Hi! I made two new videos you might be interested in that are about Microsoft's "Reset this PC" process. This Video: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html shows how to secure erase ALL of the hard drives installed in your PC, in case you have more than one drive or partition with sensitive data stored on it. And this Video: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.html proves that you can NOT use a data recovery program to restore old data from a hard drive after you have performed the "Reset this PC" process with the "Remove Everything" and "Clean data: YES" options selected. The second video is a little long but I show a timestamp at the beginning that lets you skip/forward to my results and conclusions. JUST SO YOU KNOW: I was UNABLE to recover any of the old data files after the "Clean data: YES" process finished. :) Thank you so much for your support and I will continue to post new Tech videos and grow this channel. Cheers!! -- Jason 😀
Yes, true but some people want to resell their fully functional old PC to a new owner, without having traces of their personal data on the drive. The Windows "Reset this PC" process isn't too complicated and it achieves that goal quite well, as long as the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: YES" options are selected. On a side note, whenever I upgrade one of my customer's mechanical hard drives to a SSD drive, I pull out the old mechanical drive and tell them to hold onto it for safe keeping (or leave it in the computer's case). The old drive acts like a perfect backup of the PC, on the date that the new drive was installed. They sometimes end up giving me the drive a few months later and ask me to secure erase it or destroy it. In most cases, I take any drives I have to a local technology recycling center that guarantees that they secure erase the drives to DoD-7 standards. If the drive can't be secure erased, they put it into a metal chipper and turn it into dust! a1assets.com/site/ Have a great day -- Jason
@JasonBagnell true, but how old is that hard drive? It is better for sellers or new owners to put in a fresh hard drive. And new os, so new owner can get updates from os maker. Old os likely doesn't get any more updates. If computer can install new os that is.
@CartGoBroom Hi! The "Reset this PC" procedure should leave the PC in a usable state once it has finished. The drivers will revert back to the same state it was in when the PC was first turned on for the first time. The chipset and CPU will definately be fine but it is possible that you might have installed a better video card and downloaded specific drivers for it to operate. In that case, "Reset this PC" should download whichever drivers are available directly from the Microsoft Windows Update driver repository. So Yes, it will probably revert your GPU drivers but Windows 10 and 11 are both pretty good at downloading what they need from the Microsoft Update servers to get you up and running. I hope this helps! Cheers -- Jason
Nice video, and I do this same thing, with two exceptions. First, before resetting, I make sure to secure erase other drives before resetting the C: drive, as only the C: drive gets secure erased, other drives are untouched and have all of their data still. The second thing I do is after resetting the PC, when it relaunches and wants you to start setting up the PC, I just tap the power button to turn it off, so the user can set things up themselves. Unless, of course, the user wants you to set it all up for him.
As a buyer of a second hand pc, I would only buy one if it shows the set-up page when booting. If not, that means possible malware, dodgy files and what not that could be installed.
Recently bought a used, Dell Latitude E6430 to replace my old, Lenovo Thinkpad T440 with Windows 10. I chose to erase everything on the drives. Great, informative video. Thank you!😊
Just used your instructions to clean a laptop to return under warranty for replacement. It was terrific and worked perfectly! Thank you very much for your quick, clear and very easy to understand step by step video. Keep up the great work!
Thank you bro I’m selling my pc tomorrow and I was so stressed but I found your video and you described it simply and friendly! You my man, just earned another like and sub!
I like your thumbnail photo. I had a black/tan convertible 2003 Cobra Mustang back in the day. It was the one they called the "Terminator" and it was the first Mustang Ford sold (stock) with a supercharger. I miss it! Do you have another channel with car videos? Just curious.
My old laptop is originally WIndows 7. When Microsoft offered the WIndows 10 for free. I was able to take advantage of it. So my question is "if I reset my pc, will it go back to WIndows 7 or WIndows 10?
@@hannaanhorn1117 Hi! You will not be required to enter your PC's Windows product key. The key (from before) is stored on the Microsoft Windows activation servers, so when the Reset is complete, it will automatically be applied. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
A lot of the video tutorials you see on UA-cam were created using a Windows Virtual Machine, running on a second monitor. You can use a program like VMPlayer or VirtualBox to run an independent copy of Windows, in a window! Then we use a program like “OBS Studio” to save a video of that screen and then edit it into our final video. It’s a little movie magic combined with some computer nerd tricks - LOL! Cheers - Jason
Thanks for this Jason. I had a minor panic when I didn't disconnect the ethernet cable and it went on to the accounts section so I disconnected it then, entered User for the name and Admin for the password but then it confronted me with security questions! I backtracked on your instructions and ignored the password and was able to proceed - thank heavens! Now it looks like it should do with no files showing. One thing I was glad of was when it finally fired up that I had kept my hardwired mouse and keyboard (probably from the last occasion like this) as my super dooper wireless set would not play ball.
Hi John, I'm glad you were able to get everything sorted out! Yes, the basic keyboard and mouse functionality will remain after the "Reset this PC" program is finished but any advanced drivers you installed before will need to be reinstalled. Sometimes a faulty/incorrect driver file can cause Windows to freeze/lock-up so the "Reset this PC" program resets everything back to the basic drivers to help people get their PC running again if they were having problems. Have a great weekend! -- Jason :)
Tried this went for local install , wipe data of hard drive Started it screen can up preparing to reset worked up to 54% then it stopped left it for 24 hours no change had to give
Hi! I just re-watched part of my video and noticed that the "Preparing to reset" appears when Windows is downloading the files required to reset the PC. Try this: If you used "Local Install", try using the cloud download. If you used "Cloud Download", try using the "Local Reinstall" option. Some people have had success by trying the opposite method. It's also possible that there are bad spots on the hard drive that are causing the process to get stuck whenever Windows is trying to access one of the bad areas. You can open an Administrative Command Prompt and issue the following command to have Windows check out the hard drive and attempt to repair the bad sectors/clusters: CHKDSK C: /F /R Also, if your PC has one or more very large (4TB-16TB) hard drives, the secure erase procedure will take a VERY LONG time. The hard drive activity light should be on solid or flashing during the secure erase procedure. My video makes it look like the secure erase part happened quickly but that was because I edited the video and sped things up. Hopefully some of this will help! Cheers -- Jason
Hi, I tried to repair bad sectors and got following text: “Access Denied as you do not have sufficient privileges or the disk may be locked by another process. You have to invoke this utility running in elevated mode and make sure the disk is unlocked.” What does it mean? I am the only user in this pc and I just did factory reset and got stuck at 99%…
Hey. So I just bought a pc, and the last person who had this did not factory reset, so I factory reset. (Windows 10) when it was in the loading screen where everything is black except the % it's at and the Windows logo, my monitor said power saving and turn off (pc is still on) when I try to turn my monitor on it says no singal and power saving (turns back off my monitor) what do I do?
Thank you, Jason, what a relief. I can confidently send my laptop back to the outfit I bought it from knowing it is clean. You explained it all very well. Even this klutz made it through pretty easily. Good work.
Hi! I searched Google for an answer to your question and saw a few answers that seemed to contradict each other. Tonight I'm going to setup a Windows 10 Virutal Machine that has 3 hard drives so I can find out exactly what happens after using the "Clean Data: YES" option. I'll load up drive #2 & #3 with some data files to see if the data is no longer present at the end. Stay tuned and I'll write back my findings in a Reply to this comment. Thanks! --Jason
😀Hello again @jureknowak3851 ! I finished creating my *_Video Response_* to your comment. Please see: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html for my full answer. You can view it now or wait until it becomes publicly available on my channel at 12:00PM EST on 10/31/2023. I hope the information helps you! Cheers -- Jason
I'd lay ya 5-1 that it is just the C: Drive that is effectively having 'clean all' run, but, somehow just on it's space not containing the ISO recently downloaded for reinstall....
Hi! I made another video where I figured out how to get the "Reset This PC" procedure to secure-erase ALL hard drives installed in the computer. See the following: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Have a great day and thanks for subscribing! -- Jason @@mdd1963
Google must ne listening to what I'm saying. I'm in the middle of erasing 4 extremely old laptop before I recycle them and this video pops up in youtube. That's handy but scary too. Great video and helps me a lot
That's happened to me too! Like when you've talked with a friend or family member about some obscure topic that you've never searched for and then it starts coming up later on the Internet everywhere you look. I turned off all of the relevant "Background App Refresh" settings on my iPhone to keep the apps from spying on me when the apps are not open. It makes you wonder.. I'm glad you found the video helpful! Have a great weekend -- Jason
Was that really you? I'm sorry, there in EVERYTHING and I'm so so thankful 🙏 for your advice, I'm going to share and watch and like the heck out of your channel! You're truly a blessing and very kind which is very rare in this world. Thank you again and God bless you!
