How to do a factory reset on my hp laptop

So you want to reset your HP laptop, but you're looking for options to reset your HP laptop settings that don’t involve a restore disc. You're in luck. The HP laptops that are shipped with Windows 7 or later operating systems include a recovery partition, also known as an HP password reset disc. This basically performs the very same tasks as a restore disc. The name of the software you will commonly find installed in this recovery partition is HP Recovery Manager, which provides you with several features and functions.

The HP recovery software allows you to reinstall the operating system on your laptop when it crashes or to back up any company files you might have to a different storage device before wiping out the entire hard drive. The process for resetting your HP laptop without a restore disc is as follows.

2. The first step is to turn your HP laptop on. You can also restart it if it is already on. Once it begins the booting process, keep clicking the F11 key until the computer boots to Recovery Manager. That is the software you will use to reset your laptop.

4. In the Recovery Manager, there is a section labeled I Need Help Immediately. This section is to be found in the left pane of the Recovery Manager. In this section, select the System Recovery option and click the button labeled Back Up Your Files (Recommended) and then click Next.

6. You can now choose which types of files you would like to back up. Click on the boxes that appear to select them and then click Next. You should have an external hard drive ready which you will connect to the laptop for backing up. Alternatively, you can insert a blank disc into the optical disc drive in your laptop.

8. Once you have inserted the blank disc or connected the external hard drive, you should select the drive letter that represents it on the computer. This ensures that the files you have decided to back up will be backed up to that specific drive. Click Next.

10. Now the backup process will start. This might take a while. Once it is done, you should click on Next. The Recovery Manager will then restore your HP laptop to its original state, or how it was when it was shipped.

12. Click Finish to complete the process. You will now see a series of on-screen prompts that will guide you through the installation and setup of the Windows operating system. Follow them through to the end until you have set up Windows on your computer.

In case you don’t want to back up your files, simply select the Recover Without Backing Up Your Files option and follow the directions on the screen.

• Windows 11: Go to Start > Settings > System > Recovery > Reset PC.
• Windows 10: Go to Start > Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Get Started under Reset this PC.
• Or, restart and hold down F11 or Shift. From the Choose an Option screen, select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC.

To reset an HP-made laptop running Windows 11 or 10, you can use the standard methods for the operating system. If you're running an earlier version, you can use a separate program from HP to clear your computer and reinstall the OS.

All Windows 11 computers have a feature called Reset This PC that restores the device to factory settings. Here's how to use it:

1. Plug in your computer. Don't reset your device while it's running on the battery.

2. Select the Start button, then select Settings.

3. Select System in the side panel, then select Recovery.

4. Select Reset PC.

5. The next window provides two options:

   • Keep my files is a "reinstall-in-place" option that preserves the files you've saved on your computer.
   • Remove everything deletes everything, including your photos, documents, and anything else you've saved to the hard drive.

   For a full factory reset, select Remove everything.

   Either option will remove any apps you've installed and return settings you've changed to their defaults.

6. Choose how you want to reinstall Windows, and then click Next.

   • Cloud download grabs the most recent version of Windows from the internet.
   • Local install uses the installer from your hard drive to replace Windows.

7. Continue following the instructions to reset your PC. When you're done, your computer will erase the data you selected, reinstall Windows, and then restart. This process will take a few minutes.

The main method of resetting an HP laptop that has Windows 10 installed is basically the same as on any other computer running Microsoft's OS. Here's the simplest way.

1. Plug in your computer. You can't reset it if it's running from the battery.

2. Click the Start button.

3. Select Settings.

4. Click Update & Security.

5. In the left column, choose Recovery.

6. Click Get Started under Reset this PC.

7. The next window provides two options:

   • Keep my files is a "reinstall-in-place" option that preserves the files you've saved on your computer.
   • Remove everything deletes everything, including your photos, documents, and anything else you've saved to the hard drive.

   For a full factory reset, select Remove everything.

8. Next, you can change some settings about how thorough the reset will be. The standard option is Just remove your files. If you aren't keeping the computer, select Change settings and turn on Data erasure in the next window. Then, click Confirm to save.

   Running data erasure will take longer, but your information will be safer.

9. Choose whether to revert to an earlier version of Windows, and then click Reset.

10. Your computer will erase the data you selected, reinstall Windows, and then restart. This process will take a few minutes.

If your laptop isn't starting up properly, it may be better to use the Recovery Environment in Windows to reset. This process is the same for Windows 11 and 10, but the menu options may look a little different.

1. Restart your computer and hold down F11 or Shift on your keyboard until the Choose an Option screen appears.

2. Select Troubleshoot.

3. Click Reset this PC.

4. Choose how you want to reinstall Windows, and then click Next.

   • Cloud download grabs the most recent version of Windows from the internet.
   • Local install uses the installer from your hard drive to replace Windows.

   HP recommends local install unless your computer has a virus.

5. On the next screen, decide what to do with the stuff you currently have on your computer.

   • Keep my files deletes all of the apps you've installed and resets all of Windows 10's settings, but it keeps all of your documents, images, and other personal items.
   • Remove everything deletes apps, returns all settings to their defaults, and removes all of your files.

   Choose Remove everything if you're not keeping the computer.

6. If you choose Keep my files, your computer will delete and reinstall Windows. But if you pick Remove everything, you'll have a few more decisions to make.

   First, choose which drives to delete. Your choices are Only the drive where Windows is installed and All drives. The second option is more thorough and secure, but the process will take longer.

7. On the next screen, you have one more choice to make: just removing your files or completely cleaning the drive.

   Choose the second option if you're not keeping the PC, but the process will take at least an hour to complete.

8. Finally, click Reset to start restoring your laptop.

If your laptop is from 2018 or earlier, it probably has an HP tool called Recovery Manager that you can use to restore the system. This option works for Windows 8 and 7.

1. Search for HP Recovery Manager under the Start menu, and open it.

2. In Recovery Manager, you have a couple options available, both under the Help menu.

   • Windows System Reset is a "restore in place" option that replaces Windows without affecting your files.
   • Windows Recovery Environment lets you completely wipe your laptop's memory and install a fresh version of Windows.

3. Choose the option you want, and then follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

   All Recovery Manger does is provide a centralized location to access these settings, so the instructions will be similar to the ones in previous sections of this article.

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