Windows 10 installation

[TommyG]

I have an ASUS laptop with a crippled hard drive. I was planning on cloning the hard drive to a new hard drive and then removing and replacing the hard drives. The problem is that I cannot install any new applications to the hard drive and so my plan to install the software on the existing hard drive went out of the window. The windows 10 software was installed on the machine when I got it so I do not have the windows software to do an installation. I have the windows product key but am unsure of the path to take at present. Would a plan of attack be to (1) get the necessary drivers for hardware (hard drive, graphics card, usb, NIC) and (2) download windows 10 from MS and then using the product key install windows OS on new hard drive.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[ChatGPT]

Yes, your plan of attack seems reasonable. Here are the steps you can follow:

1. Gather the necessary drivers: Visit the ASUS support website and download the latest drivers for your specific laptop model. Make sure to download drivers for your hard drive, graphics card, USB, and network interface card (NIC). Save these drivers on a USB flash drive or an external hard drive.

2. Prepare a bootable USB drive: On a separate computer, download the Windows 10 installation media creation tool from the Microsoft website. Follow the instructions provided by the tool to create a bootable USB drive with the Windows 10 installation files.

3. Replace the old hard drive: Open your laptop and replace the old hard drive with the new one. Ensure that the new hard drive is properly connected.

4. Install Windows 10: Insert the bootable USB drive into your laptop and power it on. Press the key (usually F2, F10, or Del) to access the BIOS settings. In the BIOS settings, change the boot order to prioritize the USB drive. Save the changes and exit the BIOS.

5. Follow the on-screen instructions: Your laptop should now boot from the USB drive and the Windows 10 installation process will begin. Follow the on-screen instructions to install Windows 10 on your new hard drive.

6. Install drivers: After Windows 10 is installed, connect your USB flash drive or external hard drive containing the drivers you downloaded earlier. Install the necessary drivers by running the setup files for each driver.

7. Activate Windows 10: Once the drivers are installed, you can activate Windows 10 using your product key. Go to Settings > Update & Security > Activation and enter your product key.

By following these steps, you should be able to clone your current hard drive, replace it with a new one, and perform a clean installation of Windows 10 with all the necessary drivers. Remember to back up any important files before proceeding.