Yes, it is really me -- LOL! I hope you have some backups from before the time the hacker problems first started. The bad guys are really smart and their programs and connections can be hard to get rid of. In a simple case, you might have accidentally run an encryption virus executable that began the process. From my experience, once the encryption virus program is finished encrypting all of the data it can reach, the virus sometimes deletes itself so it can not be reverse engineered by someone later. Performing a virus scan and then restoring your files from a backup (if you have one) is a great option at that point. Please don't pay the bad guys because there are no guarantees that you will get your data back after you pay them. Other times, the hackers remain actively in the system(s) and work diligently to counteract everything you try to do to cleanup the problem. If you plug in a backup drive to restore files, they might start encrypting the backup drive as soon as it is connected. It's very nerve racking when that happens. Again, keep the network OFFLINE so the hackers can't continue to cause problems. You can run the "Reset this PC" using the "Remove everything" and "Local Reinstall" option to clear out a PC if none of the data on it is required (or if everything of value already got encrypted). I wish you best of luck with everything you're dealing with. Take care -- Jason
@JasonBagnell Thank you. You are very informative and helpful. God bless.(like this,ie.. I didn't write this message! Unreal. Anyhow, thank you for all your help
Wow...Great video. Thank you so much for posting this easy to understand and, most importantly, to follow tutorial. I was in the process of getting rid of my 14 year old desktop and every other video I watched skipped a lot of the procedures you discussed... especially when you recommended unplugging your internet cable after the reset phase. It all work perfectly. Outstanding! My wife is thrilled because the computer, desk and chair will soon be gone. Happy Wife...Happy Life
Hi Jason, Huge thanks came at the right time. I have a laptop I want to sell, which was my once concern, now no more. Great video. Thanks and Take care!
Thank you. I am hoping at the finish that my husband's computer will be wide clean of all my real estate documents and not mine lol. Your site was great because for technologically challenged person it was easy to follow. I am now waiting for the device to download and restart so hopefully all goes well. Thank you.
Hi! I'm glad you found the video helpful. If you are selling or discarding the computer and don't want any of your information going with it, the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options ensure that everything will be secure-erased by the time it is finished. Just make sure that you DO NOT enter your Microsoft Account info at the last part of the Windows Setup process after it reboots. That way it won't start downloading all of your documents and pictures from your Microsoft OneDrive account. Give the program plenty of time to finish. If the PC has a mechanical hard drive, it is not uncommon for it to take 2-10 hours (or more) to completely erase the drive. Have a great day! -- Jason
@@JasonBagnell I went for secure erase and was able to transform my Dad's second-hand laptop to a fast, smooth and nice PC; that I would turn on every now and then and feel proud of myself for having done it I tried cleaning my own PC in Jan 2k23, and reinstall windows using pendrive and was very disappointed with the results, months later, you made this marvelous tutorial and glad that I came across it I wish every tutorial ever, in every niche, was this much accurate and truthful Thank you from Pakistan (subbed already ;) )
@@iqratahir4688 Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm glad that the video was helpful for you, and thanks for subscribing. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Hi! I’m so glad you were to get everything working the way you wanted. The process can be lengthy when your PC has an older mechanical hard drive. I used a lot a fast-forwarding in my video. Have a great weekend! - Jason :-)
Thank you so much, I had no idea how to go about resetting the PC, glad i found your channel! You explained what every option meant really well. Subscribing! This was really helpful. Thank you again, from India 😊
You're welcome! I was surprised when I found that this feature is built into Windows. It works well and it is easy to run. I made another video where I loaded a hard drive with 400GB of my personal data. I ran the "Reset this PC" program with the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options and then I tried using several data recovery programs to see if I could get any of the data back after it was "secure erased". None of the old files could be recovered, which is great! Here is a link to that video: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.html Have a great day and thanks for reaching out from across the ocean! -- Jason :)
Hi! You can try starting the "Reset this PC" program a different way. Hold down the shift key while clicking "Restart" from the Windows Start Menu. The PC should boot to a "Choose an option" screen. Click on "Troubleshoot" and you should see an icon for "Reset this PC" in there. Hopefully it will work better from the Recovery Console. Let me know if that works for you. Good luck with it! -- Jason
@@isaiahcampoverde4778 Hi! It might be corruption in the Windows system files that is keeping your computer from resetting. You can try running the CHKDSK, DISM and SFC commands that I show in this video: ua-cam.com/video/EWvt5OtZ1e4/v-deo.html That might repair any damage that is keeping it from resetting. If all else fails, you can copy everything you need off of the computer and then perform a Windows "Clean Install". I made videos that walk you through the process here: For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html Hopefully some of those options will help! -- Jason
It does take a LONG time for the procedure to overwrite every part of the computer’s hard drive but you can rest assured knowing that you have taken extra steps to securely erase your files from the computer. I’m glad you found the video helpful! - Jason
@@JasonBagnell The C: drive has a partition for restoring Windows 7, this came with my HP laptop. Is it best to just leave it as is? Or format the partition and take out the partition? Maybe you can do a video on how to remove a partition.
Hi Raquel - I usually tell people to just leave the old recovery partition alone because there is a much greater chance of either deleting the wrong partition or causing the partition order to become different from what the Windows BCD (Boot Configuration Data) file is expecting. Deleting the old recovery partition might make Windows unbootable after deleting the recovery partition and further (much more advanced) troubleshooting will be required to make the system boot up again.
Yes, I'm glad Microsoft gave us an easy way to secure erase our data from the PC. Make sure you used the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: Yes" options so all of your personal data will be removed during the process. Thanks! -- Jason
Hi Jason, You did a great job of explaining that. I have a a couple of old PCs and a brand new one that I will give the treatment to. I messed up the new one just yesterday.
I'm glad you found the video helpful! :) I hope everything goes smoothly when you start resetting your old PCs. The "Reset this PC" program in only available in Windows 8, 8.1, 10 and 11 so hopefully none of them are running older versions of Windows. Have a great day! -- Jason
Thanks a lot for this, I was putting off getting rid of files as I didn’t know how to do I just never bothered to look it up till now 😂 finally I’ve got this behind me, and my parents can finally get an upgrade from that thick windows 7 laptop they had for years
I new to this, I don't know how to use a laptop just bought a used one and I had no idea what to do with the old information I found,thank you soo much.
Great video, straight to the point as is in the title! Just a suggestion on some videos, I have been looking at a new computer and have been shocked at the processes and stuff if you could break stuff like this down would be a big help id say!
Hi! I made a video a few years ago that will help answer all of your questions. See: ua-cam.com/video/GsAgtteRwGc/v-deo.html Intel is now in their 14th generation of CPUs, so make sure you get one with a 13th or 14th generation CPU. See the video for more details. THANKS!! -- Jason :)
I'm glad you found the video helpful. As long as you used the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: Yes" options, you're all set to turn the PC over to the new owner. Also, make sure that you do NOT enter your E-mail address (Microsoft Account) when completing the end of the setup process. Have a great day! -- Jason
Hi Jason, my son is selling his pc and this is what I needed. It would have been good to show how the hardline looks using a data recovery app to proof the point that all data is really gone.
Hi! Did the "Reset this PC" ever finish running on your computer or did it end up displaying an error message? Let me know what happened and I'll see if I can help. Thanks -- Jason
Thanks for Win 10/11 Reset PC Tutorial; helped me out cause I want to sell my used gaming laptop and didn't want my personal information on it. It seemed to work but I had to connect to my local wifi it didn't give an option to use it without internet, I guess on win10 you could do this but I have Win 11 Home.
Some people just turn off the computer and hand it over to the new owner when it reaches the "Connect to network" point during the reset. As long as you used the "Remove Everything" and "Clean Data: YES" option, the PC will not have any of your data on it. Other people like to log into the computer after it has been Reset just to make sure that no data remains. I made another video where I show a few tricks about how to bypass the Network and Microsoft Account requirement. See: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.html Thanks! -- Jason
You’re welcome! The “Reset this PC” program can fit a lot of different situations. Those that need to scrub their data from the hard drive can use the “Remove everything” and “Clean data: Yes” options. Anyone who wants to keep their data files on the drive and only reset Windows back to its original working configuration can use the Keep My Files option. I’m glad you found the video useful. Cheers! - Jason :)
Amazing video! This will help me alot when I'm selling my pc. I just have one question. Do i need to do the things after 5:02 or can i turn off my pc and the buyer will do the next steps?
