I own a VGN-Z37GD VAIO and I'm wondering what happens to the recovery drive once Vista is upgraded to Windows 7? Does the recovery drive also get updated or is it necessary to create a new one yourself?
View 4 RepliesAfter upgrading to Win 8.1 and trying to create the usb recovery drive, I get this error:"We can't create a reccovery drive on this PC. Some required files are missing.To trouble shoot problems when your PC starts,use your window installation disk or media".
View 2 Replies View RelatedI have a Sony Vaio VGN-FW290 with Vista Home Premium 64x that I’ve had for approximately one year. I would like to upgrade it by replacing the original 5400rpm HD with a 7200rpm HD and a fresh install of Windows 7 Home Premium 64x.
Here are the questions I have:
Is there a preferred hard drive that works well in this style of laptop? I’m considering a Seagate Momentus 7200.4 or WD Scorpio Black.
If I install the new hard drive, can I boot from the Windows 7 installation disk and go? Will the basic hardware function properly at this point; CD drive, internet connection for Windows installation, etc.? Is there anything else I need to be aware of?
According to Sony eSupport, the VGN-FW290 model is “Windows 7 upgradeable”. Does this mean all the Sony Windows 7 drivers are available to provide the full functionality of the computer with a fresh install? There’s only a handful of Windows 7 Home Premium 64x drivers, on the Sony website, compared to the Vista Home Premium 64x OS. Do I use a combination of Vista drivers along with Windows 7 drivers? For example, I have the ATI Radeon HD 3650 video adapter and a Blu-ray read/write drive, but don’t see a Windows 7 driver for them.
Recovery software disapeared from drive d in windows 7 on presario cq62 209wm. How do I restore the program?
View 1 Replies View RelatedI recently got this laptop and wanted to upgrade to Windows 8.1 immediatly since it came with Windows 7. This was of course and option with the disc set that came with the laptop. Unfortunately i have encountered problems in the installation/recovery of Windows 8.1.Â
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When the laptop is finished using the actual disc's (i say finished because it spits out disc 4 which is the last one) and is booting into the OS to do the last installing it "freezes" in the middle of "dowork.cmd". In the cmd window it tries to access a destination directory which it can't. Instead of writing it here, i'm just gonna link a picture of it:Â
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I just don't understand why simple recovery discs would cause a failure... Googling the problem has only lead to this:Â URL....
Have an Envy M6-K010DX notebook. Due to an internet problem while upgrading from Win 8 to 8.1, the PC doesn't properly boot and Windows Explorer won't load. Decided to 'Refresh' the OS and went to the F11 restore utilities. When I go to the refresh utility and follow the prompts I reach a message that says, "The drive where windows is installed is locked. Unlock the drive and try again." I've searched support for unlocking instructions and aside from some bootrec commands (that didn't work - probably because I don't have a Win 8 disk) not much is available.
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The only access I have for running commands is via the Task Manager and F11 command prompt. What is this 'locked' drive, anyway?
I think I have a hard disk failure or error. It states the disk name:TOSHIBA MQ01ABF050 and the volume C:;D:  . I have a HP Pavilion TS Sleekbook 14 with windows 8.1 (I upgraded from the Windows 8 which came in with the laptop) and  I unknowingly created a recovery image on a Windows 8 compatible usb successfully when I was already experiencing problems with my laptop hard drive. I later found out that it is not recommended to create a recovery image on a windows 8 compatible usb.
I'm hoping to just go back to factory settings and wipe out all my files if that can get my laptop back in working condition as I have already backed up my important documents to USB. My following question's are
1.) Will the recovery image that I created with the usb that's windows 8 compatible not work if I try to do a factory reset?
2.) Will the recovery image that I created while having the errors already, be techically "clean," meaning it has all the necessary components for a running laptop once I replace my hard drive or do a recovery with the current hard drive in place?
3.) Will I be able to restore from the recovery partition? or does the hard disk failure affect that drive as well?
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My USB flash drive is also compatible with windows 8 AND 7. Is it possible to just transfer it to just a windows 7 compatible usb if I'll encounter problems due to the windows 8 compatibility of the flash drive I've used for the recovery image creation.
Anyone's help or suggestion on this model would be great.
Z21ZN/X, Core 2 Duo P9500 2.53GHz, Vista Business/XP Pro Discs, 13.1" WXGA,
GeForce 9M GS 256MB, 4GB (2x2GB) RAM, 128GB HDD, Blu-ray, 802.11ABGN WiFi, Bluetooth, Webcam, Fingerprint, HSDPA
Sony has just released a firmware upgrade for UJ-220 Blu-ray drive.
It seems to fix the problem with some BD movies not being recognized by my drive. A list of compatible models can be found here.
