# [SOLVED] Factory Restore Drive



## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

I got a Dell Inspiron in January. A few months ago I had to get a new motherboard installed. Now I'm trying to be more proactive in backing up and being prepared for computer failure. to that end, I have been trying to create a factory restore drive on a USB stick for a few weeks. I have a 16GB USB drive, and at first the Dell Backup and Recovery program let me start the creation, but during the initialization part it showed up with an error (twice). Now my computer won't even recognize my USB drive. I updated everything, to no avail. I did a troubleshoot on the drive, and it said my device isn't a USB 3.0 drive, so that I should plug it into a USB 2.0 port, which I don't have. 

Do I need a USB 3.0 drive? I figured any USB drive would be compatible. 

Please help!


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

A 16GB flash drive isn't big enough for a entire backup.

You would need something like a USB external hard drive.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Maybe I'm mistaken. It said the amount of data is 7.92GB, I'm trying to make a factory reinstall disk. I apologize if I said the wrong term, there are so many similar but different options in the program that I get them all mixed up. Thank you!


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

See if this helps:

Creating a System Recovery Device from a USB Key - #DellSolves - #DellSolves - Dell Community


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Thank you. Am I correct in thinking that there are a few different things I need: 1) a Windows 8 installation disk, then 2) a backup of my personal data and things on the computer? 

My laptop didn't come with a windows disk, so that's what I'm trying to do right now. I've backed up my music, documents and pictures, so I'm less worried about that stuff right now. 

In either scenario, my computer isn't recognizing my USB stick, so it won't matter until I can get that sorted I think. 

Thank you!


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

The USB drive may have been rewritten into a different format by the software.

If you go to the Start Menu and Type Disk Management then click on Create and format disk partitions.

Does your USB device show up as one of the selected drives?

If so you may need to format it back into a NTFS format.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

It does show up as 14.63 GB unallocated, with diagonal stripes through the box. I tried formatting it just through Windows Explorer, but it said it couldn't format it and now it doesn't show up in Windows Explorer.


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Does it still show up in Disk Management?


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Yes it's still there and still says it's online, but if I right click on the drive there's no format option. It's also not listed on the upper part of the window, just on the bottom part as Disk 1.


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Is the storage unallocated?

Right Click on the drive and is format grayed out?

Can you post a picture of Disk management?


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Format isn't even an option. I'm attaching a screenshot.


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Right click unallocated Space and *Click New Simple Volume*, now go as the instruction. Be sure to untick the box for quick format.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

When I click on New Simple Volume nothing happens. Nor does anything happen when I click on Properties or Help (the only other available options).


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

See if you can fix the USB drive on a different PC or another USB port on the system.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

OK, so I formatted the drive on another computer. I then attempted to create the factory reinstall disk, again, and again it failed very early on. I wonder if there's some problem with when my computer tries to format the USB drives? Dell Backup and Recovery always warns me that the drive will be formatted, I click OK and then it fails within 1 minute of starting.


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

It may not like how the flash drive is configured.

You may want to use the stock backup in Windows 8:

How to Create a Windows 8 Backup Using File History | PCMag.com


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Thanks, I'll try that when I'm finished again reformatting this drive. Is that odd, to not like how it's configured? It's a Lexar drive, brand new. It just seems weird that my other computer can format it but this one can't.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

After reading through that article more carefully, it seems like it just backs up the files. I'm trying to create a factory reinstall disk of Windows 8, because for whatever reason Dell decided not to include that when I bought my computer but instead thought they would send me on this wild goose chase to create my own causing endless hours of frustration! Is there a way to do that without using the Dell Backup and Recovery program?


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Dell and others for some odd reason doesn't seem to like to include the Windows Reinstall CDs any longer.

Try calling Dell and asking for a CD. They should send one out.


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

Wow. Hours spent trying to fix the problem that was solved with a 15 minute phone call to Dell! Thanks for the suggestion and all the help. So they'll send me the OS disk, then I can use the article you sent from PCMag to back up all my personal info and files, and then I'll be all set without having to ever use Dell Backup and Recovery again! 

Should I be concerned about the issue with formatting my USB drives, or not worry about it?

Thanks!


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## Masterchiefxx17 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Re: Factory Restore Drive*

I wouldn't worry about the USB, as long as it works.

Glad you got it solved!


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## mwhcrew (Sep 4, 2009)

Thanks again!


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