Thanks! Yes, if you selected the "Remove everything" and the "Clean data: Yes" options, the PC's hard drive will have been secure erased. The secure erase procedure takes a long time to complete. It can be 20-90 minutes on PCs that have a SSD drive installed and it will take multiple hours (1-20+ hours) for PC's that use a mechanical hard drive. Many people simply power off the computer once it reaches the state you mentioned at 5:02 and then the new owner will be able to complete the rest of the Windows 10/11 installation from that point forward. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Hi! I viewed your video and found all the steps that i need to reset my old laptop. The only question I have is how should I deal with my local OneDrive folder, to make sure that it is not synched back to the cloud once it is erased by the reset? Thanks - Guy
If you do not want your OneDrive folder to get synchronized back to the computer after the Reset process is complete, do NOT enter your email address when it prompts you at the end. You might have a “I don’t have Internet” or “Continue with limited setup” option. If it makes you enter an email address to continue, you can type in No@thankyou.com” and enter a random password. The password will fail and the installation should continue using a Local account instead of a Microsoft account, which will not synchronize to anything. Here’s another video I made that might help you: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.htmlsi=uwIRtYyldkh5OIjx Cheers! - Jason
Hi Jason, thanks for posting this well presented and clearly explained vid, you are a great teacher! BUT, I have a Yoga 730 with factory installed Win 11. It automatically reinstalls Win11. Problem is that it forces me to my MS account for the Win 11 reinstall. MS account demands my login credentials reintroducing my personal data again. There's NO option not to reinstall Win11. Besides putting a sledge hammer on this piece what advise do you have to get all data cleared before selling this piece of art?
Hi! Some people do this: If you ran "Reset this PC" with the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: YES" options, some people just turn off the computer and hand it over to the buyer at the point where it asks them to connect to a network or enter their Microsoft Account. They simply let the buyer finish performing the Windows 10/11 setup process. If you want to log into the laptop to see (for yourself) that your data is no longer present, connect the computer to your network and then enter "No@ThankYou.com" as the E-Mail address with a bogus password. The Microsoft Account verification phase will fail and it will then create a "local account" and take you to the Windows Desktop screen where you can dig through the drive to make sure that you data is no longer present. Some people trust that "Clean data: YES" does it's job while others like to look for themselves. There is another trick that might bypass the Microsoft Account requirement. See video on this topic here: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.htmlsi=3nHKBqSbV-HPqwLH Have a great day! -- Jason
🙂Jason, Your easy-to-follow instructions helped me to accomplish something that would have been a nightmare otherwise. Thank you. I gave you a thumbs us and subscribed.🙂
Thanks Jason, this was quite helpful as we could see how it actually works step-by-step. I have a small doubt though, in the Change Settings you kept the Download Windows to "On" (Yes), what if that is set off (No)? Does it keep my existing version of the Windows with all the upgrades and patches and just clean the data.
Hi! If you use the Local Reinstall option, you won't need to have your PC connected to the Internet to perform the Reset. It will use files that are already on your computer to reinstall the same version of Windows that it is currently running. It will, however, remove all 3rd party software, drivers and registry entries that were added to the computer that were not part of the stock Windows image. I'm not exactly sure if all of the upgrades and patches will be maintained. Windows Update runs in the background and it will download anything relevant that it needs once the PC is reconnected to the Internet. I hope this helps! -- Jason
Thanks! The "Reset this PC" program has two options. If you select "Local reinstall", you'll end up with a fresh copy of the same version of Windows the PC is running right now. If you select the "Cloud download" option, it will download the latest version of the Windows Setup files and when it's done, the PC will be running the latest version of that is available from Microsoft. The PC manufacturers sometimes put another copy of the "factory fresh" image of the PC in a hidden partition on the hard drive. The "Reset this PC" program does NOT use or access that factory image. I hope this answers your questions. -- Jason :)
4:13 What is the reason to pulling out the network cable? I did yet it came up with an error due to it not being able to download windows without an internet connection. Thanks, a great and helpful video!
Hi! If you're resetting the PC so it can be sold or discarded, it would be best to not enter any personal information into the computer unless it is absolutely necessary. Microsoft is making it increasingly difficult to complete the Windows setup process without connecting the PC to the Internet or attaching the computer to a Microsoft account before it lets you reach the desktop screen. Sometimes if you pull the network cable, it will give an option that says "I don't have Internet". If you've already entered a WiFi password or plugged the computer in using a network cable, that option will not appear. So I basically recommend keeping the PC offline to see if it gives you the "I don't have Internet" choice which will allows the Setup process to complete using a "Local" account instead of a "Microsoft" account. A local account will not initially contain any of your personal information (E-Mail address, One Drive files, etc). If you are keeping the computer for yourself, feel free to leave it plugged in and join a Microsoft Account if you want to. If you're forced to enter a Microsoft Account and can't get around it, I've found that using "no@thankyou.com" as the username and a bogus password will cause the Setup program to skip joining a Microsoft Account and it will continue using a Local account instead. I actually made a video a wile ago about how to skip creating a Microsoft Account during the Windows setup process. See: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.html Check it out if you are trying to complete the Windows setup process without joining a Microsoft account. Have a great day! - - Jason
Hey awesome video and help! I’ve been dealing with malware on my PC (don’t worry, I’m not using my PC right now) and I’m thinking of a total reset. Would this work on removing all malware including ones that could be hidden in the root? And do you have a video for backups? I just want to be thorough before using my PC again. Thanks so much!
Thanks! Make sure you have a backup copy of any files you want to keep and then run the "Reset this PC" using the "Remove everything" option. Because you're keeping the computer for yourself and not selling, donating or trashing it, you don't need to use the "Clean data: Yes" option because it would make the process take much longer to complete. When the Reset is finished, all of the malware, programs, harmful left-overs, data files, etc from before will no longer be present on the computer and it should run well. I made another video that goes more in-depth about how "Reset this PC" can clear all data from multiple drives. See: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Notice that at 0:28, I open C: and there is a C:\DATA folder and there are a few extra files in the C:\ directory. After the reset is complete, those files and the C:\DATA folder are no longer present (at 3:34). The same will be true for any of the malware files you're concerned about. I have two other videos you might be interested in. They show how to perform a "Clean install" of Windows 10 and Windows 11. Both videos show how to quickly delete all of the partitions from the PC's hard drive before the new/fresh installation occurs. For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html Best wishes and have a great day!! -- Jason
Thanks a lot Mr. Jason Bagnell, am selling my old gaming computer and I did the quick option and not the clean one. Should I be worried about the seller recovering my information?
You're welcome! I always recommend running the "Reset this PC" program using the "Clean data: Yes" option when you are going to turn your PC over to an unknown buyer. If you don't, someone could use a program like Recuva, Disk Drill (or similar) to recover the files that have been "Deleted" off of the hard drive. Even data from partitions that have been "quick formatted" can be recovered. Have a great day -- Jason :)
Hi I ran into a problem with doing a reset and did local reinstall and when it reinstalled it brings me to my pin login and when I put my pin in it just says “The user profile Service service failed the sign in. User profile cannot be loaded” I would really appreciate having help as I have used other tutorials on how to fix it but they don’t work
Hi! That is unusual. I've never run across that error while running the "Reset this PC" program. The error you mentioned usually occurs if the User Profile section of the Windows Registry needs troubleshooting/repair. Since you are able to reach the Windows logon/account selection screen, you could try running the "Reset this PC" program again one more time to see if it will straighten things out. Use the Cloud Download option if it is available. From the login screen, hold down the shift key and then click on Restart. That will cause the Windows Recovery Console to appear. Look for "Reset this PC" in the recovery console and try to reset the PC again. Here is a video I found that helped someone resolve the same issue: ua-cam.com/video/hJ0fefP2ffU/v-deo.htmlsi=qWA-0kMGVmomCp4a&t=32 It will start at the point I just described but feel free to watch the entire video if you like. If that doesn't work, you can perform a Windows 10/11 "Clean Install", as long as you don't have any information stored on the drive that you want to keep. I created two videos that show how to perform the Windows Clean Install: For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html You will need access to a USB flash drive and another PC with Internet access in order to create the bootable Windows 10/11 flash drive. I hope you find some of the information helpful and wish you the best of luck with getting it repaired. Feel free to reach out with any more questions you may have. -- Jason
Hi again. Here's an article where the very last commentor was in your exact same situation and he writes about how he was able to resolve the issue by running the Reset this PC program from the recovery console, like I mentioned about. Scroll all the way to the bottom, the last entry: learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/1635289/how-do-i-fix-the-user-profile-service-failed-the-s You might find it interesting.
