Think I need to reinstall Win Ten

If you remember your Windows version (Home or Pro), you can use latest ISO to start the installation. At the key prompt screen click the I do not have a key option. This will allow you to proceed without the key and install Windows 10. After installation is complete you can go to activate the license and will prompt you a key. It might also activate automatically once online. You may even never be asked for a key if this is stored in the firmware (BIOS).

PS: If you need to see the key before installing Windows 10, you can either boot with a WinPE CD or USB, or connect your hard disk to another computer. Then you run the ShowKey Plus utility to see your Windows 10 key.

zbook said:

In Ten forums we use a log collectors to troubleshoot computers having BSOD.
Use the logs collectors to collect logs on the problematic computer and post them into the thread for troubleshooting:
Run both DM and BETA log collectors and post zips into this thread.
BSOD - Posting Instructions - Windows 10 Forums

To get an inventory of specs you can download and install: Speecy: Download Speccy | Find your computer specs, free!

It will be easier to get help when the information is in the "My Computer" section

Now I'm totally confused, I'm afraid. All that gives me is the spec on my laptop (which is my standby machine) which I have to use at the moment because I can't get into my Tower PC

As it's offline, I don't see how the link you gave me can see the specs, or is there summat I'm missing (wouldn't be the first time).

Also, where can I get these log collectors and how do I use them with my PC offline as I can't get into the OS ?

spapakons said:

If you remember your Windows version (Home or Pro), you can use latest ISO to start the installation. At the key prompt screen click the I do not have a key option. This will allow you to proceed without the key and install Windows 10. After installation is complete you can go to activate the license and will prompt you a key. It might also activate automatically once online. You may even never be asked for a key if this is stored in the firmware (BIOS).

PS: If you need to see the key before installing Windows 10, you can either boot with a WinPE CD or USB, or connect your hard disk to another computer. Then you run the ShowKey Plus utility to see your Windows 10 key.

Yes, and, as I keep saying I CAN'T GET INTO MY OS, how do I go about reinstalling anything when I can't get MY TASKBAR OR WINDOWS EXPLORER to display ?

What I THINK I want to do is to use my laptop (which is what I'm using at the moment) to create a boot thingy on a USB stick so that I can reinstall Win Ten FROM THE USB.

Sticking the USB stick I had when I boufght WIN Ten into the usb port before booting up doesn't work and I am told I need a Bootable disk. What this is and how it is different from the stick I got with Win Ten and how I make it noone seems able or willing to tell me.

It's getting very frustrating.

When you power on the problematic computer what do you see and hear?

What are the status of the files?
Do you need to save files or can you perform a clean install?

Do you prefer troubleshooting or do you prefer saving files and reinstalling the operating system, drivers, and applications?

dalchina said:

Returning to my post #2 - clean install - the starting point is to boot your PC from a bootable external drive.

I.e. you are NOT then booting from the internal drive at all.

But you will then delete all Windows partitions, as per the tutorial step 13, and then install Windows to unallocated space.
It's all in the tutorial.

The tricky bit may be getting your PC to boot from the external disk, and making sure the disk you've created is compatible with your BIOS or UEFI.

That may mean accessing your BIOS.

All of the above depending on whether you wish to do a clean install, rather than try to fix your PC. Frankly, with all the time so far, a clean install could have been done by now if that's not too painful.

I thought that my Thread Title "I think I need to REINSTALL Win Ten" might have given that away.

I had already decided that I couldn't recover the contents of my Hard drive and have been spending my time on this Forum trying to explain that, but peeps kept on advising me to do things that I couldn't do BECAUSE i can't get accesss to my hard drive.

Can someone, anyone, please tell me how to create a bootable USB drive from my Win Ten Installation Disk, please. I have tried to find info myself, but everything I read seems to assume some level of knowledge about this that I don't have.

Please update the progress with the steps in post #24.


If you are planning a clean install then see these links:
Download Windows 10
Download Windows 10 ISO File | Tutorials
Clean Install Windows 10 | Tutorials


Update the specs in the "My Computer" section:

System Specs - Fill in at Ten Forums | Tutorials
In the left corner below in your post you find 'My System Specs'.
After clicking it you can find a link a little below that says 'Update your System Spec', click on this link to get to the page where you can fill in your system specs.
System Info - See Your System Specs - Windows 7 Help Forums

Include PSU. cooler, case, peripherals and anything attached to the computer by wired or wireless (mouse, keyboard, headset, printer, xbox, USB wireless network card, etc.)

From your working laptop you can download Windows 10 using the Media Creation Tool and then prepare a USB Flash drive (don't just copy the ISO in the Flash drive, it won't work). Boot with that USB Flash drive (F12, usually, to see the boot selection screen). Start Windows Setup. If you have enough free space on your hard disk, do not delete or format any partitions! Just select the Windows partition (usually the larger) and proceed. You should see a message that this partition already contains a Windows installation and all data will be copied to folder Windows.old After you install Windows 10 you should see your data in the folder C:\Windows.old\users\username where "username" is your old user name.

Thanks to everyone who replied, particularly zbook who gave me some links for reinstalling that I am now going to try and work through.

Should I require any more help (SHOULD - lol....) then I shall start a new thread.

If I don't return then I may well have succumbed to the pressure and gone back to the abacus and two cocoa tins with a bit of string between them.

Nadolig Llawen and Blwyddyn newyd da i pob.

(That's "Merry Xmas and a happy New Year to all" in my native language, Welsh.)