How to restore your Windows 7 computer to factory settings

You may need to restore your computer to factory settings to fix some computer problems or crashes or to clear your personal information from the system. Follow these instructions to reset your computer.

To restore your Windows 7 computer to factory settings

1. Back up important files and data. If you do not back up your files, you will lose them.
2. Turn off your computer.
3. Disconnect everything but the monitor, keyboard and mouse. This includes your:

• scanner
• printer
• o    modem or network cables
• mobile phone and tablet
• USB flash drive or other external hard drive

3. If your laptop is docked, remove it from the docking station.
4. When the Dell logo appears on the screen, press F8 several times to open the Advanced Boot Options menu.

6. Use the Arrow keys to select Repair Your Computer and then press Enter.
7. On the System Recovery Options menu, select a keyboard layout and click Next.
8. To access the recovery options, log in as an administrator and click OK to open the Dell Factory Image Restore menu.
9. Depending on your configuration, you may need to select Dell Factory Tools and then Dell Factory Image Restore.
10. Click Next to open the Confirm Data Deletion menu.
11. Select the Yes, reformat hard drive and restore system software to factory condition check box and click Next.

12. After the restore operation is complete, click Finish to restart the computer.
13. Restore any data or programs you want from back up files.