Will use Linux. What to do with the original Windows 7?

[enenen]

Hello,

I just bought Lenovo ThinkPad T530 2394. It comes with Windows 7 Pro 64-bit.

However, I'm a Linux user and want to install Mint but I don't want to lose my original Windows 7 which cames with the laptop. Note that I do not want a dual boot system but only Linux.

So, what should I do? Is there a way to burn this Windows on DVD with all drivers etc.? I mean something like "Reset to factory defaults" disk, i.e. with Win 7, hardware drivers and the software from Lenovo. Is this is possible? If so, how to do this? Is there some tutorial?

Thanks.

[nikki605]

Instructions here http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/detail. ... MIGR-74040

[enenen]

Thank you very much!

I have some other questions after reading this article:

1. What should I do if I decide to install this? Just install like usual Win 7 installation? What happens with Lenovo software, drivers etc.? Are they integrated, too?

2. There is written that I can perform this action only once. Does that mean that I can't write to both DVD and flash drive?

3. On step 3 probably I will choose both but what is the difference between "Boot Media" and "Data Media"?

4. What will be the result with this at all? Is it just picking the OS + drivers + Lenovo software or it will just create a backup including the changes I already made on the OS and 3rd party software I already added?

5. Will this recovery disk will be the same as the reserved partition on the hard drive? Probably reset from that partition will not work because as I know the new Linux installation will change the MBR and I will be not able to reset from there anymore.

[nikki605]

Question #2 first, one means one! You only get one shot at this so you cannot create both a DVD and flash drive. When I ran it after getting my T410 I chose to create DVDs. The process creates one boot disk and if you also chose data media then it creates a complete disk image to DVD. In my case, that required 15 DVDs.

When you later boot the Rescue & Recovery disk you get several options as shown in this screen shot:
http://i40.tinypic.com/ae1hyq.jpg

Among the options are repair, restore, image recovery, some tools and then the bottom option, install back to factory default state.

I've not had to run this recovery since creating it, so I can't give you any personal experience using it.

[twistero]

You could also avoid the proprietary R&R solution, and simply make a full drive backup with, say, Clonezilla. In the event you want Windows back, restore the entire hard drive.
(Note, this method may not work too well if you try to restore to a different hard drive. If the new drive is smaller, Clonezilla may refuse to restore the image. I imagine R&R will be able to cope with different HD sizes, but am not sure.)

[Kilowatt]

Not the cheapest way, but with the price of hard disks so low now, I always take out and store the original disk for later sale with the laptop and put Linux on new/other hard disk.

That's one solution that really works!

Good Luck

[farmall]

I always make DVD recovery media burnt at slowest speed possible for any Thinkpad I get my hands on. Then I test them. Then I make backup copies.

They sometimes work on other 'Pads than the model for which they are intended, so recovery disks can be handy to have. My only trouble is remembering where I put the meda.

[Temetka]

I never use or create recovery discs.

The reason is that no recovery is as clean or as fast as a pure OEM + Driver install. So what I have done is to create my own recover media by installing Windows and Software Update. Run the first 2 rounds of updates, then make a windows image of the drive and burn that to some form of media. But even then I rarely do that. It's just so much faster and easier for me to install a clean OEM setup, then software update and windows updates and I am good to go.

Now that my personal ideology is covered, I will create restore discs for family members. That way if the worst should happen I can walk them through installing a new hard drive then running their recovery. It's easier for me, easier for them, and saves me a drive to their house. Or they can drive to my house with laptop and a six pack.

[sir_synthsalot]

I never use or create recovery discs.

The reason is that no recovery is as clean or as fast as a pure OEM + Driver install. So what I have done is to create my own recover media by installing Windows and Software Update. Run the first 2 rounds of updates, then make a windows image of the drive and burn that to some form of media. But even then I rarely do that. It's just so much faster and easier for me to install a clean OEM setup, then software update and windows updates and I am good to go.

I agree with this. To me there is no reason to keep the Lenovo bloatware. Very few of their utilities are actually useful, and the rest I feel are just for show.

[precip9]

You could also avoid the proprietary R&R solution, and simply make a full drive backup with, say, Clonezilla. In the event you want Windows back, restore the entire hard drive.
(Note, this method may not work too well if you try to restore to a different hard drive. If the new drive is smaller, Clonezilla may refuse to restore the image. I imagine R&R will be able to cope with different HD sizes, but am not sure.)

I use "Create System Image", located under "All Control Panel Items->Backup and Restore->"Create a system image". But, noting twistero's caution, I shrink the disk before I make the image.

1. Use Minitool Partition Wizard, http://www.partitionwizard.com/free-par ... nager.html , to shrink the allocated size of the disk.
2. Store a system image on a usb disk formattted with NTFS. Flash drives do not work for this.
3. "All Control Panel Items->Backup and Restore->"Create a system repair disk."

[twillis449]

Thanks for all the advice here people. It has saved my bacon!