Vet my Vista reinstallation checklist?

[Mike64]

It's been several years since I installed Vista on my SSD and I'm a bit foggy about the exact procedure. (The first time, I used the original Dell discs and did the updates online. This time I'll be using a Microsoft installation disc and an update disc created with WSUS Offline, though I don't think that matters much.) Also, I know I don't have to, but I'm planning to completely wipe the drive. Do I have to reformat and/or re-partition the drive afterward?

[Edit] Should I reset the BIOS to use on-board video until I've installed the video driver?

My checklist. Am I forgetting anything?

0. Pre-installation prep:

• Save list of installed software to data drive.
• Back up Firefox bookmarks and profile to data drive.
• Back up AOL filing cabinet to data drive.

1. Disconnect data drive.
2. Set boot order to OD first; SATA mode to IDE.
3. Wipe system drive with HDDErase.
4. Reset SATA mode to AHCI.
5. Install/update OS.
6. Install drivers recently downloaded from mfr sites:

• chipset
• onboard network adapter
• wifi card
• onboard audio
• video card
• eSATA/RAID card (just use it to connect to an external drive)

7. Install anti-malware software.
8. Go online, finalize OS updates.
9. Reconnect data drive.
10. Reset boot order.

 

[ArisVer]

Do I have to reformat and/or re-partition the drive afterward?
No. I just format the disk while installing the OS, there is an option there. Quick format is good enough and much faster. Not a real need to wipe out the disk, but if you like to...

After installation and updates just browse through the manufacturers sites for drivers, in case something new came up.

If you don't have problems with your current OS, why make a new installation?

No need to use the onboard video.

 

[Mike64]

If you don't have problems with your current OS, why make a new installation?

No particularly strong reason -- just to give myself a clean slate, trim down the space Windows is taking up on the drive, and and hopefully speed up boot-time back to what it was when I first installed the SSD.

No need to use the onboard video.

OK, thanks. I was thinking thought that once the Nvidia driver was wiped, the system wouldn't know what to do with the card until the driver was reinstalled after the OS installation...

 

[owensdj]

Looks pretty good, although I always do all of the OS updates before I install any anti-malware software.

 

[Mike64]

Looks pretty good, although I always do all of the OS updates before I install any anti-malware software.

Yeah, I decided I was being paranoid about the anti-malware S/W and did the updates first, too. All in all, it went quicker than I'd remembered, and I got back about 20GB of space from a time-bloated Windows folder!

 

[ArisVer]

All in all, it went quicker than I'd remembered, and I got back about 20GB of space from a time-bloated Windows folder!

It will get there again, sooner or later.

 

[Ketchup]

It will get there again, sooner or later.

As far as Windows reporting, I suspect you are correct. IIRC the winsxs on my Vista installs always grew in size way more then they should, even if it was just hard links and not actual space.

 

[Mike64]

It will get there again, sooner or later.

Yes, I'm sure it will. Such is the "joy" of Windows. But it should take another few years and meanwhile, I've got 20%+ of my system drive back from the dead...

 

[Mike64]

the winsxs on my Vista installs always grew in size way more then they should

The steady growth of winsxs has a lot to do with it, but so do the driver stores. And while it's not directly the fault of Windows, I was poking around just before I tried to wipe the drive and discovered a huge amount of old crap hiding out in the ProgramData and AppData directories from long, long uninstalled software. (Not to mention the huge number of restore points that Disk CleanUp couldn't or wouldn't remove.)

Needless to say, the last 3 things can be dealt with short of a full reinstall, but it would be nice if Microsoft gave us an official way to clear that stuff out, instead of just hiding it behind multiple walls of hidden & operating system file attributes and dire warnings about "system instability" that scare off your average user. /rant

 

[ArisVer]

With the disk capacities as they are today I wouldn't care less for the expansion of Windows. I do feel a certain sympathy for the people who got the first SSDs though.

 

[SimMike2]

I can understand why you might want to do a clean install with a buggy OS like Vista, which is probably close to ten years since creation, which is ancient by computer standards.

 

[Noya21]

I can understand why you might want to do a clean install with a buggy OS like Vista, which is probably close to ten years since creation, which is ancient by computer standards.

How much better is 7 or 8? What are the main differences, native video format support?

I'm still using a 3-yr old Vista 64 install and it never seems to crash or lock-up.

 

[Mike64]

How much better is 7 or 8? What are the main differences, native video format support?

I'm still using a 3-yr old Vista 64 install and it never seems to crash or lock-up.

Yeah, I didn't do the reinstallation because of operational issues, I just got sick of my Windows folder taking up 36GB of space on my 96GB SSD. And as far as I've seen/read, the "bloat" factor (ie, the ever-growing winsxs, driver stores and installer directories) remains in both Win7 and Win8/.1...

 

[Ketchup]

How much better is 7 or 8? What are the main differences, native video format support?

I'm still using a 3-yr old Vista 64 install and it never seems to crash or lock-up.

As far as stability I never had any issues with Vista. The parts I didn't like were the projected space issues from the winsxs folder, and how overboard it went with indexing. 7 basically took care of the space and slowness concerns (part of that was due to much more realistic system requirements), finished the job Vista started on the gui, and actually had a start screen (something about they couldn't decide on one before Vista was released). 8 is fine, depending on how you like the new GUI, or using an app to make it look like 7.

Short answer: if you have enough power under the hood, 7 or 8 will feel a good bit faster than Vista, and due to EOL will last you longer.

Keep in mind that if you have made it this long on Vista, you might as well wait for 9, if you indeed have the itch for something new.