@@JasonBagnell hi....thanks for this easy vid....I am really just a rookie at doing this stuff,my ??? to you is....I have windows 10 now on pc...I want to move soon to windows 11.....do you have a vid showing step by step.....do I remove windows 10 first, I know I need to enable tmp for windows 11...you see Im not sure, worried about losing my files photos all that stuff......thank you
@@ronaldfierro9986 Hi! It's actually very easy to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11, *IF* your PC supports the minimum requirements. Go to: www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows11 and click on the Download Now button for the Windows 11 Installation Assistant. Run the program you just downloaded and it will walk you through the process. It should keep your existing data files and applications and it will upgrade the PC's operating system to Windows 11. Read each screen during each part of the process so you know how everything will turn out. Hopefully your PC is compatible. Thanks -- Jason
Hi! Use the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options and you'll be good to go. After it runs for a while, the setup program will eventually ask you to choose a keyboard layout, join a network and add the computer to a Microsoft Account. You can power off the PC (Hold the power button for 10 seconds) and take it back to the store at that point. Have a great weekend! -- Jason :)
Hi! I made another video where I showed the procedure for having the program wipe ALL (multiple) hard drives that are installed in the same system. See: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Yes, if you use the "Clean data: Yes" option, all of the data on the PC's mechanical hard drive and on any SSD will be overwritten. There is very TINY chance that the overprovisioned areas of a SSD drive might not get overwritten during the process but the risk is minimal and very unlikely to put you at risk. I hope this helps! -- Jason
Thanks for your comment! If the PC has a SSD drive, the process can take 1-3 hours. If the PC has a mechanical hard drive it can take 2-30+ hours, depending on the size of the drive. Maybe some of my viewers can chime in and let us know exactly how long it took on their computer and what the type/size of their hard drive was. Anyone...? Thanks! -- Jason :)
Thank you for your video. I'm wiping my PC right now. After wiping a PC to keep it, what are your suggestions about getting rid of programs, files, services that windows probably installed for its purpose, that it's never the customer's one? I'm not an expert at all, but I would like to speed my pc, even if I bought it 9 years ago.
Hi! You can search UA-cam for videos about "how to speed up windows" and lots of them will appear. I made a video a while back about how I setup and configure new Windows 10 PCs for my clients. Most of the methods I used also work on Windows 11 as well. See: ua-cam.com/video/cQEw4mLvIsA/v-deo.htmlsi=mnyml4pJVo6fCQor Take a look and hopefully you'll have luck optimizing your freshly reloaded PC's performance. Have a great day! -- Jason
I have been given an old pc windows 10 from my work. I want to reset it. However no reset option comes up when I search for it in settings. How can I reset it? Thanks Great channel
Hi! This might work: Click the Start button in the bottom left corner. Then type the following and press enter: Systemreset.exe Let me know if that works for you. I just tried it on a Windows 10 and Windows 11 PC and both immediately displayed the "Choose an Option: Keep my files or Remove everything" screen. If it doesn't work, the system administrator from the company might have used a Security Policy setting to disable it. Thanks -- Jason
Yes, it does shorten the SSD’s life a little because it will use up some of the drive’s “write cycles”. These days, however, most manufacturers state that their drives will last 15-20 years with typical use. It probably won’t be of any consequence, especially if you’re selling the PC.
This was a very informative and useful video, thank you. One question, should you be connected to the internet to perform in operation. Or will this process work with out being connected. And where does the "cloud windows program data" come from?
You do not need to be connected to the Internet if you choose the "Local reinstall" option. You will need to be connected if you select the "Cloud download" option. The files for the "Cloud download" option come directly from Microsoft's distribution servers. Thanks -- Jason
Hi! I made two new videos you might be interested in that are about Microsoft's "Reset this PC" process. This Video: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html shows how to secure erase ALL of the hard drives installed in your PC, in case you have more than one drive or partition with sensitive data stored on it. And this Video: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.html proves that you can NOT use a data recovery program to restore old data from a hard drive after you have performed the "Reset this PC" process with the "Remove Everything" and "Clean data: YES" options selected. The second video is a little long but I show a timestamp at the beginning that lets you skip/forward to my results and conclusions. JUST SO YOU KNOW: I was UNABLE to recover any of the old data files after the "Clean data: YES" process finished. :) Thank you so much for your support and I will continue to post new Tech videos and grow this channel. Cheers!! -- Jason 😀
Just pull harddrive. No need to wipe harddrive. Use it for extra storage.
Yes, true but some people want to resell their fully functional old PC to a new owner, without having traces of their personal data on the drive. The Windows "Reset this PC" process isn't too complicated and it achieves that goal quite well, as long as the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: YES" options are selected.
On a side note, whenever I upgrade one of my customer's mechanical hard drives to a SSD drive, I pull out the old mechanical drive and tell them to hold onto it for safe keeping (or leave it in the computer's case). The old drive acts like a perfect backup of the PC, on the date that the new drive was installed. They sometimes end up giving me the drive a few months later and ask me to secure erase it or destroy it. In most cases, I take any drives I have to a local technology recycling center that guarantees that they secure erase the drives to DoD-7 standards. If the drive can't be secure erased, they put it into a metal chipper and turn it into dust! a1assets.com/site/ Have a great day -- Jason
@JasonBagnell true, but how old is that hard drive? It is better for sellers or new owners to put in a fresh hard drive. And new os, so new owner can get updates from os maker. Old os likely doesn't get any more updates. If computer can install new os that is.
Does this mean you wipe out all the data including the GPU driver and CPU too? Sorry for asking I'm just a noob about pc
@CartGoBroom Hi! The "Reset this PC" procedure should leave the PC in a usable state once it has finished. The drivers will revert back to the same state it was in when the PC was first turned on for the first time. The chipset and CPU will definately be fine but it is possible that you might have installed a better video card and downloaded specific drivers for it to operate. In that case, "Reset this PC" should download whichever drivers are available directly from the Microsoft Windows Update driver repository. So Yes, it will probably revert your GPU drivers but Windows 10 and 11 are both pretty good at downloading what they need from the Microsoft Update servers to get you up and running. I hope this helps! Cheers -- Jason
Great video. This is literally the first comment I've ever made after decades on UA-cam. Perfect level of detail.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you found the video helpful. Cheers! -- Jason
Nice video, and I do this same thing, with two exceptions. First, before resetting, I make sure to secure erase other drives before resetting the C: drive, as only the C: drive gets secure erased, other drives are untouched and have all of their data still.
The second thing I do is after resetting the PC, when it relaunches and wants you to start setting up the PC, I just tap the power button to turn it off, so the user can set things up themselves. Unless, of course, the user wants you to set it all up for him.
As a buyer of a second hand pc, I would only buy one if it shows the set-up page when booting. If not, that means possible malware, dodgy files and what not that could be installed.
Recently bought a used, Dell Latitude E6430 to replace my old, Lenovo Thinkpad T440 with Windows 10. I chose to erase everything on the drives. Great, informative video. Thank you!😊
Clear, well-paced, and straight forward instructions. Thanks!
Thank you so much! Have a Happy New Year! -- Jason
I agree. Just won't work. Sorry.....BTW, I am a retired software engineer. Can it be done? Absolutely! Just not as simple as this video suggests.
Finally Somebody goes straight to the point, and explains later a bit more! Awesome, Thanks!
Thank you so much!! I really appreciate your comment 😀
Just used your instructions to clean a laptop to return under warranty for replacement. It was terrific and worked perfectly! Thank you very much for your quick, clear and very easy to understand step by step video. Keep up the great work!
That's great!! I'm so glad the video made it easy for you to get the job done. Have a great day -- Jason :)
Thank you. Your video is the best among those "reset pc" videos. Detailed and easy to understand!
I'm glad it helped!
Happy Holidays! -- Jason
I agree. I wish I'd found his first! LOL
Thank you bro I’m selling my pc tomorrow and I was so stressed but I found your video and you described it simply and friendly! You my man, just earned another like and sub!
Hi, I'm glad you found the video helpful! Thanks for like & sub!
Have a great week -- Jason
I like your thumbnail photo. I had a black/tan convertible 2003 Cobra Mustang back in the day. It was the one they called the "Terminator" and it was the first Mustang Ford sold (stock) with a supercharger. I miss it! Do you have another channel with car videos? Just curious.
Amazing video, I was just about to sell my pc and this is what I needed thanks
Thanks! I'm glad you found my video helpful.
Have a great day! -- Jason
I am donating my older PC to a friend. Thank you Jason. This video was very informational.
You're welcome! I'm glad you found a new home for you old PC. Have a great day -- Jason :)
My old laptop is originally WIndows 7. When Microsoft offered the WIndows 10 for free. I was able to take advantage of it. So my question is "if I reset my pc, will it go back to WIndows 7 or WIndows 10?
Hi! It will reset to the same version of Windows it is running now. In your case , Windows 10.
thank you@@JasonBagnell
@@JasonBagnellThat was my question too. Thanks
@@JasonBagnell I don’t have a windows key since the repair shop that downloaded windows 10 purchased it for me. Will I need it?
