Dell :: Something Is Very Wrong With My Xps16. How Do I Restore?
Oct 14, 2009
I was in the middle of watching a show on hulu when the computer suddenly got really slow for no apparent reason. I tried closing apps but it didn't help. Being very impatient I held the power button down to turn it off.
When I turned it back on the hard drive instantly started working non stop (HDD light on solid. not blinking) and it took forever to load windows. The HDD is on constantly now and the performance is terrible
Just to state first and foremost, this is not an issue I have. This is a preventative post for anyone that may ask down the line. (as I've seen it asked on multiple other forums.)
I had this issue with an inspiron 1720 I just got. It had an issue, so I installed vista from a Vista RTM disk. It didn't fix the problem in the end, so I sent it into dell and got fixed, but I wanted to a fresh restore from the restore partition because on restarts, I'd get the blue screen of Death. Fun stuff right?
Well, Unknowingly, when I installed vista off of the cd, that removed the ctrl+F11 option from the dell. This is stated on many forums, and it seems that most answers to this issue is to format and install a fresh install from cd again, or call dell and get recovery disks. I figured "Heck, If I still have the restore partition, there is not reason why I can't get it to restore with some effort."
Some other people I've seen have just had viral attacks, or just want to sell their laptop and need a fresh install. This is for those people that need it. The answer to the question of what if Control and F11 don't work.
So, Here I am with the fix. There is one required bit of software that's required, and that is simply a dos boot cd. You can find many iso's for dos on the net. All you have to do is burn a copy and boot from it. [EDIT] IMPORTANT: I was wrong about dos. As stated below ( http://www.notebookforums.com/post3049150.html ) you have to do it from a 32 bit environment. You can get through one in the XP repair console (on the install cd) or through one of the options in vista's setup.[/EDIT]
Ok, so this is going to be dumbed down a bit, and I'll explain what the dos commands do. First off, after booting into dos, you need to change to the restore partition. This isn't hard at all, all you do is type "D:" and press enter. After this, you need to find the restore file. This is a file with the extension of *.wim. This is an image of windows from dell factory.
Generally this file is found in d:dellimage and is called Factory.wim. Just to double check, I'm going to tell you to change the directory. Type in "cd dellimage" and press enter. In dos, CD means Change Directory (or enter a folder). Now, to list all of the files in the directory type in "dir" and press enter...............
I lost the restore partition on the original SSD that my Yoga 13 shipped with. Is there a collection of drivers and whatnot that would allow me to restore it to factory defaults on my own with a fresh windows installation? I have the win8 key from the BIOS but don't want to lose out on all the required drivers if I were to just reinstall windows myself.
In the next couple of months, I'm considering buying a xps16 (hopefully one with a radeon 5xxx by then). It's purpose is to play Starcraft II at high settings and Diablo III (if it ever comes out) + as my main pc replacement. I just have a few questions.
1) How is the build quality of the XPS16? I want a laptop that can last at least 5 years (not gaming-wise, obviously). I haven't seen it in person yet but I've seen the Studio 15 and it seems kind of solid.
2) Is there a heat issue? The xps16 will be an i5 and I do plan to get a notebook cooler. I skim through the forum and on the net, my impression is that some people seem to say it's hot ( but not too hot? ) and the lcd screen turns yellow from the vents?
3) How is the RGBled screen? Is it worth getting? I read about the throttle issues and that you need to configure the settings. My current monitor is 17" and 1280x1024 and I"m slightly worried that I might have to squint a little to see 1080p on a smaller screen. Also, I'm worried if the laptop's heat output might ruin the screen. Then again, I read that it is really the best thing since sliced bread.
Thank you all for your input. I'm also considering the Asus G51, if the xps doesn't work out.
On my way from replacing a 9 year old Dell Desktop with a laptop and have it down to the XPS16 (though the Studio 15 / 17 may be a contender based on price)..........................................
I'ii travel to New York. I want to buy studio xps16. I have to say that i have spoken directly with dell and i was told that they can not deliver a laptop to a hotel.
So I send e-mail to BestBuy but there is no answer . The thing is that i want to buy a customized preconfigured xps16.. Does anyone know where to go and shop it directly? The Best choice is to order it now online and pick it up later from a store.
Whenever I'm calling somebody, and when I tend to adjust the volume, the audio seems to be really slow. And I had my first windows hang forcing me to force reboot =( Anyone experiencing this ?
I know it is extremely superfluous but I want 8gb ram! However, it cost $765 more to go from 4GB to 8GB on the Dell website. I heard it is cheaper to just buy RAM yourself and to do it yourself. If possible to do, I am planning on buying 4GB RAM installed on the XPS16 when I customize, and separately buy 4GB RAM separately install myself. This is doable correct?
questions:
1) Is it easy to do?
