Recovery Environment (WinRe) question

SIW2 · 21 Sep 2020

Am I correct in thinking that the winre.wim file we get recreated then anyway during a clean installation?

yes, but it is very quick just to copy winre.wim from the installation media into your recovery folder

sportsfan148 · 21 Sep 2020

SIW2 said:

yes, but it is very quick just to copy winre.wim from the installation media into your recovery folder

I wont bother messing with it now because its not causing problems and it could just be a deliberate one minute timeout setting thats causing the PC to shut down. You've confirmed that if I do a clean installation with Media Creation Tool USB flash drive at some point the winre.wim file will be recreated then anyway so thats fine

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Im guessing you can do an in place upgrade using the USB flash drive installation media I created a while ago with the Media Creation Tool by selecting the USB flash drive in File explorer and then click on Setup on the opening screen (Root directory)?
I know it has to be the same Build as the installation too. In my case the USB flash drive for 1909 was made at the beginning of the year. My USB flash drive is 18363.418. There have been further incremental cumulative updates since then so I think its 18363.1110 now. As long as my flash drive is Build 18363 is that all that matters..or does it have to be 18363.1110?

Ghot · 21 Sep 2020

sportsfan148 said:

I wont bother messing with it now because its not causing problems and it could just be a deliberate one minute timeout setting thats causing the PC to shut down. You've confirmed that if I do a clean installation with Media Creation Tool USB flash drive at some point the winre.wim file will be recreated then anyway so thats fine

- - - Updated - - -

Im guessing you can do an in place upgrade using the USB flash drive installation media I created a while ago with the Media Creation Tool by selecting the USB flash drive in File explorer and then click on Setup on the opening screen (Root directory)?
I know it has to be the same Build as the installation too. In my case the USB flash drive for 1909 was made at the beginning of the year. My USB flash drive is 18363.418. There have been further incremental cumulative updates since then so I think its 18363.1110 now. As long as my flash drive is Build 18363 is that all that matters..or does it have to be 18363.1110?

The fastest easiest was is to use the MCT and create an ISO, then MOUNT it.
It will give you v2004, without all the normal hassle.

Just make sure to disable any 3rd party AV/firewall, if you have one installed.

Paul Black · 21 Sep 2020

Hello @sportsfan148,

sportsfan148 said:

Im guessing you can do an in place upgrade using the USB flash drive installation media I created a while ago with the Media Creation Tool by selecting the USB flash drive in File explorer and then click on Setup on the opening screen (Root directory)?

Yes, or copy the ISO to the desktop, right- click, mount, and then run setup.
Choose the Upgrade option and select to save your programs and data.
When finished, right- click and select unmount.

That's it.

sportsfan148 · 22 Sep 2020

Ghot said:

The fastest easiest was is to use the MCT and create an ISO, then MOUNT it.
It will give you v2004, without all the normal hassle.

Just make sure to disable any 3rd party AV/firewall, if you have one installed.

Im not installing 2004 because of all the issues its had..thats why Im still on 1909 which is supported until May 2021 anyway. When the upcoming version 20H2 is released and stable, hopefully after a cumulative update or two I'll upgrade then from 1909 jumping straight to 20H2

Ghot · 22 Sep 2020

sportsfan148 said:

Im not installing 2004 because of all the issues its had..thats why Im still on 1909 which is supported until May 2021 anyway. When the upcoming version 20H2 is released and stable, hopefully after a cumulative update or two I'll upgrade then from 1909 jumping straight to 20H2

You can also do the ISO In-place upgrade for older versions of Win 10. See the changes I made to this post of mine...

Here is the short version of the In-place upgrade tutorial...

Go here and get the Media Creation Tool and save it to your desktop.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/soft...load/windows10

RUN the Media Creation Tool and choose: Create an ISO image... save IT to your desktop.
This will be the latest version of the ISO image.

For older ISO image versions, go here...
Download Windows 10 ISO File

Right click the ISO image and choose: MOUNT
Open File Explorer and you will see a new drive letter. It will look like a DVD optical drive.
Double click the new drive letter to open it.
Find setup.exe and double click it to start the in-place upgrade.

Choose the Upgrade option and tell it to save your programs and data, when it asks.