@@hannaanhorn1117 Hi! You will not be required to enter your PC's Windows product key. The key (from before) is stored on the Microsoft Windows activation servers, so when the Reset is complete, it will automatically be applied. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Thank you for your information...I worked IT for15 years and had a great time with it.
You're welcome! It can be a lot to keep up with but the basics don't often change. Have an awesome day! -- Jason
Me wondering how he wiped his laptop while screen recording
A lot of the video tutorials you see on UA-cam were created using a Windows Virtual Machine, running on a second monitor. You can use a program like VMPlayer or VirtualBox to run an independent copy of Windows, in a window! Then we use a program like “OBS Studio” to save a video of that screen and then edit it into our final video. It’s a little movie magic combined with some computer nerd tricks - LOL! Cheers - Jason
Knowledge is important
He used a virtual machine
@@Abdallahkhawaja No shit, are you blind?
This was so incredibly helpful, thank you
Thanks for this Jason. I had a minor panic when I didn't disconnect the ethernet cable and it went on to the accounts section so I disconnected it then, entered User for the name and Admin for the password but then it confronted me with security questions! I backtracked on your instructions and ignored the password and was able to proceed - thank heavens! Now it looks like it should do with no files showing.
One thing I was glad of was when it finally fired up that I had kept my hardwired mouse and keyboard (probably from the last occasion like this) as my super dooper wireless set would not play ball.
Hi John, I'm glad you were able to get everything sorted out! Yes, the basic keyboard and mouse functionality will remain after the "Reset this PC" program is finished but any advanced drivers you installed before will need to be reinstalled. Sometimes a faulty/incorrect driver file can cause Windows to freeze/lock-up so the "Reset this PC" program resets everything back to the basic drivers to help people get their PC running again if they were having problems. Have a great weekend! -- Jason :)
Tried this went for local install , wipe data of hard drive Started it screen can up preparing to reset worked up to 54% then it stopped left it for 24 hours no change had to give
Hi! I just re-watched part of my video and noticed that the "Preparing to reset" appears when Windows is downloading the files required to reset the PC. Try this: If you used "Local Install", try using the cloud download. If you used "Cloud Download", try using the "Local Reinstall" option. Some people have had success by trying the opposite method.
It's also possible that there are bad spots on the hard drive that are causing the process to get stuck whenever Windows is trying to access one of the bad areas. You can open an Administrative Command Prompt and issue the following command to have Windows check out the hard drive and attempt to repair the bad sectors/clusters:
CHKDSK C: /F /R
Also, if your PC has one or more very large (4TB-16TB) hard drives, the secure erase procedure will take a VERY LONG time. The hard drive activity light should be on solid or flashing during the secure erase procedure. My video makes it look like the secure erase part happened quickly but that was because I edited the video and sped things up. Hopefully some of this will help! Cheers -- Jason
Hi, I tried to repair bad sectors and got following text:
“Access Denied as you do not have sufficient privileges or
the disk may be locked by another process.
You have to invoke this utility running in elevated mode
and make sure the disk is unlocked.”
What does it mean? I am the only user in this pc and I just did factory reset and got stuck at 99%…
thank you so much, got a pc off a friend and he didn’t delete anything, this really helped
I'm glad you found the information helpful! Have a great day and enjoy your "new" computer! -- Jason
Please leave me a comment (and subscribe!) if you found this video helpful. Thanks! :)
Hey. So I just bought a pc, and the last person who had this did not factory reset, so I factory reset. (Windows 10) when it was in the loading screen where everything is black except the % it's at and the Windows logo, my monitor said power saving and turn off (pc is still on) when I try to turn my monitor on it says no singal and power saving (turns back off my monitor) what do I do?
I did local reinstall
Thank you, Jason, what a relief. I can confidently send my laptop back to the outfit I bought it from knowing it is clean. You explained it all very well. Even this klutz made it through pretty easily. Good work.
You're welcome! Thank you for your nice comments. Cheers! -- Jason :)
Thank you, just followed every step in order for my daughter to sell her PC. Much appreciated 👍
You're welcome - Glad I could help!
Cheers -- Jason
Does this process remove files on all of your drives or just your C drive?
Hi! I searched Google for an answer to your question and saw a few answers that seemed to contradict each other. Tonight I'm going to setup a Windows 10 Virutal Machine that has 3 hard drives so I can find out exactly what happens after using the "Clean Data: YES" option. I'll load up drive #2 & #3 with some data files to see if the data is no longer present at the end. Stay tuned and I'll write back my findings in a Reply to this comment. Thanks! --Jason
😀Hello again @jureknowak3851 ! I finished creating my *_Video Response_* to your comment. Please see: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html for my full answer. You can view it now or wait until it becomes publicly available on my channel at 12:00PM EST on 10/31/2023. I hope the information helps you! Cheers -- Jason
I'd lay ya 5-1 that it is just the C: Drive that is effectively having 'clean all' run, but, somehow just on it's space not containing the ISO recently downloaded for reinstall....
Hi! I made another video where I figured out how to get the "Reset This PC" procedure to secure-erase ALL hard drives installed in the computer. See the following: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Have a great day and thanks for subscribing! -- Jason @@mdd1963
Google must ne listening to what I'm saying. I'm in the middle of erasing 4 extremely old laptop before I recycle them and this video pops up in youtube. That's handy but scary too. Great video and helps me a lot
That's happened to me too! Like when you've talked with a friend or family member about some obscure topic that you've never searched for and then it starts coming up later on the Internet everywhere you look. I turned off all of the relevant "Background App Refresh" settings on my iPhone to keep the apps from spying on me when the apps are not open. It makes you wonder.. I'm glad you found the video helpful! Have a great weekend -- Jason
Was that really you? I'm sorry, there in EVERYTHING and I'm so so thankful 🙏 for your advice, I'm going to share and watch and like the heck out of your channel! You're truly a blessing and very kind which is very rare in this world. Thank you again and God bless you!
Yes, it is really me -- LOL! I hope you have some backups from before the time the hacker problems first started. The bad guys are really smart and their programs and connections can be hard to get rid of. In a simple case, you might have accidentally run an encryption virus executable that began the process. From my experience, once the encryption virus program is finished encrypting all of the data it can reach, the virus sometimes deletes itself so it can not be reverse engineered by someone later. Performing a virus scan and then restoring your files from a backup (if you have one) is a great option at that point. Please don't pay the bad guys because there are no guarantees that you will get your data back after you pay them. Other times, the hackers remain actively in the system(s) and work diligently to counteract everything you try to do to cleanup the problem. If you plug in a backup drive to restore files, they might start encrypting the backup drive as soon as it is connected. It's very nerve racking when that happens. Again, keep the network OFFLINE so the hackers can't continue to cause problems. You can run the "Reset this PC" using the "Remove everything" and "Local Reinstall" option to clear out a PC if none of the data on it is required (or if everything of value already got encrypted). I wish you best of luck with everything you're dealing with. Take care -- Jason
@JasonBagnell Thank you. You are very informative and helpful. God bless.(like this,ie.. I didn't write this message! Unreal. Anyhow, thank you for all your help
I call you God from now on! Clean and to the point, without wasting our time! Thanks bro 🙏
You're welcome! -- I'm glad you found the video helpful :) I'll be creating more tech videos in the near future. Have a great day -- Jason
Sending out my PC to a friend in a few days. Sad to see her go, but my friend will be happy
Great! I'm glad you were able to put your old PC to good use. Have a great day -- Jason :)
Wow...Great video. Thank you so much for posting this easy to understand and, most importantly, to follow tutorial. I was in the process of getting rid of my 14 year old desktop and every other video I watched skipped a lot of the procedures you discussed... especially when you recommended unplugging your internet cable after the reset phase. It all work perfectly.
Outstanding! My wife is thrilled because the computer, desk and chair will soon be gone. Happy Wife...Happy Life
I'm glad you found the video helpful! Thanks for your nice comment and have a great weekend -- Jason :)
thanks bro my Lenovo laptop CANT EVEN OPEN SETTINGS IN 1 MIN finally rested u deserve a sub and like
You’re welcome!! I’m glad the video helped you get everything sorted out and running well again. Cheers! - Jason
Hi Jason,
Huge thanks came at the right time. I have a laptop I want to sell, which was my once concern, now no more. Great video.
Thanks and Take care!
You're welcome! I'm glad you found the video helpful. Cheers! -- Jason :)
Thank you. I am hoping at the finish that my husband's computer will be wide clean of all my real estate documents and not mine lol. Your site was great because for technologically challenged person it was easy to follow. I am now waiting for the device to download and restart so hopefully all goes well. Thank you.
