Giving away a Windows computer. . .
The ideal tool for this is Sysprep.
techrepublic.com
Sysprep is a program included with Windows. Its main use is for replicating computer systems in an enterprise environment. It works by removing all of the "personal stuff" on your system, but leaving the "system stuff" intact. After you do this, copies of this computer can be copied to other systems (with similar hardware, of course.)
This is not what you want to do. You simply need to remove the "personal stuff" from your system. Once you do this, the first time the system runs, Windows will set up new User accounts, re-configure system settings, and re-establish default values (like wallpaper and screen savers). It will be a "clean" system, but all your installed programs (along with their keys and activation status) will remain. Note: Remove any programs you don't want before running Sysprep.
Cheers, PW.
P.S. My first recommendation would be to wipe the disk and re-install Windows -- assuming you have all your media, drivers, software, licenses, and keys available. |
