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Laptop HDD Failed, need some help =/

SnipeAHolic12
By SnipeAHolic12
in Operating Systems
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Hello, I have a friend who I gave my old laptop to. It had a copy of Windows 7. The hard drive failed. It makes a clicky noise while it spins and you cannot access the OS. The friend does not have a lot of money. She was able to get a $27 HDD off Amazon. However, she cannot afford a new copies of Windows. I have Windows 8.1 Pro OEM, but I know you cannot use it on more than one machine. Is there anything I can do to help? 

I am thinking of just installing Linux but she isn't the most technical person out there...Is there an easy version on Linux that kind of looks/works like Windows? 

 

Any help would be amazing. Thank you!

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If you have a recovery disk for the laptop you will be able to reinstall Windows without the licence key.

 

Failing this I would say that Linux Mint with Cinnamon would be one of the best for the less technical user (but I would suggest you try an OEM recovery/install disk first).

 

Best of luck :)

"PSU brands are meaningless, look up the OEM."

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Download any windows ISO file, install it and skip activation part. Your copy will be non genuine, so forget desktop background.
Later she could buy new copy or join windows insider program when it opens again(if ever).

Laptop: Acer V3-772G  CPU: i5 4200M GPU: GT 750M SSD: Crucial MX100 256GB
Desktop: CPU: R7 1700x GPU: RTX 2080 SSD: Samsung 860 Evo 1TB 

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If you have a recovery disk for the laptop you will be able to reinstall Windows without the licence key.

 

Failing this I would say that Linux Mint with Cinnamon would be one of the best for the less technical user (but I would suggest you try an OEM recovery/install disk first).

 

Best of luck :)

 

Ok, but what if I can't log into the OS at all? Could I use my PC which is running Windows 10 to make the repair disk and then load the repair disk on the blank HDD? Will that work?

 

EDIT: I also don't have my Windows install disk! I bought it but lost it, so when I re-installed Windows I made a USB boot. So I have no Windows Disk.

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Ok, but what if I can't log into the OS at all? Could I use my PC which is running Windows 10 to make the repair disk and then load the repair disk on the blank HDD? Will that work?

I'm not sure about that, I think you need an OEM install disk for it to automatically activate (such as one from Dell or HP). See if you can find one that came with your laptop (one from another Manufacturer may also work, but I can't guarentee it).

"PSU brands are meaningless, look up the OEM."

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BEFORE YOU GET RID OF THE OLD HARD DRIVE!

Boot onto linux and you MIGHT be able to acquire some of the files from the HDD! 

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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Download ISO and do the fresh installation.

 

Use the key under that laptop for activation.

 

It will activate.

 

All the keys will be in the embedded in the motherboard. So you can activate.

 

If you can't, Call Microsoft. They will help for sure.

Intel Core i3 2100 @ 3.10GHz - Intel Stock Cooler - Zotac Geforce GT 610 2GB Synergy Edition

Intel DH61WW - Corsair® Value Select 4GBx1 DDR3 1600 MHz - Antec BP-300P PSU

WD Green 1TB - Seagate 2.5" HDD 1TB - Seagate Barracuda 500GB - Antec X1 E.

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Download ISO and do the fresh installation.

 

Use the key under that laptop for activation.

 

It will activate.

 

All the keys will be in the embedded in the motherboard. So you can activate.

 

If you can't, Call Microsoft. They will help for sure.

Where would I find the key? I do not have anything from the laptop purchase so I have no install disks or anything. Just the laptop itself. 

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If you got that laptop with Windows 7 pre-installed on it, there must be a sticker under that laptop.

 

It will look like this

 

win7productkey1.png

Intel Core i3 2100 @ 3.10GHz - Intel Stock Cooler - Zotac Geforce GT 610 2GB Synergy Edition

Intel DH61WW - Corsair® Value Select 4GBx1 DDR3 1600 MHz - Antec BP-300P PSU

WD Green 1TB - Seagate 2.5" HDD 1TB - Seagate Barracuda 500GB - Antec X1 E.

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Where would I find the key? I do not have anything from the laptop purchase so I have no install disks or anything. Just the laptop itself. 

With Windows 7 there should be a licence key (in the form of a COA sticker) on the bottom of your laptop (it might be under the battery). An OEM key is also contained in the laptop BIOS, so if you have the OEM recovery/install disk that came with the PC you should be able to reinstall it from that without entering the key.

"PSU brands are meaningless, look up the OEM."

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If you got that laptop with Windows 7 pre-installed on it, there must be a sticker under that laptop.

 

It will look like this

 

win7productkey1.png

 

 

With Windows 7 there should be a licence key (in the form of a COA sticker) on the bottom of your laptop (it might be under the battery). An OEM key is also contained in the laptop BIOS, so if you have the OEM recovery/install disk that came with the PC you should be able to reinstall it from that without entering the key.

 

I found the sticker, it's funny I never knew what that sticker was for, thank you guys for that info! It helps a lot!

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I found the sticker, it's funny I never knew what that sticker was for, thank you guys for that info! It helps a lot!

If I helped you, Please mark it as solved.

 

It'll help others to find the solution.

Intel Core i3 2100 @ 3.10GHz - Intel Stock Cooler - Zotac Geforce GT 610 2GB Synergy Edition

Intel DH61WW - Corsair® Value Select 4GBx1 DDR3 1600 MHz - Antec BP-300P PSU

WD Green 1TB - Seagate 2.5" HDD 1TB - Seagate Barracuda 500GB - Antec X1 E.

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