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#1 2008-05-31 20:32:42

regnskog
Member
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Registered: 2006-08-06
Posts: 17

Just got a new laptop!

A HP compaq 6510b

This is my first 400Mhz+ laptop actually! It came with an installation of Windows Vista which immediately appropriated the whole whopping 230GB or so for C:\. As you might suspect I wasn't too pleased with that and my thoughts pretty soon wandered off to changing to Arch smile But since this is my first 'real' laptop I thought I might ask here if there is anything I should keep in mind before comitting the act?

Also, I'm not going to erase the Vista-partition (because it came pre-installed and there is no CD for re-installing so once it is gone it is gone. And you never know when you might need it). I want to shrink it. I am aware that there are thousands of threads about resizing partitions, but as it seems success rates seem about 50-50 and so I thought I'd risk getting flamed just to make sure my new lappy won't get damaged wink Basicly I'm wondering if someone has tried this with the very same model as I have or if there is something else I should know (like that perhaps this is not recommended for laptops or w/e). It really boils down to this: Will Vista survive a partition resizing without needing a recovery CD or a reinstall or something like that?

Thanks for your input!

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#2 2008-05-31 20:39:48

moljac024
Member
From: Serbia
Registered: 2008-01-29
Posts: 2,676

Re: Just got a new laptop!

You should have another partition housing your windows install image which you can boot from(for reinstalling). So you could keep that, and wipe the Vista installation completely (you can install it again if you need it).

And just remember: Vista is the dark side! wink

Last edited by moljac024 (2008-05-31 20:40:10)


The day Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, is the day they make a vacuum cleaner.
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But if they tell you that I've lost my mind, maybe it's not gone just a little hard to find...

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#3 2008-05-31 20:43:55

regnskog
Member
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Registered: 2006-08-06
Posts: 17

Re: Just got a new laptop!

Thanks for the quick reply!

Vista took quite some time to generate what it called a "backup partition". I just wanted to make sure that this is what you are referring to?

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#4 2008-05-31 20:47:38

moljac024
Member
From: Serbia
Registered: 2008-01-29
Posts: 2,676

Re: Just got a new laptop!

No, it's not. You should get the install image of your purchased copy of Windows (this usually comes on a cd) but laptop manufacturers most often do not provide you with an install cd but instead make a separate partition with the windows installation. So, instead of booting from the CD, you boot from this partition and you get to install Windows....know what I mean ? I just gave you the suckiest explanation but I'm really tired now big_smile


The day Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, is the day they make a vacuum cleaner.
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But if they tell you that I've lost my mind, maybe it's not gone just a little hard to find...

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#5 2008-05-31 21:06:36

regnskog
Member
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Registered: 2006-08-06
Posts: 17

Re: Just got a new laptop!

Alright I think I understand! So if I remove my 200GB+ partition and keep all the smaller ones I should be able to find among those one which is bootable and lets me reinstall windows?

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#6 2008-05-31 21:09:46

Husio
Member
From: Europe
Registered: 2005-12-04
Posts: 359
Website

Re: Just got a new laptop!

Hey, year ago, I've got macbook. It was my first 500MHz+ laptop. I was wondering if I should use OS X or install linux. Guess what I'm using wink

I do have OS X partition, but didn't use it for really long time.

Last edited by Husio (2008-05-31 21:10:35)

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#7 2008-05-31 21:40:08

moljac024
Member
From: Serbia
Registered: 2008-01-29
Posts: 2,676

Re: Just got a new laptop!

regnskog wrote:

Alright I think I understand! So if I remove my 200GB+ partition and keep all the smaller ones I should be able to find among those one which is bootable and lets me reinstall windows?

Well, first check for it's existence before wiping your windows installation. Aren't you given a choice of partitions to boot from at startup ?


The day Microsoft makes a product that doesn't suck, is the day they make a vacuum cleaner.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But if they tell you that I've lost my mind, maybe it's not gone just a little hard to find...

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#8 2008-05-31 22:19:55

potatoe
Member
Registered: 2008-05-31
Posts: 13

Re: Just got a new laptop!

I got a Compaq (HP sub-brand these days) maybe a year and a half ago, and rather than including a restore CD or even a restore partition, they included software installed into the Windows partition that you were supposed to run and burn your own Windows CDs (as in the actual Windows install CD, not just backup software), just to save on the price of including a CD with the laptop. So that's something to check for.