Hi! I'm glad you found the video helpful. If you are selling or discarding the computer and don't want any of your information going with it, the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options ensure that everything will be secure-erased by the time it is finished. Just make sure that you DO NOT enter your Microsoft Account info at the last part of the Windows Setup process after it reboots. That way it won't start downloading all of your documents and pictures from your Microsoft OneDrive account. Give the program plenty of time to finish. If the PC has a mechanical hard drive, it is not uncommon for it to take 2-10 hours (or more) to completely erase the drive. Have a great day! -- Jason
@@JasonBagnell I went for secure erase and was able to transform my Dad's second-hand laptop to a fast, smooth and nice PC; that I would turn on every now and then and feel proud of myself for having done it
I tried cleaning my own PC in Jan 2k23, and reinstall windows using pendrive and was very disappointed with the results, months later, you made this marvelous tutorial and glad that I came across it
I wish every tutorial ever, in every niche, was this much accurate and truthful
Thank you from Pakistan (subbed already ;) )
@@iqratahir4688 Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm glad that the video was helpful for you, and thanks for subscribing. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Finally, 👌🏾 couldn’t get pass that “clean drive” step. It was stuck on do not clean drive. Thanks for quickly explaining in detail.
You're welcome! Glad you found the video helpful.
Cheers! -- Jason :)
Great job. It took over 7 hours to do on my Toshiba laptop, but it was worth it!
Hi! I’m so glad you were to get everything working the way you wanted. The process can be lengthy when your PC has an older mechanical hard drive. I used a lot a fast-forwarding in my video. Have a great weekend! - Jason :-)
Thank you so much, I had no idea how to go about resetting the PC, glad i found your channel! You explained what every option meant really well. Subscribing! This was really helpful. Thank you again, from India 😊
You're welcome! I was surprised when I found that this feature is built into Windows. It works well and it is easy to run. I made another video where I loaded a hard drive with 400GB of my personal data. I ran the "Reset this PC" program with the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options and then I tried using several data recovery programs to see if I could get any of the data back after it was "secure erased". None of the old files could be recovered, which is great! Here is a link to that video: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.html Have a great day and thanks for reaching out from across the ocean! -- Jason :)
Subscribed. Love videos that help people who don't know much about this stuff. Very easy to follow very helpful!
I’m glad you found the video helpful! Stay tuned for more coming soon. Have a great weekend - Jason :)
I had booting problem and I had to reinstall windows but I didn't had a usb stick with windows. Thxx for help❤ worked like a charm
I'm glad you got everything worked out using the info from my video. Have a great day!! -- Jason :)
Did exactly what you said in your video twice. Getting this Window “There Was a problem resetting your PC No Changes were made”
Hi! You can try starting the "Reset this PC" program a different way. Hold down the shift key while clicking "Restart" from the Windows Start Menu. The PC should boot to a "Choose an option" screen. Click on "Troubleshoot" and you should see an icon for "Reset this PC" in there. Hopefully it will work better from the Recovery Console. Let me know if that works for you. Good luck with it! -- Jason
@@JasonBagnell had the same problem tried the way you described and still got a problem what can i do from there to reset my computer?
@@isaiahcampoverde4778 Hi! It might be corruption in the Windows system files that is keeping your computer from resetting. You can try running the CHKDSK, DISM and SFC commands that I show in this video: ua-cam.com/video/EWvt5OtZ1e4/v-deo.html That might repair any damage that is keeping it from resetting. If all else fails, you can copy everything you need off of the computer and then perform a Windows "Clean Install". I made videos that walk you through the process here: For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html Hopefully some of those options will help! -- Jason
This channel is worth the subscription.
Thank you - I appreciate your kind words! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Thank you for the help Jason. I am sure I could have figured this out other ways but you made it super simple. Liked.
You're welcome! I'm glad you found the video helpful and were able to save some time. Have a great weekend -- Jason :)
it took me about 15 hours for the erase and install on my old laptop. Thank you this was very helpful
It does take a LONG time for the procedure to overwrite every part of the computer’s hard drive but you can rest assured knowing that you have taken extra steps to securely erase your files from the computer. I’m glad you found the video helpful! - Jason
@@JasonBagnell The C: drive has a partition for restoring Windows 7, this came with my HP laptop. Is it best to just leave it as is? Or format the partition and take out the partition? Maybe you can do a video on how to remove a partition.
Hi Raquel - I usually tell people to just leave the old recovery partition alone because there is a much greater chance of either deleting the wrong partition or causing the partition order to become different from what the Windows BCD (Boot Configuration Data) file is expecting. Deleting the old recovery partition might make Windows unbootable after deleting the recovery partition and further (much more advanced) troubleshooting will be required to make the system boot up again.
@@JasonBagnell Thank you for your help
gifting my pc to a friend, thanks a lot, this video was enough for the whole process, thanks a lot
Awesome! I'm glad you were able to get everything cleared out, up and running with no problem. Have a great weekend!
-- Jason :)
Thanks Jason 👍
Saves me taking out the drive, mounting it in a caddy and formatting it there.
Yes, I'm glad Microsoft gave us an easy way to secure erase our data from the PC. Make sure you used the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: Yes" options so all of your personal data will be removed during the process. Thanks! -- Jason
Perfect - thanks for the no-nonsense run through.
You're welcome! Thanks for your comment and have a great weekend. :)
Level of detail is great and easy walk though steps
Thanks for your comment! I'm glad you liked the video. Have a great weekend -- Jason :)
Hi Jason, You did a great job of explaining that. I have a a couple of old PCs and a brand new one that I will give the treatment to. I messed up the new one just yesterday.
I'm glad you found the video helpful! :) I hope everything goes smoothly when you start resetting your old PCs. The "Reset this PC" program in only available in Windows 8, 8.1, 10 and 11 so hopefully none of them are running older versions of Windows. Have a great day! -- Jason
The test would be to run a file recovery programme after wiping it. Have you tried that? Great video anyway, thanks. Subscribed.
Yes I have! See video: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.htmlsi=CTPJ6RKzEuNLW95B :)
Thanks a lot for this, I was putting off getting rid of files as I didn’t know how to do I just never bothered to look it up till now 😂 finally I’ve got this behind me, and my parents can finally get an upgrade from that thick windows 7 laptop they had for years
I'm glad it helped you get things moving forward! Have a great day. Cheers! -- Jason
Clear. Concise. The way you asked us to like and subscribe was very pleasant. You're the man Jason. Keep going!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate your comments! :)
I new to this, I don't know how to use a laptop just bought a used one and I had no idea what to do with the old information I found,thank you soo much.
I'm so glad it helped you get off to a fresh start. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Great video, straight to the point as is in the title!
Just a suggestion on some videos, I have been looking at a new computer and have been shocked at the processes and stuff if you could break stuff like this down would be a big help id say!
Hi! I made a video a few years ago that will help answer all of your questions. See: ua-cam.com/video/GsAgtteRwGc/v-deo.html Intel is now in their 14th generation of CPUs, so make sure you get one with a 13th or 14th generation CPU. See the video for more details. THANKS!! -- Jason :)
Thank you, Jason, your advice is appreciated.
I’m glad you found my video helpful! Have a great evening. - Jason 😁
Thank you so much for your exsperties I was struggling for days until I land on your video. Stay Blessed ❤
Glad it helped! Have a great weekend! -- Jason
i appreciate this tutorial, i am about to sell my pc so this really helped me!
I'm glad you found the video helpful. As long as you used the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: Yes" options, you're all set to turn the PC over to the new owner. Also, make sure that you do NOT enter your E-mail address (Microsoft Account) when completing the end of the setup process. Have a great day! -- Jason
Hi Jason, my son is selling his pc and this is what I needed. It would have been good to show how the hardline looks using a data recovery app to proof the point that all data is really gone.
It’s funny you mentioned that! See: ua-cam.com/video/j5dO3iG1_S0/v-deo.htmlsi=61XcHVk2b0ugf-X4. LOL!! :)
Thank you for this highly informative video, and I'll be sticking I'm sticking to watch the rest.
I'm glad you found the video helpful! Thanks for your comment and have a great day -- Jason :)
Thank you for the info. Now i feel better
Spoke too soon. My laptop is having a hard time resetting.
Hi! Did the "Reset this PC" ever finish running on your computer or did it end up displaying an error message? Let me know what happened and I'll see if I can help. Thanks -- Jason
Thank you so much Jason! This worked perfectly and I appreciate that everything was in easy to understand terms. I just subscribed. Thanks again!
You're welcome, thanks so much for your comment and welcome aboard! Have a great day -- Jason
Thanks for Win 10/11 Reset PC Tutorial; helped me out cause I want to sell my used gaming laptop and didn't want my personal information on it. It seemed to work but I had to connect to my local wifi it didn't give an option to use it without internet, I guess on win10 you could do this but I have Win 11 Home.
