Is there a way to put your pc/laptop back to the way it was when you bought it?

[Inkie]

I have so much stuff on my laptop that would take ages to remove...Is there a way I could restore it back to the way it was when I bought it from the shop??

[miles488]

just re-boot your operating system - you should have a disc that came with your machine - pop it in and follow the prompts for a complete re-install. possible risks? not finding all the software that was orginally installed on your machine is actually on your recovery disc but if it was me i wouldn't worry too much. make back-ups of anything you actually want to keep and re-install everything from the recovery disc. then if you want something you haven't got go to a site like exbforums where you can get freeware...and other things(!) and make your machine the sleek dream it used to be!

[Cockney_si]

Sometimes it comes with a system restore disk....however I have had some before that the system restore disk just overlays another copy of the windows or whatever over the top of it making a real mess of everything.

[Inkie]

How would I do it??...Do I have to remove everything and then use the back-up disk or do I just use the back-up disk now??

[miles488]

i've never seen the 'overlay' issue you're referring to - just use the disc and should prompt if you wanna wipe everything and do a complete re-install.
alternatively - go to exbforums.com, register for free, and search terms like 'total clean' 'wipe' etc till you find someone who knows more about it than i do!