2) If I finally end up adding the extra 4 GB, will it work just the same as if I originally bought 8GB from dell.
3) Can you link me to some cheap 4GB RAM that is 100% compatible with the XPS16.
I've been wanting to clean any residue that's built up under the keyboard the past few months: dust, hair, crumbs, whatever else that may have slipped by despite how careful I try to be with letting debris in. A friend that cleaned my old Toshiba would 'pop' the keys out, but that ended up breaking/loosening some hinges later on, and I would prefer not to have send his laptop to Dell for such a silly reason.
Is there any 'easy' way to this? I'm assuming the safest way would be to unscrew the back and locate the area beneath the keyboard?
I tried to watch a movie with a friend yesterday, and we had to share a single pair of headphones.
Why have two headphone jacks? Am I missing something?
How do I get both headphone jacks to be active at once?
With the track record of this computer, I wouldn't be surprised if it was something wrong. 1 screen, two keyboards, a palm rest, and a DVD drive have been replaced already... all within a month.
So I got it and let me tell you, what a machine. couldn't be any happier. seriously fast and very nice and stable so far.
a few positive and negative points to those shopping for one.
A. RGB LED screen is unfreaking real, colors like I've never seen before from a computer. well worth the premium but there are 2 drawbacks.
1.whites are not really that pure in comparison to other screens (you get used to it, as the trade off is well worth it)
2.the resolution is a little high for 16". Catch myself squinting a little from a slight distance. (the 2 finger pinch zoom gesture completely fixes this slight nuisance)
I am planning to buy S XPS 16 next week, wanted your suggestion/comments on the below:
The base model comes with 4 GB RAM. Upgrading to 6 GB costs around $360.
I was planning to add more RAM later but couldn't find cheap 3GB RAM stick pair. I am not sure whether this laptop has more than 2 RAM slots, so thought that I would need two 3 GB sticks to make 6 GB RAM.
Do any of you know how I can upgrade the RAM to 6 GB myself? Any links for cheap RAM compatible with this laptop?
what advantages would I have going with the Dell Studio XPS16 with DDR3 ram over an HP with DDR2 ram? I have read a bunch of very technical stuff on here which unfortunately I don't really understand.
I plan on having this computer for about 4 years hopefully. If I get DDR2 will it be outdated in the very near future? Will I benefit myself by getting the DDR3?
I am waiting for my XPS to come and I want to know what is the best cooling device I can get on it. The reason I mentioned "safest" is because one person I know said sometimes it can be harmful to the laptop(I have no idea how true that is).
Im running vista 64 home premium and want to use my upgrade discs to get to win 7.
If i want to delete the recovery partition when do i do it? Is the best process to back up my files and then do a recovery back to vistas original state when i first got the machine and them delete the recovery partition?
Then put in the win7 upgrade dvd? Can i merge the recovery partition with the main one in vista after to delete it?
I will be using my future laptop as a desktop replacement, meaning I will be using it a lot(games and movies especially). If it heats up a lot, not only is it uncomfortable, but it can also be deleterious to the machine and can even be dangerous. Plus, I want to customize it to almost its maximum power.
So if it heats up as much as people say it does, is it worth it?
Does anyone have any information or updated drivers for this drive. The only Blueray drive listed on Dells driver page is the BC-5600S.
The laptop is only 2 months old. Is this a newer drive or is the 5600 the replacement.
I am not happy with the performance of the drive so far, blueray movies sometimes stop while it searches the disk, and I am yet to successfully burn a Dual-layer disk (verbatim).
Anyone experience this issue? I just woke my laptop up from sleep and noticed the quickset buttons are stuck. The STOP (SQUARE) key is brighter lit than all the other keys and none of the touch sensitive buttons work.
Here's the deal, i'm looking for a new laptop in the next couple of months and I want it to be a solid to very good gaming rig.
How does the ATI 4670 graphics card stack up against the nVidia G260M, I know I can pretty much match the two in every other spec except for the cards. Is the ATI that Dell ships GDDR3?
And is that RGBLED screen really that amazing? Fill me in on some of great parts of the SXPS16 because with the new card in it, its definitely a contender again
I recently bought a refurbished Studio XPS 16 with the 1080P RGB screen and was very disappointed. It did not seem very bright and was unable to accurately reproduce the color 'white'.
Everything that was supposed to be white (windows explorer background, wordpad, etc) seemed blue-grayish. I ended up returning the laptop but was just wondering if this is a common issue or if I had a dud.
I would love to order another Studio XPS 16, but only want to do so if this is not a problem with all the 1080P RGB displays.