Some people just turn off the computer and hand it over to the new owner when it reaches the "Connect to network" point during the reset. As long as you used the "Remove Everything" and "Clean Data: YES" option, the PC will not have any of your data on it. Other people like to log into the computer after it has been Reset just to make sure that no data remains. I made another video where I show a few tricks about how to bypass the Network and Microsoft Account requirement. See: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.html Thanks! -- Jason
Thank you very much for such easy straight forward instructions.. even an old lady like me can do this!!
I'm glad you found the video helpful! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Thanks for video. Just making sure I remember how to do this and seems there’s a couple extra tips. 👍👍
You’re welcome! The “Reset this PC” program can fit a lot of different situations. Those that need to scrub their data from the hard drive can use the “Remove everything” and “Clean data: Yes” options. Anyone who wants to keep their data files on the drive and only reset Windows back to its original working configuration can use the Keep My Files option. I’m glad you found the video useful. Cheers! - Jason :)
Thanks, Jason. This was very helpful!
Glad it was helpful! Have a great weekend. -- Jason :)
Thank you. Your information was clear and precise .
You're welcome! I'm glad you found the video useful. Have a great day -- Jason :)
Amazing video! This will help me alot when I'm selling my pc. I just have one question. Do i need to do the things after 5:02 or can i turn off my pc and the buyer will do the next steps?
Thanks! Yes, if you selected the "Remove everything" and the "Clean data: Yes" options, the PC's hard drive will have been secure erased. The secure erase procedure takes a long time to complete. It can be 20-90 minutes on PCs that have a SSD drive installed and it will take multiple hours (1-20+ hours) for PC's that use a mechanical hard drive. Many people simply power off the computer once it reaches the state you mentioned at 5:02 and then the new owner will be able to complete the rest of the Windows 10/11 installation from that point forward. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
You sir, are an absolute legend. Thank you Jason!
Thanks for the kind words Hugh! I wish you all the best :) -- Jason
Hi! I viewed your video and found all the steps that i need to reset my old laptop. The only question I have is how should I deal with my local OneDrive folder, to make sure that it is not synched back to the cloud once it is erased by the reset?
Thanks - Guy
If you do not want your OneDrive folder to get synchronized back to the computer after the Reset process is complete, do NOT enter your email address when it prompts you at the end. You might have a “I don’t have Internet” or “Continue with limited setup” option. If it makes you enter an email address to continue, you can type in No@thankyou.com” and enter a random password. The password will fail and the installation should continue using a Local account instead of a Microsoft account, which will not synchronize to anything.
Here’s another video I made that might help you: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.htmlsi=uwIRtYyldkh5OIjx
Cheers! - Jason
You just saved me from a big problem, thank you
Glad I could help! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Can you show us how to put a backup on a external harddrive back to the same or new computer?
I like this dude he is pretty chill
Thank you so much! More videos are coming soon so stay tuned! -- Jason :)
Perfect! Exactly what I need. Thank you. Liked and subscribed.
You're welcome! Have a great day - Jason :)
Thanks Jason, stay healthy!
I wish you the same :) -- Happy holidays!!
-- Jason
This was very helpful! Thanks man! 😄
Glad it helped! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Nice straight forward instructional video Jason. I've made a copy for future reference. Thank you
You're welcome! I'm glad you found the video helpful. Have a great weekend -- Jason :)
Hi Jason, thanks for posting this well presented and clearly explained vid, you are a great teacher! BUT, I have a Yoga 730 with factory installed Win 11. It automatically reinstalls Win11. Problem is that it forces me to my MS account for the Win 11 reinstall. MS account demands my login credentials reintroducing my personal data again. There's NO option not to reinstall Win11. Besides putting a sledge hammer on this piece what advise do you have to get all data cleared before selling this piece of art?
Hi! Some people do this: If you ran "Reset this PC" with the "Remove everything" and "Clean Data: YES" options, some people just turn off the computer and hand it over to the buyer at the point where it asks them to connect to a network or enter their Microsoft Account. They simply let the buyer finish performing the Windows 10/11 setup process. If you want to log into the laptop to see (for yourself) that your data is no longer present, connect the computer to your network and then enter "No@ThankYou.com" as the E-Mail address with a bogus password. The Microsoft Account verification phase will fail and it will then create a "local account" and take you to the Windows Desktop screen where you can dig through the drive to make sure that you data is no longer present. Some people trust that "Clean data: YES" does it's job while others like to look for themselves. There is another trick that might bypass the Microsoft Account requirement. See video on this topic here: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.htmlsi=3nHKBqSbV-HPqwLH Have a great day! -- Jason
🙂Jason, Your easy-to-follow instructions helped me to accomplish something that would have been a nightmare otherwise. Thank you. I gave you a thumbs us and subscribed.🙂
Thank you so much and welcome aboard! I just moved to a new residence so I should be able to post more videos soon. Have a great day -- Jason :)
@@JasonBagnell -- Thank you, again, Jason. I pray that you enjoy your new residence to the max. 🙂
Thanks Mate, easy to follow instructions :)
Glad it helped! :) Have a great weekend -- Jason
Watching. Glad we have these videos available. Thanks for sharing. Liked & Subscribed.
Hi! I'm glad you found the video helpful. Thanks for the sub! -- Jason :)
Great video, thanks for imparting. Clear direction and informative
Glad it was helpful! Cheers -- Jason
Absolutely amazing and easy to follow video, thank you.
Thanks for the compliment -- I'm glad you found it helpful! -- Jason
Thanks Jason, this was quite helpful as we could see how it actually works step-by-step.
I have a small doubt though, in the Change Settings you kept the Download Windows to "On" (Yes), what if that is set off (No)?
Does it keep my existing version of the Windows with all the upgrades and patches and just clean the data.
Hi! If you use the Local Reinstall option, you won't need to have your PC connected to the Internet to perform the Reset. It will use files that are already on your computer to reinstall the same version of Windows that it is currently running. It will, however, remove all 3rd party software, drivers and registry entries that were added to the computer that were not part of the stock Windows image. I'm not exactly sure if all of the upgrades and patches will be maintained. Windows Update runs in the background and it will download anything relevant that it needs once the PC is reconnected to the Internet. I hope this helps! -- Jason
Hey Jason great video ... i was curious if this process will reinstall the current version of windows or revert to factory install? Thanks
Thanks! The "Reset this PC" program has two options. If you select "Local reinstall", you'll end up with a fresh copy of the same version of Windows the PC is running right now. If you select the "Cloud download" option, it will download the latest version of the Windows Setup files and when it's done, the PC will be running the latest version of that is available from Microsoft. The PC manufacturers sometimes put another copy of the "factory fresh" image of the PC in a hidden partition on the hard drive. The "Reset this PC" program does NOT use or access that factory image. I hope this answers your questions. -- Jason :)
Very great and helpful tutorial. You’ve got my like!
I'm glad you found it helpful -- Have a great day and thanks for the Like! -- Jason :)
straight to the point.
Hi! Yes, I try to keep it short and simple while still explaining how everything works. Thanks for you comment -- Jason :)
4:13 What is the reason to pulling out the network cable? I did yet it came up with an error due to it not being able to download windows without an internet connection. Thanks, a great and helpful video!
Hi! If you're resetting the PC so it can be sold or discarded, it would be best to not enter any personal information into the computer unless it is absolutely necessary. Microsoft is making it increasingly difficult to complete the Windows setup process without connecting the PC to the Internet or attaching the computer to a Microsoft account before it lets you reach the desktop screen. Sometimes if you pull the network cable, it will give an option that says "I don't have Internet". If you've already entered a WiFi password or plugged the computer in using a network cable, that option will not appear.
So I basically recommend keeping the PC offline to see if it gives you the "I don't have Internet" choice which will allows the Setup process to complete using a "Local" account instead of a "Microsoft" account. A local account will not initially contain any of your personal information (E-Mail address, One Drive files, etc). If you are keeping the computer for yourself, feel free to leave it plugged in and join a Microsoft Account if you want to. If you're forced to enter a Microsoft Account and can't get around it, I've found that using "no@thankyou.com" as the username and a bogus password will cause the Setup program to skip joining a Microsoft Account and it will continue using a Local account instead.
I actually made a video a wile ago about how to skip creating a Microsoft Account during the Windows setup process. See: ua-cam.com/video/UdyP_bHSUlE/v-deo.html Check it out if you are trying to complete the Windows setup process without joining a Microsoft account. Have a great day! - - Jason
Thank you for your help. Have a great weekend 👍
You have a great weekend too! I'm glad you found it helpful. :) -- Jason
Hey awesome video and help! I’ve been dealing with malware on my PC (don’t worry, I’m not using my PC right now) and I’m thinking of a total reset. Would this work on removing all malware including ones that could be hidden in the root? And do you have a video for backups?
