win 10 issues.

[82rude]

Have a dell latitude 5420.I had win 7 pro on it but as far as I'm concerned Microsoft lied to me and said my comp was ready for win 10.So being the sucker I am I put it on months ago.Ive had nothing but problems with it and frequently get the blue spinning circle of death.Dell does not support win 10 for this laptop so I cant update it.My comp was preloaded with win 7 ,is there anyway to get it back?

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Same issue with an Acer we had.....ended up replacing it. I think its SOP to replace Windows pcs every two to three years. My next laptop is gonna be a Mac!

 

[GA_Boater]

You might be able to do a factory restore - If it came with W7 Pro. A hidden partition should still have the factory default OS if you haven't done a clean install.

 

[82rude]

Where would I look?

 

[Scott Danforth]

There is a way to roll back to win 7. I agree, win 10 sucks and Microsoft doesn't have a clue

 

[GA_Boater]

Where would I look?

Right here - http://www.dell.com/support/article/us/en/19/SLN291879/EN

 

[boatman37]

from what i was told you can only roll back within 30 days. that makes no sense to me and i haven't tried it but just what i heard. a factory restore would definitely be an option. be sure to back up all of your files as you will likely lose everything

 

[GA_Boater]

from what i was told you can only roll back within 30 days. that makes no sense to me and i haven't tried it but just what i heard. a factory restore would definitely be an option. be sure to back up all of your files as you will likely lose everything

True, 30 days after the W10 upgrade you can go back to the previous Windows version. What I've heard is even within the 30 days, it wasn't foolproof.

A factory default restore is different. Dell and all PC makers have a copy of the original OS in a hidden partition. That partition is always available for a factory restore unless a clean W10 install is performed, which reformats the hard drive. A factory restore has worked for me every time. Lucky?

After the restore the machine will be like brand new and you do need to reload any files you intend to keep.

 

[mjf55]

84rude, is that an E5420? If so, their page says this : [h=4]Product not tested for Windows 10 upgrade[/h] [FONT=&quot]Dell is not testing or developing Windows 10 drivers for this product. If you choose to upgrade, some features, applications, and connected devices may not work as expected.
link [/FONT]

 

[82rude]

Yes that's the one.unfortunately Microsoft adviser said my comp was ready to upgrade and I stupidly did before seeing that dell warning!Hence me saying I feel micro lied to me .If micro had said that my laptop didn't support drivers I would not of upgraded.Too my mind that's a little dishonest on microsofts part.

 

[82rude]

Well tried to do restore.No joy .micro must of wiped out factory restore.If I get really ticked off I will take to my local comp guru,he,s a bit of a flake but good.At the very least I can talk to him and see if I did something wrong or ?

 

[mjf55]

You still have a valid Windows 7 license. You should be able to download win7, same version you have ( pro, home, etc) and reinstall. Do you still have the original COA to use.

 

[82rude]

I bought the laptop earlier in the year refurbed.The hard drive was defective so they sent me a new preloaded harddrive.Would the license be on the hardrive?

 

[82rude]

What I mean is would it physically be on the hardrive?Like a tag?I will look for paperwork ,I'm terrible at keeping paperwork.

 

[HT32BSX115]

I bought the laptop earlier in the year refurbed.The hard drive was defective so they sent me a new preloaded harddrive.Would the license be on the hardrive?

If you bought the computer directly from DELL and it was a "REFURB" (I hate that word) It should have the recovery partition still intact. If it doesn't, you may have to buy a "builder version" of WIN7 if you want to go back. They're all over EBAY complete with MS license. for $40 or less

Unfortunately, you'll probably not get much support from MS here either

End of support

Windows Vista	Service Pack 2	April 10, 2012
Windows 7*	Service Pack 1	January 13, 2015
Windows 8	Windows 8.1	January 9, 2018
Windows 10, released in July 2015**	N/A	October 13, 2020

Now having said all that,

I had a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate on my DELL XFR D630 (which DELL said they won't test for 10 because it's too old)
But I did it anyway. It originally came new with Win-XP Pro with an upgrade to Vista.

DELL XFR D630 Product not tested for Windows 10 upgrade

Dell is not testing or developing Windows 10 drivers for this product. If you choose to upgrade, some features, applications, and connected devices may not work as expected.

It worked fine with 7 and it works fine with 10.

I have done several ugrades from 7/8 to 10 on different computers and had no problems.

You may have other "things" going on there.

EDIT:
Just went to Dell Support forums and EVERYBODY is having problems getting WIN10 to work on the dell latitude 5420.

Sorry about that!

You may be spending a little money on a copy of WIN7 or 8 to do a full install.

Same issue with an Acer we had.....ended up replacing it. I think its SOP to replace Windows pcs every two to three years. My next laptop is gonna be a Mac!

I bought both daughters and wife a Macbook Pro and did all the set up.

I will NEVER own a MAC.........and if I was given one, I would wipe the MAC OS and install Linux! If I couldn't do that, I would drive a MAC (truck) over it!!

If I was going to buy a new computer, it would be a Surface Pro. As much as I hate to say it, MS has Apple beat on this one. Apple is stuck in the 90's

But I digress.....

For the OP, go to EBAY, buy a cheep copy of WIN-7 pro + SP1 or Win8.x (with license) and do a full install. That's the best it's going to get for you.

Regards,

Rick

 

[mjf55]

82rude, the COA would be a paper certificate or a sticker on the bottom of your laptop.
Since it was registered with Microsoft, perhaps they can help you with the new installation.
If none of this pans out, I have alternative ways , just PM me.

EDIT: What do you use this for. Can Linux be an alternative?

 

[82rude]

I can tolerate the quirks if I have to.im not ready to spend any money on it as its not too bad just not as good as it could be .No matter what I do or how I try it just keeps coming back as 1 o.s on comp anywhere period.i suppose I could download the win 7 from my desktop junker to my laptop?I got the laptop to replace the desktop anyways.

 

[82rude]

Looks like this would be the way to do it.http://www.backup-utility.com/universal-restore/transfer-os-from-one-computer-to-another-4125.html

 

[HT32BSX115]

EDIT: What do you use this for. Can Linux be an alternative?

That's a fair question.

I have been using Linux as my primary operating system since 1999. (Currently OpenSUSE Leap 42.1) https://www.opensuse.org/


If you are web surfing, and using an email client for 99% of your computer use, you can install any of the popular Linux's (for free) and they'll do the job.

If you use Firefox or Thunderbird(email) on windows. You won't see much difference with them on Linux.

The only major software that doesn't work on Linux is Turbotax. (I use my Win10 computer for that.....I suspect you could use the web-based version though)

The most popular distributions are probably Ubuntu and Linux Mint (All free)

https://www.ubuntu.com/desktop

https://www.linuxmint.com/

Installation is quite simple. Download the distribution of your choice, either "burn" it to a DVD or a thumb-drive, then reboot your computer using the disc or thumb-drive, follow directions during install.....Takes about 30 min or so.

It's easier and MUCH quicker than doing a full Windows install. (With Windows, a full install and subsequent updates will literally take all day!)


Regards,

Rick

 

[82rude]

Is this what I need?https://www.amazon.ca/Microsoft-Win...&ie=UTF8&qid=1478024792&sr=1-1&keywords=win+7