Repair Install (in place upgrade) question

Ive got a new Dell laptop arriving later in the week. I normally clean install and blow away the partitions using a Media Creation Tool created flash drive which gets rid of bloatware as well. Im doing things differently this time though. It has a some useful software pre installed so I plan to keep the Factory Image permanently installed and try that method for a change.
The question I have relates to a Repair Install (in place upgrade) which is normally a handy tool to be able to use if a PC develops issues. Lets say for example when my Dell OEM laptop arrives it has version 2004 installed. Would a repair install still be an option in the future even though Windows 10 on the system came preinstalled with the factory image?
If I used 2004 installation media created with the Media Creation Tool would a repair install work on an OEM factory image installation?

sportsfan148 said:

Lets say for example when my Dell OEM laptop arrives it has version 2004 installed.
Would a repair install still be an option in the future even though Windows 10 on the system came preinstalled with the factory image?

Yes. A repair install can be performed:
2004 or 20H1 > 2004 or 20H1
2004 or 20H1 > 2009 or 20H2
2004 or 20H1 > 21H1 when available


If I used 2004 installation media created with the Media Creation Tool would a repair install work on an OEM factory image installation?

Yes. It can be retail, OEM, etc.

See above.

For 2004 there were recent problems with in place upgrade repairs.

See the latest posts in this link for in place upgrade for 20H2
Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

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KB4586853 CU Windows 10 v2004 build 19041.661 and v20H2 19042.661
Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

zbook said:

For 2004 there were recent problems with in place upgrade repairs.

[FONT="]See the latest posts in this link for in place upgrade for 20H2[/FONT]
Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

[FONT="].[/FONT]
KB4586853 CU Windows 10 v2004 build 19041.661 and v20H2 19042.661
Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

Thanks pal for the feedback. Thats great to know that a repair install (in place upgrade) will work exactly the same on a Dell OEM Windows 10 installation (Factory Image) as it does on a Windows 10 Clean Installation that is done using a USB flash drive created with the Media Creation Tool.
I dont know yet but I suspect the laptop will arrive with 2004 installed. Reading your links regarding 20H2 I think I'll be leaving it a couple of months before upgrading to that version anyway. Do you think Microsoft will be updating and fixing the issue with the current 20H2 Media Creation Tool at some point so that it can be downloaded directly to a flash drive from the Microsoft website so that it works correctly without having to perform registry edits etc to workaround the repair/upgrade issue?

AddRAM said:

I would just pull the factory drive, put it in your desk drawer, and install a Samsung SSD

But if you want to keep the system it comes with, why not just back it up using Macrium ?

Macrium Software | Macrium Reflect Free

I'll probably just use their own Dell Backup and Recovery software to backup the Dell Factory Image to a USB flash drive just in case their is ever a future problem such as a hard drive replacement which would mean the installed Factory Image would be lost if I dont backup the Factory Image.

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dalchina said:

The two are completely unrelated.

MS has released an update that fixes the problem they created for people attempting an in-place upgrade repair install.

Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

Are you saying exactly the same as Zbook that a repair install/upgrade will work exactly the same on a laptop with a Dell Factory image installation in the same way as it does on a system where Win10 has been clean installed using the Media Creation Tool method?

You might also be able to download that software separately from DELL website. Have you looked at the site for your model?

SIW2 said:

You might also be able to download that software separately from DELL website. Have you looked at the site for your model?

Hi mate. I saw a link on Dell website where you download drivers to an OS Recovery tool. Im just a bit unclear what the difference is between using that or using Dell Backup and Recovery to create what theyre calling a reinstall disk. I dont know if it does exactly the same thing or not