I just want to be thorough before using my PC again. Thanks so much!
Thanks! Make sure you have a backup copy of any files you want to keep and then run the "Reset this PC" using the "Remove everything" option. Because you're keeping the computer for yourself and not selling, donating or trashing it, you don't need to use the "Clean data: Yes" option because it would make the process take much longer to complete. When the Reset is finished, all of the malware, programs, harmful left-overs, data files, etc from before will no longer be present on the computer and it should run well.
I made another video that goes more in-depth about how "Reset this PC" can clear all data from multiple drives. See: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Notice that at 0:28, I open C: and there is a C:\DATA folder and there are a few extra files in the C:\ directory. After the reset is complete, those files and the C:\DATA folder are no longer present (at 3:34). The same will be true for any of the malware files you're concerned about.
I have two other videos you might be interested in. They show how to perform a "Clean install" of Windows 10 and Windows 11. Both videos show how to quickly delete all of the partitions from the PC's hard drive before the new/fresh installation occurs. For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html
Best wishes and have a great day!! -- Jason
Thanks a lot Mr. Jason Bagnell, am selling my old gaming computer and I did the quick option and not the clean one. Should I be worried about the seller recovering my information?
You're welcome! I always recommend running the "Reset this PC" program using the "Clean data: Yes" option when you are going to turn your PC over to an unknown buyer. If you don't, someone could use a program like Recuva, Disk Drill (or similar) to recover the files that have been "Deleted" off of the hard drive. Even data from partitions that have been "quick formatted" can be recovered. Have a great day -- Jason :)
Great vid, was super helpful, clear, and concise ( :
Glad you liked it! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Hi Jason. Thank you for this video. Really appreciated.
Glad you found it helpful! Have a great day -- Jason :)
Hi I ran into a problem with doing a reset and did local reinstall and when it reinstalled it brings me to my pin login and when I put my pin in it just says “The user profile Service service failed the sign in. User profile cannot be loaded” I would really appreciate having help as I have used other tutorials on how to fix it but they don’t work
Hi! That is unusual. I've never run across that error while running the "Reset this PC" program. The error you mentioned usually occurs if the User Profile section of the Windows Registry needs troubleshooting/repair. Since you are able to reach the Windows logon/account selection screen, you could try running the "Reset this PC" program again one more time to see if it will straighten things out. Use the Cloud Download option if it is available. From the login screen, hold down the shift key and then click on Restart. That will cause the Windows Recovery Console to appear. Look for "Reset this PC" in the recovery console and try to reset the PC again. Here is a video I found that helped someone resolve the same issue: ua-cam.com/video/hJ0fefP2ffU/v-deo.htmlsi=qWA-0kMGVmomCp4a&t=32 It will start at the point I just described but feel free to watch the entire video if you like.
If that doesn't work, you can perform a Windows 10/11 "Clean Install", as long as you don't have any information stored on the drive that you want to keep. I created two videos that show how to perform the Windows Clean Install: For Windows 10: ua-cam.com/video/bP03Y-l9NOM/v-deo.html For Windows 11: ua-cam.com/video/ZMKl9wBJYD0/v-deo.html You will need access to a USB flash drive and another PC with Internet access in order to create the bootable Windows 10/11 flash drive. I hope you find some of the information helpful and wish you the best of luck with getting it repaired. Feel free to reach out with any more questions you may have. -- Jason
Hi again. Here's an article where the very last commentor was in your exact same situation and he writes about how he was able to resolve the issue by running the Reset this PC program from the recovery console, like I mentioned about. Scroll all the way to the bottom, the last entry: learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/1635289/how-do-i-fix-the-user-profile-service-failed-the-s You might find it interesting.
Thank you...easy to follow...worked prefectly
Glad it helped. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
@@JasonBagnell hi....thanks for this easy vid....I am really just a rookie at doing this stuff,my ??? to you is....I have windows 10 now on pc...I want to move soon to windows 11.....do you have a vid showing step by step.....do I remove windows 10 first, I know I need to enable tmp for windows 11...you see Im not sure, worried about losing my files photos all that stuff......thank you
@@ronaldfierro9986 Hi! It's actually very easy to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11, *IF* your PC supports the minimum requirements. Go to: www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows11 and click on the Download Now button for the Windows 11 Installation Assistant. Run the program you just downloaded and it will walk you through the process. It should keep your existing data files and applications and it will upgrade the PC's operating system to Windows 11. Read each screen during each part of the process so you know how everything will turn out. Hopefully your PC is compatible. Thanks -- Jason
Thank you@@JasonBagnell
Which steps do you recommend for someone returning laptop to store
Hi! Use the "Remove everything" and "Clean data: Yes" options and you'll be good to go. After it runs for a while, the setup program will eventually ask you to choose a keyboard layout, join a network and add the computer to a Microsoft Account. You can power off the PC (Hold the power button for 10 seconds) and take it back to the store at that point. Have a great weekend! -- Jason :)
Super helpful video! I had a question though. Will this method completely wipe both my SSD and HDD?
Hi! I made another video where I showed the procedure for having the program wipe ALL (multiple) hard drives that are installed in the same system. See: ua-cam.com/video/7ceHpGlhp9E/v-deo.html Yes, if you use the "Clean data: Yes" option, all of the data on the PC's mechanical hard drive and on any SSD will be overwritten. There is very TINY chance that the overprovisioned areas of a SSD drive might not get overwritten during the process but the risk is minimal and very unlikely to put you at risk. I hope this helps! -- Jason
Thanks for every Information❤
You're welcome! I'm glad you found the video helpful. Have a great day! -- Jason :)
Legend, simple video to follow thank you
Thanks so much for your comment! Good feedback is what keeps me going. I'm deciding on what video to create next so stay tuned. Cheers--- Jason :)
Thanks for the great tutorial!
Do you remember how long it took the entire process?
Thanks for your comment! If the PC has a SSD drive, the process can take 1-3 hours. If the PC has a mechanical hard drive it can take 2-30+ hours, depending on the size of the drive. Maybe some of my viewers can chime in and let us know exactly how long it took on their computer and what the type/size of their hard drive was. Anyone...? Thanks! -- Jason :)
Thank you it worked. I will now give this pc to my brother.
I'm glad you found it helpful! Have a great day :)
Thank you for your video. I'm wiping my PC right now. After wiping a PC to keep it, what are your suggestions about getting rid of programs, files, services that windows probably installed for its purpose, that it's never the customer's one? I'm not an expert at all, but I would like to speed my pc, even if I bought it 9 years ago.
Hi! You can search UA-cam for videos about "how to speed up windows" and lots of them will appear. I made a video a while back about how I setup and configure new Windows 10 PCs for my clients. Most of the methods I used also work on Windows 11 as well. See: ua-cam.com/video/cQEw4mLvIsA/v-deo.htmlsi=mnyml4pJVo6fCQor Take a look and hopefully you'll have luck optimizing your freshly reloaded PC's performance. Have a great day! -- Jason
Hi. Great content and well explained. Thank you.
Thanks for your comment -- I really appreciate it!
Cheers - Jason :)
Thanks so much! Very knowledgeable!!
Thank you so much! Have a great day -- Jason :)
I have been given an old pc windows 10 from my work. I want to reset it. However no reset option comes up when I search for it in settings. How can I reset it?
Thanks
Great channel
Hi! This might work: Click the Start button in the bottom left corner. Then type the following and press enter: Systemreset.exe
Let me know if that works for you. I just tried it on a Windows 10 and Windows 11 PC and both immediately displayed the "Choose an Option: Keep my files or Remove everything" screen. If it doesn't work, the system administrator from the company might have used a Security Policy setting to disable it.
Thanks -- Jason
Hi, Jason. Excellent video, thank you. Question: Does the "Remove Everything" shorten SSD useful life by overwriting the entire drive with zeros?
Yes, it does shorten the SSD’s life a little because it will use up some of the drive’s “write cycles”. These days, however, most manufacturers state that their drives will last 15-20 years with typical use. It probably won’t be of any consequence, especially if you’re selling the PC.
@@JasonBagnell Thank you for the quick reply.
Thank you so much. It is very well explanatory relaxed and easy I subscribed and like it already.
You're welcome -- I'm glad you found the video helpful and thanks for subscribing! Cheers -- Jason :)
This was a very informative and useful video, thank you. One question, should you be connected to the internet to perform in operation. Or will this process work with out being connected. And where does the "cloud windows program data" come from?
You do not need to be connected to the Internet if you choose the "Local reinstall" option. You will need to be connected if you select the "Cloud download" option. The files for the "Cloud download" option come directly from Microsoft's distribution servers. Thanks -- Jason