Those who recently bought a new computer with Windows 10 customized by the manufacturer have two choices: eliminate all the excess or reinstall Windows from scratch, so as to have a clean and snappy operating system. Bloatware, i.e. pre-installed programs that are often only sponsors or trials to buy, are really a nuisance but we can quickly eliminate them from the Control Panel. But if you want to start over from scratch, if you want to format everything and reinstall Windows on your computer, in this guide we will show you how to format and install Windows from scratch, to have a clean and new PC.
READ ALSO: How to Format a Windows 10 and 8 PC
Format Windows 10 without disk
If we use Windows 10, formatting the operating system is very simple and does not even require the installation disk. In order to start the formatting procedure, we open the Start menu at the bottom left, open the Settings app, go to the Update and security -> Restore path and click on the Start button, located under the Reset your PC section. A window will open in the foreground, where we can choose the type of recovery to be performed on the system.
By choosing the Keep my files option, the operating system will be formatted but will keep the files in your personal folders (Music, Documents etc.) unaltered, restoring the operating system and deleting all the programs present; choosing instead Remove all we will perform a real complete formatting of Windows 10, thus removing all types of personal files and obtaining a clean and fast PC. After selecting the Remove all item, select Remove all and clean the unit in the following screen then confirm by pressing Reset .
After making the choice, Windows 10 will restart and proceed with the formatting, which could take up to an hour (depending on the size and speed of the disk in use).
If we want to proceed with formatting outside the operating system, we can also start the procedure integrated in Windows 10 from the advanced start menu. In order to proceed we go back to Settings -> Update and security -> Restore and this time click on the item Restart now, present under the Advanced startup section.
The system will restart and the advanced startup management window will appear; from here just click on Troubleshoot and then on Reset your PC .
The next steps are identical to those seen for the system recovery procedure, so we will only have to select Remove all in order to perform a complete format of Windows 10.
Format with the Windows installation disc
If we want to cleanly install and install Windows from scratch, we can also use the installation disk, so we can clean up the old system and replace it with a new one. This method is valid for both Windows 10 and previous versions of Windows ( Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 ).First we will have to download the installation disc for each version of Windows for free, so as to have our copy in ISO format of the system to be restored, and recover the product key license key, so that we can restore it to the system after formatting (in in reality this will not be necessary if you use a code linked to the Microsoft account).
After downloading the right version of Windows, burn it to a blank DVD or create a bootable USB stick with Windows, based on our PC and our availability in terms of time (remember that the USB stick is much faster in reading, so we will do much earlier). At the end we turn off the PC, insert the DVD disc or USB stick into the PC to be formatted and change the boot order to be able to access the newly created support.
In the screen that appears we confirm the choice of language, then click on Custom: install only Windows (advanced option) .
A new screen will now open with all the partitions on our hard disk; in order to perform a clean installation, select one by one all the partitions present and click on Delete . As soon as we get the only item Unallocated space unit 0, select it and click Next on the bottom.
The media will start the Windows installation procedure, which may take some time (depending on the chosen medium and the speed of the hard disk on the PC). At the end we will finally have a clean and fast PC, without any additional program and without any customization.
NOTE: The operation of formatting the hard disk, with modern versions of Windows, is no longer done and it is also useless to insist on doing it. The installation program of Windows 7 and Windows 8 and above all Windows 10 is able to reset everything and install the system without having to format anybody.
What to do after formatting
Immediately after formatting we will have to optimize the system so that there are no problems during the work, in particular in case of failure to activate the license or in case we have some missing driver.Activate Windows
If we did not insert the Product Key during the installation and there were problems with the activation, we can proceed to activate the new Windows 10 just restored by going to the Settings -> Update and security -> Activation path and clicking Activate .
If we encounter problems with the license in our possession, we advise you to continue reading our article How to activate Windows 10 and solve product key errors .
Install the drivers and run Windows Update
Modern versions of Windows automatically install the most important drivers: processor, chipset, controller for USB ports, wireless adapter or integrated LAN card, mouse and video card. If some drivers are missing on the PC (we can check by right clicking on the Start button at the bottom left and opening the Device Management menu), simply perform a system update to be able to immediately insert all the missing drivers. On Windows 10 simply go to Settings -> Update and security -> Windows Update and click on the Check for updates button.
The missing drivers will be downloaded and the ones already present will be updated, as well as installing the updates provided for the operating system. After the first major update it may be necessary to restart the PC, in order to make the changes effective and immediately enable the new drivers.
On Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 we can manage updates by clicking on the Start menu and looking for the Windows Update tool.
If we find it difficult to find the right drivers for some peripherals or components, we can read our guides on how to update the drivers of a Windows PC automatically and in the case of an unknown device how to find the right drivers .
Install the main programs
After fixing Windows 10, we can finally install all the programs we want, without having to use those provided by the computer manufacturer. Below you will find a small list of free programs that we recommend to download immediately on Windows, so that you can start big.- Google Chrome (web browser)
- Mozilla Thunderbird (email manager)
- Bandizip (compressed archives manager)
- VLC (audio and video player)
- GIMP (image editor)
- LibreOffice (office suite)
- Adobe Acrobat Reader (PDF file reader)
- WhatsApp Desktop (instant chat manager)
- Telegram Desktop (chat manager and quick file transmission between devices)
Other useful programs can be found in our guides to the best free programs for Windows and the 10 PC programs to always be installed and free .
Conclusions
Compared to the past, it is much easier to format Windows to make it come back fast and snappy, as well as to remove all the useless programs that the various manufacturers insert into pre-assembled laptops or fixed PCs.If we do not want to format the system because of bloatware, we can also remove them effectively, with the advice proposed in our gudia on How to clean up your PC with Windows 10 from installed programs .
If instead we want to restore Windows but keep our personal files, we explain how to do it in our guide on how to restore or reinstall Windows without losing personal data and settings .
READ ALSO: Return the computer to its original state, like new, without reinstalling Windows
