Solved Cost of reinstalling win8.1

jerry delacruz

New Member
Messages
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Location
Los Angeles
I was recently infected with the freshy virus on my ASUS laptop. All my work files are safe, so rather than spend time expelling freshy, I was thinking of just re-installing win8.1. However, I'm on a metered hotspot and wonder the gig cost of the re-install.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS q301LA
    CPU
    Intel i3
    Memory
    6 gig
I can't help you with that question but may have another option. It may save you some money down the road. if you here, Create installation media for Windows 8.1 - Windows Help you can download the install media for Windows 8.1. This install media will accept Windows 8.0 and Windows 8.1 product codes, even embedded OEM keys. You could, if you wanted to, do a clean install of 8.1 and skip having to upgrade from 8.0 to 8.1. And also save the install media should you need to reinstall again latter on. No having to download it all over again. Just a thought.
 

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
The Setup Media Download will cost you just under 4GB
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
jerry delacruz said:
4 gigs to down win8.1 is expensive; $5 per gig = $20. Thanks for the estimate. I'll wait now until I can get to the library, or McDonald's, to re-install. Ubunto is looking better all the time. Maybe win10 will be out of testing soon.

Did your laptop come with windows 8 or 8.1 ??

Did you try the option to recover your OS? Reset PC..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
No..

Right Charm -> Change PC Settings -> Update and Recovery -> Recovery -> Remove everything and reinstall windows

That should re-write your PC back to the factory out of box settings using the factory windows installation image

Just Like New..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
So I don't have to be online to do this? Because this freakin "freshy" thing takes over the browser and starts downloading. I have to break the connection before it eats up all my hotspot.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS q301LA
    CPU
    Intel i3
    Memory
    6 gig
Nope.. It is all PC internal..

Windows 8 and 8.1 have a built-in OS Recovery Option..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
Backup any documents etc, you don't want to risk losing to external media before you do the factory reset. I would think your office 365 subscription should be OK. Just renter your subscriber info back into office 365.
 

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
I was recently infected with the freshy virus on my ASUS laptop. All my work files are safe, so rather than spend time expelling freshy, I was thinking of just re-installing win8.1. However, I'm on a metered hotspot and wonder the gig cost of the re-install.

Which browser are you on ? Freshy is an browser extension/toolbar, not technically a virus but malware. You can get rid of it by resetting your browser. ie; in Firefox (Note: You will have a new FF profile upon reset, otherwise Freshy will restore itself via your hidden profile, and you will lose all your settings but exporting your bookmarks to a desktop file can save time afterward) -

Hit ?> Firefox Help >Troubleshooting Information > mozilla support page

  1. Reset Firefox
  2. Finish
  3. Delete Personal Settings=>Reset=>Close

Another thing to try is to download and run Malwarebytes Free - https://www.malwarebytes.org/mwb-download/ and have it scan and repair. This should take care of leftover registry entries and whatever else you unintentionally installed too. Much quicker than a factory reset and re-installing your programs and files or even a refresh.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
The explorer and chrome browsers were both infected. I didn't have mozilla or firefox. The explorer was much worse as it would start downloading who knows what right after opening. At least chrome would let me get to a website before it started blurting out adds. The explorer seemed to have been designed with forethought as to where you would go to remove it; when I went to ms to download anti-virus apps it would cover them completely, whereas with sites not involving such software it was just a nuisance. I did the reset and things are fine. So far! Thanks for the help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS q301LA
    CPU
    Intel i3
    Memory
    6 gig
Glad you got all that sorted out and you found out you have a recovery partition that works. To avoid future problems where you unintentionally install this type of crapware, try this small program out where it asks you if you want to install something when you forget to or overlook a permission check box when installing something you actually want - Unchecky - Keeps your checkboxes clear

This is probably how freshy got on your computer to begin with. I'm usually diligent about reading every page when downloading but the new trick is to make the install permission to install page look like pages and pages of terms of service which you are conditioned never to scroll thru so you just hit Accept.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Yeah, I do that all the time. Do you know of a way to load and test apps in a virtual environment before allowing them into the system?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS q301LA
    CPU
    Intel i3
    Memory
    6 gig
I did the reset and things are fine. So far! Thanks for the help.

Glad it all worked out for you..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
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