Want to wipe a hard drive. Help?

[foxyman1167]

I have a Sony VAIO laptop that I bought second hand from PC Richards.

It already had a user account set by PCR, which I changed settings and whatnot to suit me, but sometimes I get stuck out of files, locked by the old user PCR.

I want to completely wipe the hard drive to set it up myself, but the problem is that I have several important programs set up on it;

Norton Anti Virus Security
Microsoft Word / Outlook

Is there a way to save these files from being wiped, can I store them on an external hard drive temporarily?

On a seperate note, are there any good programs that change speech to text? I'm starting college soon, and that means "seminars, seminars, and more seminars". I want something to change what the professor is saying into text on my laptop.

NEW PROBLEM

Here is more detail of what the problem is.

During startup, I pressed F10, and started the process of erasing the C: Drive, but it failed at 82%, giving me Error 220 and then Error 320.

Now when I start up my laptop, a Sony Vaio VGN-NS290J, I get a black screen, that says;

_________________________Windows Boot Manager___________________________

Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. To fix the problem:

1. Insert your Windows installation disc and restart your computer.
2. Choose your language settings, and then click "Next."
3. Click "Repair your computer."

If you do not have this disc, contact your system administrator or computer manufacturer for assistance.

File: \Boot\BCD

Status: 0xc000000f

Info: An error occurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data.
__________________________________________________ _____________________

Now I've downloaded an .iso, burned that file using a CD Burning program to the disc, insert the disc into the CD drive of the computer, restart it, and get the same message.

But for some reason, I keep getting the same document, created on this computer, a PowerPoint of something, on the CD after I burn the .iso

The computer won't let me delete the PowerPoint either. Could that be the problem?

 

[JacobGRocks]

You can back up the office stuff with Magic Jelly Bean keyfinder, then use boot and nuke to kill all the data.

As for norton, it blows. Use MS Security essentials instead.

Oh, and for tts, use MS Sam, built into word or MS narriator.

 

[foxyman1167]

So now I have the program downloaded, I just write down the information it has in terms of Microsoft Office and such, and just wipe the hard drive?

 

[GetOutOfBox]

There's no easy way to preserve installed applications, especially monolithic ones like Microsoft Office, which may have thousands of bits of data spread out across your drive and the Windows Registry.

Better to just reinstall them.

You can back up the office stuff with Magic Jelly Bean keyfinder, then use boot and nuke to kill all the data.

As for norton, it blows. Use MS Security essentials instead.

Oh, and for tts, use MS Sam, built into word or MS narriator.

Simply deleting and creating a new partition would be enough for the OP, I believe. I don't think he's looking to securely wipe his drive, as that's ultra-paranoid unless you have trade-secret business documents or child-porn stored on the drive. It's difficult enough to recover data that's been written over during normal use anyways.

MS Security Essentials is alright, but if the OP's willing to pay approx $40 annually, ESET NOD32 is the best AntiVirus suite you can get. It's very fast and game-friendly, but also has the highest detection rate out of all the AV suites.

As for your MS Sam suggestion, that's Text-to-Speech. What the OP was looking for is Speech-to-Text.

Pretty much the only reliable program I know of which can accomplish that goal is Dragon Naturally Speaking, however it is expensive. There's also the problem that he'd like to use it to transcribe what his Professor's saying, which assuming that the lectures will be going on in Lecture-Halls/Auditoriums, won't work with any Speech-Recognition software. The background noise and the distance of the speaker from the microphone would make any kind of attempt to produce accurate results impossible.

 

[JacobGRocks]

There's also built in Speech-To-Text in Windows Vista and 7, but it can be spotty sometimes.

 

[foxyman1167]

After doing some research, in actuality, I don't want to wipe the hard drive of the OS.

I just want to return to factory settings, erasing all user accounts and any installed programs and files.

Apparently, I need some kind of CD for this, but seeing as I don't actually have it, is there another way?

 

[JacobGRocks]

Use a generic Windows CD, if you have a MSDNAA or Dreamspark account and go to school, you can get Windows for free legally.

 

[foxyman1167]

I have neither of those things, any other options?

 

[foxyman1167]

Ignore that last post.

I found out how to return the C: Drive to factory settings, which involed pressing F10 at start up.

At about 85% completion, an error message popped up "Error: 220". I hit OK, then I get "Error: 320", followed by a message that the return to factory settings has failed, and I need to insert the Microsoft Vista Installation CD into the drive.

Problem is, Microsoft Vista came pre-installed on my laptop, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have the installation CD for it.

Any solutions, or am I doomed to pay +$150.00 for an installation CD on eBay/Amazon?

 

[Maylu Sakurai]

you can look for a uploaded and untampered ISO on the internet of your windows vista version somewhere since i think a few sites are legal distributors as long as they dont include cracks or a license key

 

[foxyman1167]

Is that something I can do on another computer?

I should have mentioned that the laptop that I tried to erase the C: Drive doesn't work anymore. I can't get to Internet Explorer because I need to insert the Windows Vista installation CD.

 

[Lavi]

Is that something I can do on another computer?

I should have mentioned that the laptop that I tried to erase the C: Drive doesn't work anymore. I can't get to Internet Explorer because I need to insert the Windows Vista installation CD.

Did you write your Vista product key down before trying to restore factory settings? If so you can simply download a Windows Vista .iso on another pc, burn it to disc, place the disc in your laptop, boot your laptop from disc, install windows and then enter your product key.

 

[foxyman1167]

Awesome, I have the product key written down. If someone could provide me with a link to a Windows Vista iso, that'd be great.

 

[foxyman1167]

I'm trying to find a safe and trusted download, but so far not having any luck.

 

[Lavi]

I'm trying to find a safe and trusted download, but so far not having any luck.

Personal Message sent.

 

[foxyman1167]

Bump.

Still need help with this.

Here is more detail of what the problem is.

During startup, I pressed F10, and started the process of erasing the C: Drive, but it failed at 82%, giving me Error 220 and then Error 320.

Now when I start up my laptop, a Sony Vaio VGN-NS290J, I get a black screen, that says;

_________________________Windows Boot Manager___________________________

Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. To fix the problem:

1. Insert your Windows installation disc and restart your computer.
2. Choose your language settings, and then click "Next."
3. Click "Repair your computer."

If you do not have this disc, contact your system administrator or computer manufacturer for assistance.

File: \Boot\BCD

Status: 0xc000000f

Info: An error occurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data.
__________________________________________________ _____________________

Now I've downloaded an .iso, burned that file using a CD Burning program to the disc, insert the disc into the CD drive of the computer, restart it, and get the same message.

But for some reason, I keep getting the same document, created on this computer, a PowerPoint of something, on the CD after I burn the .iso

The computer won't let me delete the PowerPoint either. Could that be the problem?

 

[GetOutOfBox]

Wait. You do realize that wiping your hard-drive means literally erasing EVERYTHING on it, not just your personal data. That means the operating system, software, everything.

Also, you can't fully wipe the same drive that contains your operating system using software that is designed to run within the operating system, as the operating system will not allow you to delete files that are in use/protected. However, the program may still partially wipe the drive, resulting in a non-functional OS. If you want to wipe the drive containing your operating system, you're going to have to use a LiveCD, (I suggest GPARTED) to start the computer using a temporary OS and wipe the drive containing your normal OS.