How can one empty the recovery without  to much risk to the system? D Drive is 89% full on Pavilion M6 1045dx entertainment PC - OS Windows 7 Home Premium
View 7 Replies View RelatedI'm installing Windows 7 x64 on my HP Envy 14 2090.
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Setup cannot find my harddrive, presumably because a SATA driver is missing. I have tried the supplied SATA driver from HP driver download page for my model, but they don't work. I've tried various others, still no luck.
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The harddrive is found by BIOS. The harddrive has been working without a hitch for years, right up until I tried a re-install.
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PS: I'm not using the HP recovery DVDs, since these install all sorts of unneccessary software I don't want. (Why do all major laptop producers add this crap?)
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Where can I find the correct SATA drivers for use with Windows 7 x64 installation?
I have a VGN-FZ240E that has some issues. I am sure that previous virus removal efforts have damaged my operating system beyond reasonable repair.The only real solution I believe is to reinstall Vista. 2 Problems, 1 I do not have the recovery dvds, 2 the system will not me make a recovery set. I can see a recovery partition on the disk when I ran Easues Partition Manager. In fact, I copied the recovery partition to a logical drive I created on the hard disk. So now I can see it in explorer, and browse it.
I am wondering if I copy the recovery partition to a new hard drive can I then start the new drive as a boot device and reinstall Vista from it ? If I can then my plan would be to do the transfer files and settings from original drive to get me back up and running correctly. This would also archive all my stuff in case of an unfortunate mishap. I understand I will need to reinstall apps and such I just do not want to have to dish out the extra $30 for the disks. And I have already combed this machine and cannot locate the WUA files.
I was wanting to put in a lager hard drive in my system, I noticed that it has a spot for 2 hard drives,
I was thinking about leaving in the factory drive and adding a second drive.
I was wondering if I would have any problems adding a second drive.
I was thinking a 320gig to a 500gig 5400rpm drive.
I have a Sony Vaio SR190 with a 160gb@5400 rpm hard drive. I really want to upgrade this with more capacity. I have two main questions:
1) What Hard Drive brand is the best? I was looking at the Western Digital Scorpio and the Seagate Momentus, but I want suggestions on the BEST.
I was wondering if it was easy to crack open and upgrade the CD-ROM drive to another hard drive instead. Since customizing a TT is hellaciously expensive and the hard drives they offer are slow and not big enough -I would rather supply my own parts than what they have in stock
View 3 Replies View RelatedI bought an FW configured with a 320gb 5400rpm hard drive, originally with a view to taking it out and putting in a faster one, 7200rpm or even an ssd. However, sony said this would void the warranty so I decided to just stick wit the 5400rpm option.
So my question is that if I bought a 7200rpm drive now, or an ssd when they are slightly cheaper, would I be able to slot that in,
but then if something went wrong with the laptop and it had to be returned, simply slip in the original 5400rpm hard drive so the sony guys wouldn't know the difference?? Or would they be able to tell I had changed the drive?
How to replace Hard Drive for Sony Vaio Z...
View 7 Replies View Relatedupgraded HD on the Z - it was a relatively short thread without any concensus.
Does anyone know definitely if upgrading the HD myself void the warranty - IF I do not damage anything?
I am looking at one of the 7200rpm 320gb drives from either Hitachi, Fijitsu, Seagate and Western Digital.
Sony says the systems are not designed to be upgraded (by the end user). I guess they want only overpriced tech to do it. I have already popped my system apart and put it back together so I know how to do it. I have been building and repairing my own PC since 1990 so I am not afraid to do this. I would hate to buy the drive and find out that the BIOS will not support it.
Has anyone had any issues with Hard Drive upgrades on the SZ 330p/b model?
I'd like to upgrade the hard drive on my Vaio, and I found a number of options here to purchase a new drive to make sure I get a compatible one. I'm leaning toward the 7200 rpm 320 gig model.
What I'm concerned about is doing the actual upgrade after cloning my current drive to the new one, as Sony says that hard drives are not user-upgradeable.
I've replaced a hard drive before on a Toshiba laptop, and on a TiVo, and many times on a desktop computer, so I have some confidence that I could probably do it if I had instructions, which I don't. I saw the instructions here about upgrading a different model -- is it probably sufficiently similar that a moderately geeky girl could manage this herself?
I recently bought a T530 with Windows 8 pre-installed. I want to create recovery disc(s). However, in the "Create a recovery media" wizard, I don't have the option of selecting DVDs if tick the option "Copy the recovery partition to the media". I have a bunch of DVDs lying around and I would like to use them. Not to mention that I don't intend to buy USB drive just for this purpose.
View 9 Replies View RelatedI have Acer Aspire 5742G notebook and I'm having problems installing the Windows 7 OS on my new SSD hard drive (I bought the SSD because the original hard drive is failing and making blue screens all the time...)For the factory restore, I'm using restore discs. I burned the discs few years back when the laptop insisted me of doing it (by using eRecovery or something, 3 dvds total).