(Of course, my laptop didn't have a burner, so I had to go to their online chat support and request they send me a real pressed DVD -- they overnighted it for free and probably wiped out their planned savings of another 100 or so laptops besides myself).

EDIT: I should add that this was XP, not Vista, and I have no idea how widespread it is. It was mentioned in the (PDF) manual both under recovery over something like that and also in the "First Steps" area, though. So that's somewhere else you could check for information.

Last edited by potatoe (2008-05-31 22:42:25)

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#9 2008-05-31 22:28:12

regnskog
Member
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Registered: 2006-08-06
Posts: 17

Re: Just got a new laptop!

moljac024 wrote:
regnskog wrote:

Alright I think I understand! So if I remove my 200GB+ partition and keep all the smaller ones I should be able to find among those one which is bootable and lets me reinstall windows?

Well, first check for it's existence before wiping your windows installation. Aren't you given a choice of partitions to boot from at startup ?

Unfortunately no. When I boot I get an option to chose "Recovery". From there I can "go back to a specific date" or "go back to original install". I'm pretty sure that by chosing one of those options I will make use of the 7GB "recovery partition" created during installation (the one which I erronously called backup partition in my previous post). Personally, I am not sure if the recovery utility will work if I erase my Vista installation. Maybe you know? smile

In windows I can only see the recovery partition, C:\ and a small one called OS_TOOLS or something. I guess I could run a linux live cd and try to see if I can detect any more partitions from there but I'd prefer waiting with that if it turns out said recovery partition is what I'm looking for anyways.

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#10 2008-05-31 23:06:55

potatoe
Member
Registered: 2008-05-31
Posts: 13

Re: Just got a new laptop!

I just looked at Backup and Recovery - Windows Vista (PDF) manual linked under your laptop's page on hp.com (I'm not even going to try and copy that URL, but "Product Manuals" one of the 4 main links when searching for "6510b" at the hp.com front page), and it seems to indicate you do need to make your own recovery CDs (page 7, Section 1: Creating recovery discs) from within Vista by going to Start > All Programs > HP Backup & Recovery > Backup & Recovery Manager, Click Next, Click "Create a set of recovery discs (Recommended)" and then click Next.

That manual also includes all sorts of explanations about how to use the recovery partition too, and I don't know if using it is the same as doing a fresh install of Vista, or if it uses Vista's System Restore stuff. At any rate, CDs will be a good thing to have on hand if you completely destroy the partition table, assuming they didn't coasterize during the burn process wink.

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#11 2008-06-01 00:37:09

.:B:.
Forum Fellow
Registered: 2006-11-26
Posts: 5,819
Website

Re: Just got a new laptop!

Congrats TS, the 6510b used to be my previous laptop (sold it to get a Vaio TZ big_smile) and was an excellent device. Great Linux-compatibility, sturdy and powerful. Hope you enjoy it!


Got Leenucks? :: Arch: Power in simplicity :: Get Counted! Registered Linux User #392717 :: Blog thingy

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#12 2008-06-01 06:52:30

violagirl23
Member
Registered: 2008-01-24
Posts: 184

Re: Just got a new laptop!

Have you tried Vista's native utility Shrink Volume? I got Vista down to 30 GB by using it. It's such a pain though. You have to defrag and defrag and defrag, because there are blocks near the end that prevent you from resizing terribly. I used this guide:
www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/working-around-windows-vistas-shrink-volume-inadequacy-problems/
I used the free 30-day trial of Perfect Disk 2k to do it. I kept defragging and defragging, trying the various defrag options and checking all options for really conserving space that I could find. I also checked the option under Drive Properties where you tell it to defrag on bootup, and it can defrag certain important system files because Vista is not yet running. After several reboots and about ten defrags, I finally got everything condensed enough th shrink it to where I wanted.
It took me three hours to coax it down to 30 GB, but if you have the patience it's a worry-free method. big_smile


"You can't just ask to borrow somebody else's lampshade. It's AWKWARD!"

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#13 2008-06-02 13:45:28

regnskog
Member
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Registered: 2006-08-06
Posts: 17

Re: Just got a new laptop!

After contacting support for the first time in my life I finally got some clarity smile

As it turns out the recovery partition would NOT have been enough to recover Vista once I remove it. Just as several users have stated, I would need to create my own recovery discs. It should be noted that the utility for creating these discs gave me the option to create iso-files instead, which I did. I was only allowed to create one set of discs/iso-files but that's enough for me smile

Thanks for helping guys!

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