After it's all done... to UNmount the ISO image, right click the new drive letter and choose: EJECT.

The ONLY thing you will lose is some of your personalizations. Your programs and data will be intact.

/edit I tend to think of the In-place upgrade and backup software as just tools in my arsenal. They just give me MORE options when trying to "control" Windows 10.

sportsfan148 · 22 Sep 2020

Paul Black said:

Hello @sportsfan148,

Yes, or copy the ISO to the desktop, right- click, mount, and then run setup.
Choose the Upgrade option and select to save your programs and data.
When finished, right- click and select unmount.

That's it.

Thanks Paul for clarifying that for me.
Have you any knowledge about the second part of my question?
When performing an in place upgrade (repair install), I know it has to be the same Build as the current installation. Just as an example, I have a USB flash drive for 1909 which was made at the beginning of the year which is Build 18363.418. Obviously, there have been further incremental cumulative updates since then so I think the current build on my PC is 18363.1110. If I did wish to perform an in place upgrade of 1909 does my USB flash drive qualify as being the same build even though its older?..or does it have to be 18363.1110? The fact that my flash drive is Build 18363..is that what it means by "it has to be the same build" meaning that whatever the second part of the build happens to be is irrelevant?

Paul Black · 22 Sep 2020

Hello @sportsfan148,

sportsfan148 said:

Have you any knowledge about the second part of my question?
When performing an in place upgrade (repair install), I know it has to be the same Build as the current installation. Just as an example, I have a USB flash drive for 1909 which was made at the beginning of the year which is Build 18363.418. Obviously, there have been further incremental cumulative updates since then so I think the current build on my PC is 18363.1110. If I did wish to perform an in place upgrade of 1909 does my USB flash drive qualify as being the same build even though its older?..or does it have to be 18363.1110? The fact that my flash drive is Build 18363..is that what it means by "it has to be the same build" meaning that whatever the second part of the build happens to be is irrelevant?

As long as you have the same Edition [ Pro, Home ] and Version [ 1909 ] it will work. You can always run WU to get the latest WU for the Version.

IMPORTANT: Make a System Image before you do ANYTHING!

Here are some Tutorials that you might find useful . . .

Win 10 OS . . .

Download the LATEST or OLDER ISO's . . .
How to Download Official Windows 10 ISO file from Microsoft

In-Place Upgrade . . .
How to Do a Repair Install of Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

I hope this helps!

sportsfan148 · 22 Sep 2020

Hi guys. I just wanted to update you guys on the questions you've all been helping me with.
I decided to speak to Dell today about the WinRe issue where the PC shuts down at the Startup Settings screen after one minute if an option isn't selected. The technician I spoke to confirmed that this is normal on Dell systems. Thats the way their PC's have been set up by design. Many thanks to everyone for all your help
I was also informed they now regard 2004 as fixed and recommend upgrading to it after testing on their systems.
I mentioned that I'd use the in place upgrade method that some of you have been talking about rather than upgrading through Windows Updates. He said that sometimes data can be lost using an in place upgrade so their recommendation is to Upgrade through Windows Updates. When Ive read about the in place upgrade method on here before, the general feeling Ive got is that its supposed to be the most reliable method. I explained that I would use the Media Creation Tool to create installation media on a USB flash drive. Then I explained that by doing this it would serve multiple purposes
1. I would have bootable media so I would have the option to do a clean installation if I ever needed to.
2. I can perform an in place upgrade by inserting the flash drive, select the flash drive to open it in File Explorer and on the opening screen select setup to perform the in place upgrade.
3. I could perform the in place upgrade to do a repair install if I ever had any future issues

He said that he fully understood but that an in place upgrade can cause data loss...so the Windows Update was still their recommended method of upgrading.

Paul Black · 22 Sep 2020

sportsfan148 said:

Hi guys. I just wanted to update you guys on the questions you've all been helping me with.
I decided to speak to Dell today about the WinRe issue where the PC shuts down at the Startup Settings screen after one minute if an option isn't selected. The technician I spoke to confirmed that this is normal on Dell systems. Thats the way their PC's have been set up by design.

At least now you know. Please mark this thread as Solved.