packard bell recovery

[spooks]

hi guys am new to this and hope someone can help me i have a packard bell imedia 5055 and need to retore it to factory settings but dont have any recovery disks can someone talk me through what to do or where i can get recovery disks from please i have tried packard bell its self but they couldnt help.
any help would be grateful thanks in advance of any help

[thenry]

click on start > right click 'My Computer' > Properties

What does it say under system? (also have a look at the Microsoft sticker on the tower itself just to double check both match)

don't post your serial but do state whether your serial has OEM within it. it'll state this on the system properties screen.

[DaiNasty]

If the recovery partition still exists on the hard disk I believe either Alt+F10 or F11 will get the recovery process started.

If no recovery partition you'll need to reinstall from a Microsoft OS disk and use the serial number on the case. Drivers should be available on the PB site.

[johnnyd91]

I had a similar problem with the packard bell imedia 5055 (if its the old one). Mine didnt have a recovery partition and the recovery disk was a floppy - which i believe was broken. So i borrowed a xp cd from my mate and like the above post has stated put in my serial number etc. Good luck finding the drivers though. I used everest to track down most of them, couldnt really find any on the PB website..... I don't know if u click on my name u will see the thread i had from my issues on the matter, but it may help

[spooks]

thanks for your help: thenry have done what you posted to do ans it say oem on the number not sure what this means?

dainasty: have tried the alt f10 + f11 nothing works so am at a loss there.

if anybody esle has any ideas i would be grateful. I have read some where that there is a hiidden partion that the recovery can be done from but no idea what i am looking for or how to get there?

[thenry]

which operating system is the PC running?

also you can fetch the manual via http://www.packardbell.co.uk/pb/en/GB/content/download

i tried searching myself but after desktop > iMedia > i'm lost with Product Model.. does it state it anywhere on the tower?

[spooks]

the operating system is windows xp ive tried the packard bell but get lost myself

[thenry]

look at the sides of the tower itself and rear for the MS sticker and there might also be a packard bell sticker. on the MS sticker does it say XP Home or Pro? and what does the packard bell sticker say if there is one.

[budwieser]

Try this mate to get your Windows XP Product key as well as maybe some others.
http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder/
Use the Free one on the left hand side, not the Recover keys program.

[spooks]

the op system is windows xp home edition and there is no packard bell sticker on there.

[thenry]

packard bell suck!!!

click on start > run > winmsd > press ok

after a few seconds a screen will appear.. with the box on the right hand side look for System Type - look across and check whether it says X86-Based PC

if it does you need to down and burn a copy of XP Home OEM 32-Bit SP3 included.. you should find ones with SP3 built in, saves you having to download and install update after update which ends up somewhat defeating the whole point of a fresh install.

then to your drivers, software > Driver Genius should update all your drivers for you.

please note although not common, it is risky fresh installing without drivers to hand. reason being your ethernet point may not work because it needs "special drivers" and so on for your other components.

has your system got an intel processor or amd?

[spooks]

its got intel on it

[thenry]

your board will need its chipset updating too so give it a once over on Intels support drivers site once you've done the install