Thinkpads Forum

I have my official T60 recovery CDs (all 8 of them), and plan on doing a fresh install of XP this weekend.

I saw a long thread in the Windows forum titled "Fresh Install of XP Step by Step Guide" or something like that, although the link in there doesn't work anymore. Is the process that complicated/tricky that someone needed to write up a guide?

I also saw a thread where someone listed a bunch of hotfixes that people would need. It looks like many of those are included in SP3, so I plan on installing SP3 immediately after XP gets installed.

Then I'll run that ThinkVantage System Update to see what drivers need to be updated.

How does that sound? Anything else I need to be aware of?

Typically, a fresh or clean install refers to installing Windows and nothing else. To accomplish this you'll need a Windows CD. Your recovery discs will only return your machine to its factory state, which would include all the ThinkVantage tools and bloatware like the Office trial. The benefit of a clean install is there's no junk on it you don't want/need, which can dampen performance.

If you're using the recovery discs it's not complicated at all. Just a few clicks are required.

Oh ok, then I am referring to a "fresh factory install". Probably good to have all the necessary drivers and ThinkPad related tools installed automatically, and I assume I can easily uninstall any bloatware.

Hmm, that brings up an interesting question. Do the recovery discs include all the components that the retail edition of Windows XP Pro would have? I've never installed XP Pro before, but I know that with Windows 2000 Pro, there were certain components on the disc that don't get installed by default, like IIS and some other services. But you could always install them later if you want. Can you do the same with the recovery discs? Is that what the "Supplemental CD" is for, or is that something else?

Hello Thinkpac,

maybe my experiences are of some interest, otherwise please excuse the long post. I understand you intend to do a factory install, but you may want to consider a clean install.

I don't have a comparison between a factory installed xp and a clean install of xp. My T61 came with vista preinstalled and even though SP1 made it a bit "snappier", it never compared to the clean install of xp (which was added) in terms of battery time and speed (both boot time and responsiveness). The two were light years away. Later on I clean installed vista, only to find out that it is just as responsive and efficient as xp when all the bloatware is left out in the first place (though boot time is still a bit longer)! Removing undesired Software after running a factory install did not have the same effect.

In the end, I called every Thinkvantage tool into question: do I really USE it? (potentially needing or experimenting with it is a different question). I ended up installing only the Fingerprint software and Power Manager (VERY bloated but as long as its window is not opened, it doesn't clogg the system. Its "extend battery time" feature was the reason for installing it, for it allows you to disable several devices and settings with just two mouse clicks). Even the long (and happy) relationship with Access Connections ended, when I realised that the only feature of use to me was the automated selection of the default printer. Everything else I use is equally provided for by windows.

After many clean-installs of both OS's I found that for both, the order of installing the following is VERY important (using the latest version):
01. windows os installation
02. Intel Chipset Support
03. Intel Matrix Storage Manager
04. all windows updates (SPs etc.) WITHOUT any of the suggested drivers! If a driver update is listed under critical or important (e.g. the LAN driver), install (individually) the latest Lenovo driver at this point for that device (otherwise certain updates, including service packs, may not be accessible). Ignore all the other driver suggestions from Microsoft. Search repeatedly for Microsoft updates until no critcal or important updates are left and all the service packs are installed (currently SP 3 for xp, SP 2 for vista).
05. Lenovo System Interface driver (SMIF) (important to install AFTER the os updates and before any remaining device drivers!)
06. Lenovo ACPI Power Management driver
07. Lenovo Display driver
08. Lenovo Monitor INF
09. Lenovo Wireless LAN driver
10. Lenovo Audio driver
11. Lenovo Modem driver (if applicable)
12. Lenovo UltraNav driver (NOT the UltraNav Utility)
13. Lenovo Hotkey driver
14. Lenovo Bluetooth driver (if applicable)
15. Thinkvantage Fingerprint reader driver and software (if applicable)
16. Lenovo Atmel TPM device driver (if applicable)
17. Lenovo Power Manager (if desired)

If battery drain during hibernation is an issue, check the following thread: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 23&start=0

Good luck!

George

EDIT: Thanks to Franasia for pointing out that the LAN driver wasn't mentioned in the above list. In the above case, it was a precondition for the service pack and was hence flagged as critical under MS Update (step 04).

Thanks for the detailed information, giorgosvam. I'll try the factory install for now (already paid for the recovery discs), and if I don't like that, then I can think about buying another copy of XP to do a clean install.

I have just finished the factory install, and have done nothing else. I will continue with things later today. I was planning on installing SP3 next, before doing anything else. That's because my router has a WPA2 security key, and Windows XP can't handle WPA2 unless it has SP3 installed. Is there a problem with installing SP3 before the Intel Chipset Support or Intel Matrix Storage Manager?

I was also planning on using the ThinkVantage System Update. I've read (and you have confirmed) that all these Lenovo drivers need to be installed in a certain order, and it's easier to just let the TVSU utility figure it all out.

The above recommendations apply to a clean install from a windows disk. I don't know whether they would also apply to updating a factory install (which already includes all of the drivers and Thinkvantage programs) to the latest versions. Neither do I know whether System Update takes such issues in consideration (I've read in the past that it didn't, but that doesn't mean it still doesn't).

George

Excuse me for bumping a relatively old thread.

FredGarvin wrote:Your recovery discs will only return your machine to its factory state, which would include all the ThinkVantage tools and bloatware like the Office trial.

It's actually possible not to install some of the bloatware with the recovery discs (google "custom factory restore").

I don't believe it's possible on the T60. ThinkPads of the T61 offered a custom install option, but that has been removed on the newer ThinkPads, nor was it an option on older ThinkPads like the T60, R60 or X60.

Thanks to George (giorgosvam)!

Great job indeed. I followed your instructions and everything went well except for two issues already solved.

First one is the omission of the Ethernet Network Controller from your list. It was showing on Device Manager. So I don’t know what position it should take on the list.

Second one was the Atmel TPM device driver. When I searched for the driver I thought it was applicable to Vista only and I skipped it on my XP install. I had a question mark on Device Manager for Unknown Device that was driving me nuts. I had no other choice than installing System Update and have it point to me what was missing.

Everything running like a Swiss watch now … actually a German watch, lol.

Cheers

For those interested:
you can modify the restore partition with Base Software Administrator.
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... ADMIN#TBSA
This is how it works:
- install from scratch using the recovery set. Don't bother with any updates.
- when done, download/install the above BSA software in your fresh Windows.
- run BSA and delete crap like Symantec, Office Trial, Google and other junk from the Recovery partition.
- now run Restore from Recovery partition again, overwriting the previous Windows installation.
Enjoy a complete install without the garbage bloatware.

Please note that this only works on:
- ThinkPad R60, R60e, R61
- ThinkPad T60, T60p, T61, T61p
- ThinkPad X60, X60s, X60 Tablet, X61, X61s, X61 Tablet
- ThinkPad Z61e, Z61m, Z61p, Z61t
- Lenovo 3000 and lots of ThinkCentre PCs.

Works on XP Home & Pro, and Vista 32-bit and 64-bit.