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The computer tries to install the OS with the dvds (asks to insert a dvd and then press a key). The actual problem is that the installer is just going in loops, restarting and eventually freezing in the end.. Reboot -> Acer logo -> Windows is loading files... -> Starting windows -> Reboot -> etc.That kept going for more than a hour (on the first dvd!) and suddenly it just froze on the "starting windows" screen.. So I had to reboot and star over again.I can still use my old formatted HDD, should I make new set of recovery discs or use an USB drive?
I have an Aspire V3-772G. I can't create a recovery drive anymore. I ran reagentc.exe in command-prompt and it's pointing to the correct recovery location, but Windows RE is disabled and for some reason I can't reenable it.
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Here are some screenshots to describe the problem :
I was thinking of upgrading my HDD to 500gb. What is the compatible hd for my laptop? [vgn-fw270j]
View 3 Replies View RelatedWill pick up my VGN-TT180c this week and planning to upgrade the stock hard drive to a 7200rpm Hard Drive.
how to do the upgrade?
I just have a question regarding aftermarket upgrade of blue ray for Vaio Z series, did any one try upgrading with any aftermarket blue ray drive for Z series? If so what is the compatibility criteria and did anyone find one for Z series
I found a notebook blue ray rom for $79
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but it is IDE interface I am not sure what interface is for Z series.
Sony VAIO VGN-NS140E/L. I've been wanting to replace my 250GB hard drive with a larger drive, but I can't find any instruction manuals/walkthroughs of how to disassemble it enough to make the swap.
I've read pages of other models, and followed it to the point of where I have removed the bottom screws and unhinged the keyboard, but now I can't figure out how to remove the plastic cover that is over the hard drive and other components (in other walkthroughs this part seems to be a seperate metal panel, not a plastic built-in part).
Disclaimer: I did do a cursory search for the question I want to ask, but there were like 480 pages that came up in my initial searches.
I have a Vaio VGN A270P that has VERY, VERY low miles on it. It is literally the car that the little old lady from Pasadena drove for like a grand total of maybe 10 hours.
I have ordered the requisite memory upgrade from the current 1GB to 2GB max from Crucial. Now I want to look into replacing the harddrive with something a little more beefy. In doing my due diligence, I found that this machine came with a max of 100GB hard drive. I see drives on the bay for reasonable prices that are as much as 360GB (?)
I am doing this in conjunction with a total dump of windows and swapping in Linux Mint for my OS. Basically I am wanting to try to extend the useful life and functionality of this machine by doing this.
My question is this....what would be you advice regarding the upgrading of the hard drive? Where to go to get it? What should I look for in purchasing the drive? What pit falls should I be on alert for? Do any of you have reservations about what I am proposing here?
I have a Sony VGN-AR38G.
I have upgraded the HDD and RAM 2 months ago after a hardisk failure.
Current specs as follows:
Intel Core2 CPU T7400@2.16GHz
Nvidia GeForce Go 7600 GT
2x2G RAM
2x320G HDD
Optical Drive: Mata BD-MLT UJ-210S ATA Device
In device manager it says the device is working properly.
Current driver version is 6.0.6001.18000, which should be the latest (Ver1.06)
The laptop was purchased in June 2007. Broke Dec 2009 due to hardisk failure. Then I upgraded some hardwares (HDD & RAM), reinstalled Vista Home Premium (Burnt disk) then upgraded to Win7 (Retail disk).
Then 2 weeks ago, I left it on battery only, thought it would go into hybernation when the battery drains, however I had a nasty system loss, basically all I had was the Vaio logo and BIOS info, not even F8. So had to reinstall the system. Did pretty much the same thing as before, except I did the firmware upgrade of the optical drive, which I don't recall doing the last time. Then, I'm stuck with the Win7 upgrade.
I was able to install a new: PNY Optima SSD7SC240GOPT-RB 2.5" 240GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) in my ThinkPad X220 model 4287. I installed the latest BIOS before the upgrade and did a clean install of Windows 8.1 Pro. The installed went smooth with no issues. I proceeded in installing all Drivers and utilities. Then I noticed that when I restart Windows, the BIOS does not recognize the drive and proceeds to try to boot from the Network, Intel Boot Agent. It does not seem to recognize the SSD drive.
The only way I can get it to boot from windows again is to TURN OFF using the power button and then turning it back ON. I tried the Lenovo SSD firmware update utility to see if my drive needed an update but it did not find any update for my drive. I also tried to the PNY support site and downloaded the firmware update to see if it found any updates for my drive and none where available. I hope LENOVO can release an update to their SSD firmware update tool to fix my problem. I am also not sure if any of the utilities that I installed may be the root of the problem. So right now the only way I can get Windows to load is to turn off and turn back on the laptop. Windows restarts will not work.