Solved what options do we have?

pawz7

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hello, someone has given us ( the local computer nerds) a sweet little mini-tower, unwanted by its original owner nor by the recipient, who now uses a Mac. The machine is unusual in that it is powered by a lap-top battery - never come across that before - and of course we did not get given the charger.
We rootled around in our pile of Dell chargers (this machine is HP) and found one that fits and with the right polarity, plugged it in and the machine (an i-3) has booted up - but now we are stuck. It is either Windows 8 or 8.1 but we don't know the password or key. We would like to pass it on with the OS clean but intact. What options do we have please, if any? I do recall downloading an 8.1 upgrade onto someone's Win 8 laptop that was not running as it ought a while back, but I must have been in the advanced options screen to do that....

... we have decided the best way forward is to take HD out, put it in Icy Box, clean all user stuff off with BCWipe, stick it back in and see what happens then. As there should be no user account, it might let us in, and if it don't work we might give Linux a go :)... oh.. have just found a windows 8.1 in my box of DVD's, prob an ISO I created for someone else and never used.. hmm
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 7
If it shipped from the factory with Windows 8 or 8.1, the product key should be stored in the BIOS. If so you can do a clean install with install media from here, Access Denied Windows 8 install media will read the key automatically and install the correct matching Edition. Windows 10 install media will also read and use the Windows 8 key to install and activate Windows 10. Last time I checked it still worked. If you get prompted to enter a key, either there isn't an embedded key, or you used the wrong (install media) Edition. Only use 10 Home Single language if your sure it was Home SL. Otherwise just use Windows 10 (multi edition)

If it has a factory recovery option, you could also try that to restore the factory state. You'll have to look up what the key you press on boot up is for that make and model.

Nobody will help you cheat the password prompt, its against forum rules. ;)

EDIT: Even though the link I posted says access denied, its valid and works. I have no idea why it did that?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
thanks alphanumeric. Having discovered I have an .iso on a disc for Windows 8.1, we have gone ahead with the wipe and so have an empty HDD now. The recovery partition is still intact so we could get the .iso on and then do a recovery to get the original installed, which might have some useful software on for new user, so we are happy. I think I did note what the key to initiate recovery is for that model - forgotten it now but we can find it if necessary. We have it on the back-burner now that we know a way forward. All good. Help appreciated :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 7
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