Periodic re-install

[Maccer101]

Does everyone do a periodic OS and Program re-install on their PCs?

Do you do a complete reformat and install from fresh or use a backup image? How often is this recommended?

I have never bothered with doing this before, but would like to know if I should.

How would I be able to keep things such as game saves if doing a fresh install?

[Bugbait]

Does everyone do a periodic OS and Program re-install on their PCs?

Do you do a complete reformat and install from fresh or use a backup image? How often is this recommended?

I have never bothered with doing this before, but would like to know if I should.

How would I be able to keep things such as game saves if doing a fresh install?

I perform a fresh OS install every time I do a major hardware change (ie. Motherboard) which happens about once a year. If you keep the OS virus and ad/spyware clean then you shouldn't really need to refresh the installation unless you use a lot of experimental or questionably sourced software.

When re-installing I always delete the partition and perform a full format for peace of mind. A quick exploration of your folders should indicate where game saves are held and you can always Google to be sure. You can make a simple BAT script to copy key folders and files around or use a multitude of backup applications to flag them.

[8bit]

On my Windows machine I keep a Ghost image of my basic install (OS and all available service packs/hotfixes at the time of install, but no 3rd party drivers). When I decide to reinstall, so long as the hardware is still the same as it was at the time I created the ghost image I just use that. Saves multiple reboots and a lot of time installing patches. From there it's just a case of any patches released since the ghost was created and the current drivers and apps.

I tend to reinstall it when it starts doing weird stuff. As for saving data, if you've only got one hard drive partition (i.e. just a C drive) then you'll need to back up your data to DVD or some external device such as a USB pen or hard drive. Where the data lives is another matter. If you keep everything in your "My Documents" folder then most of it will be there, although some games (like most Steam ones for a start) keep savegames in the C:\Program Files\<whatever> folder. You'll just need to go looking around and work out where it all is manually in that case.

[5cupa]

same i have various ghost images. which i use to clean my machines at least every 6 months. depending on how much junk i install

[Behemoth]

same i have various ghost images. which i use to clean my machines at least every 6 months. depending on how much junk i install

I'm the same as you, although I had a bad experience with imaging software, once had an issue and it totally destroyed a HDD, so when it's time to re-install it's all done manually for me.

[Zadock]

I only do a reinstall when I've majorly messed something up, like a recent dual boot setup attempt that we won't talk about when I do it I usually go for the manual fresh install. Just back up your saved games etc to CDs/DVDs or a usb device before you re-format.

[vinnyT]

I keep trueimage files of original setup, and do one every two weeks.

When I used win98se I formatted and re-installed everything around every six months, since I've installed XP I've not had to any full re-installations.

If you know/feel there is something wrong with your pc ie it starts getting slow, or you've installed something nasty, then a full format/install is the best way to go.

[Zadock]

I keep trueimage files of original setup, and do one every two weeks.

When I used win98se I formatted and re-installed everything around every six months, since I've installed XP I've not had to any full re-installations.

If you know/feel there is something wrong with your pc ie it starts getting slow, or you've installed something nasty, then a full format/install is the best way to go.

Agreed.

a clean slate is nice sometimes to.

[MadduckUK]

Does everyone do a periodic OS and Program re-install on their PCs?

Do you do a complete reformat and install from fresh or use a backup image? How often is this recommended?

I have never bothered with doing this before, but would like to know if I should.

How would I be able to keep things such as game saves if doing a fresh install?

used to do a full reinstall every 6 months, doesnt seem the same need nowadays. so i only do it when im doing big hardware upgrades

[raptor4216]

I have a trueimage of just windows (+ hotfixes) and basic software which I use to wipe my main partition every 6-12 months. I find it keeps windows nice and fast as it inevitably slows down over time where i install and uninstall stuff. All my data is on a separate partition so I don’t have to back that up, then just use an external HDD to backup savegames etc

[Maccer101]

Thanks for the advice people.

I'm used to installing sotware willy nilly, but after a few problems with conflicts and such I am trying to be more discerning about what I put on my machine.

Uninstalled about 10-15 programs in the last month or so, at least half of the programs left directories and files on my C drive, don't want a load on junk on my hard drive any more thank-you.

Starting to clue up to the fact that all this playing about is not great for the registeries.

[Bleak]

I used to format fairly often when I was younger and could only afford budget machines. Now though I don't format particularly often, maybe once or twice a year.

I have different partitions for OS, documents and games along with a stack of 5 external HDD's that I've accumulated over the years for backing up my data so that sorts most things out. Saved games are either in documents or on the games partition so they're always safe.

As for keeping the PC clean one of the programs I'm quite a fan of is CCleaner. It wipes a load of temporary files you never knew were there and can also clean up the registry, might sound a bit dodgy but it's never wiped anything that was important.

[timread]

Try CCleaner for clearing up after programs that don't do it themselves. Especially if you tend to try out a lot of software demos etc.

CCleaner - Home

It can tackle orphaned files as well as registry keys/hives.

[arthurleung]

Usually I just reinstall when OS start to crash a lot. Most of my machines are up for at least 2 weeks without a reboot, with relaxed overclock setting.

I would say be prepared to reinstall OS every 6~9 months if you're doing overclocking.
And don't use your "work" installation of Windows to run overclocking test.

I've trashed a fresh installation of XP 32bit with just 2 days doing (unstable) overclocking test with SP2004 only :S Even if a machine pass like 48 hours prime, it can still slowly "poison" your OS and shorten its life.

In particular Southbridge / Northbridge overclocking can trash data. Overclocking + RAID0 is a particularly nasty one.

[Maccer101]

this CCleaner, interested but as said before don't want to install just anything now. Never heard anything good about registry cleaners, whats the risk with this one?

[raptor4216]

CCleaner is a great program, i have used it for years and never had any problems. Even if u dont feel safe using the registry cleaner bit it will still help by clearing out all the rubbish temp files left behind by windows and software apps.