windows license cheaper that way?

Quote: Original post by ManaStone
Btw, does anyone know why venders don't pack the laptops with the install disks anymore? Is the Windows license cheaper that way?

I don't know why, but if I had to guess it saves on cost of the media and time cost of producing the disks.

Most of the time, if you go to the vendor's website, you can order restore/backup media. Sometimes there is a charge for this sometimes not. Someone I know recently purchased an HP and she was able to burn her backup media to DVDs; there was also the option to order from HP for a small fee.

So I'd recommend going to the vendor's website and searching for the info. Which brand did you purchase?

Quote:
cluttered registry if I needed to reinstall everything.

Install linux? My netbook boots significantly faster with linux on it. Ubuntu Netbook Remix is a much nicer interface than window's default considering the small screen. Admitedly, I think the battery life might be lower, but it still lasts long enough to surf the web, program, or watch a movie.

Still, it gives you one more option.

I got a Samsung 430-11.

I got the laptop back and I'm a little confused about everything. Originally when the salespeople conned me into this service, they said that in order to recover my operating system and everything else that I'd have to burn an image of the all the current files and drivers into multiple disks called a “resource disks.” They said that when I first start the computer I would be nagged to create the resource disks. They said that I was only capable of doing this once. Reflecting on it now, it does kind of seem like bullshit. When I got my computer back, the guy at the Geek Squad said that the backup disk would be made up of the files and drivers that were on the computer during installation and not the current ones as I had been told earlier.

I got my computer back and I have no idea on how to create a disk to reinstall my operating system if I ever need to. I was able to use Samsung Recovery Solution 4 to backup something to do with the software and I was able to create a “System Repair Disk.” I don't think the System Repair Disk is what I need because it is only 164 MB. I don't think the Operating System and everything else would be able to fit on that.

Anyway, I'm completely lost. Is there even a way I can create a disk to reinstall Windows? How exactly does this work?

On your laptop should be an OEM licence sticker for Windows with the licence key on it. There does exist a category of OEM keys that this technique does not work for (IIRC: the ones that auto-activate) - so you may have to do some research to double check.

Somehow acquire the installation media for the version of Windows matching your key (ie: Home Basic/Premium/Professional/Ultimate). With Vista one disk supported most of the SKUs - I don't know what the situation is with 7.

Download the drivers you need from the manufacturers website.

Reinstall Windows from the original disk using the key you found earlier.

(And you can repartition to remove the nonsense "recovery partition", if that's what they've done to avoid giving you an actual Windows disk or a Restore disk.)

Install all the required drivers (you may need to use a USB from another machine, if you need a network driver), taking care to avoid all the bullshit "pretty" replacements for existing Windows features. And obviously don't install trial versions of Norton.

Enjoy your very fast, uncluttered installation of Windows.

I bought an ASUS laptop and to my surprise, it came with 5 or 6 disks which seems to be rare these days. One disk contained all the drivers and another disk was some sort of Windows 7 recovery disk. The other disks contained mainly crapware. I was able to reformat (or something like that, I'm not sure how it works but everything appeared to be fresh and I had to reinstall all the drivers) using the recovery disk and avoid installing any bloatware at all. The laptop had no hidden partitions and I wasn't forced to burn my own disks. Overall it was a pleasure to work with compared to the Acer laptop my parents had purchased a few months before I bought mine.

No dealing with recovery partitions, burning recovery disks, tracking down drivers on the manufacturer's website, or dealing with bloatware. I would buy another ASUS notebook any day!

Ok, so on disk management I found a hidden partition called Recovery Partition. I am using Windows 7. Does anyone know how I can access it or make a back up disk of it?

Quote: Original post by ManaStone
Ok, so on disk management I found a hidden partition called Recovery Partition. I am using Windows 7. Does anyone know how I can access it or make a back up disk of it?

What brand computer is it? That's what HP does with their laptops, and usually there is a program somewhere in the start menu to make actual disks of it or to run the recovery software.

There is also probably a way to run it from the BIOS startup options.

edit:
PS: RTFM

Quote: Original post by HelplessFool

Quote: Original post by ManaStone
Ok, so on disk management I found a hidden partition called Recovery Partition. I am using Windows 7. Does anyone know how I can access it or make a back up disk of it?

What brand computer is it? That's what HP does with their laptops, and usually there is a program somewhere in the start menu to make actual disks of it or to run the recovery software.

There is also probably a way to run it from the BIOS startup options.

edit:
PS: RTFM

It is a Samsung Q430-11.


Is it possible Geek Squad did something so that I can't make a recovery disk myself when trying to optimize it?