removing windows vista

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nicksinif

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 6, 2005
Messages
209
my trial period expired for windows vista, now i am having trouble deleting it. i tried deleting the c:\windows folder but it was write protected.
 
Let me ask you this. How did you install the beta of Vista? Removing Vista and reinstalling a new operating system (such as Windows XP) will be the same process. Boot from the CD, delete the vista partition, format and install.

As to how someone has access to the official vista beta's and thinks removing the windows directory is how you remove an os is the real question here! :) No offence really, just a random poke ;)
 
thats a good point, to get beta vista you gotta be rather computer savy, so how is it you cant remove an os? same thing as installing.....
 
yea i installed it myself. i am hesitant to delete the partition i have about 20 gigs worth of data in there unrelated to windows.
 
this is how i installed it. i got all the setup files in 1 folder, and clicked on setup.exe

xp6gra.jpg
 
ive always removed operating systems by deleting the c:\windows folder. this is the 1st time i havent been able to do it. i mean for christ sake, its taking up 3 gigs.
 
Try this: Put your HD in another system and use THAT system to remove the Windows folder.

And if all else fails, if you were smart and put Vista on FAT32, use a 98SE floppy and use DOS to deltree.
 
i am installing windows 2003 over vista right now but having some trouble. setup cannot copy the file: potscfg.xml along with dozens of other files. i am skipping all the files.
 
nicksinif said:
i am installing windows 2003 over vista right now but having some trouble. setup cannot copy the file: potscfg.xml along with dozens of other files. i am skipping all the files.
Click to expand...

That's not going to work very well.

Just install your new operating system into c:\winxp or c:\win2003, anything but c:\windows
 
nicksinif said:
ive always removed operating systems by deleting the c:\windows folder. this is the 1st time i havent been able to do it. i mean for christ sake, its taking up 3 gigs.
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That's NEVER been the way to remove an operating system, and I'm suprised is has ever worked in the past. The best thing to do in your situation is back up the 20 GBs of data you need, and then boot from the 2003 CD, recreating the partitions and doing a fresh install.
 
i was able to write over the c:\windows folder, however, i am not able to delete the "c:\documents and settings\administrator" folders or the all users, and default users folders. i just checked how much data i had, and it is 70gb worth of info so, i am going to hold off on formating
 
Reformatting is simple...move all data you need to another partition/HDD or to DVD, reboot computer with OS setup CD in drive, nuke the entire old partition, and install the newly created partition. Quick, safe, and clean.
 
i tried deleting the folder from another system and that didnt work. seems like a microsoft restriction. i am copying my stuff to other drives right now. all 70 gigs. something to consider before instaling vista.
 
nicksinif said:
i tried deleting the folder from another system and that didnt work. seems like a microsoft restriction. i am copying my stuff to other drives right now. all 70 gigs. something to consider before instaling vista.
Click to expand...

You do NOT delete the windows directory to uninstall Windows. In almost all cases upgrading an installation of Windows is a Bad Idea, particularly when that upgrade happens to be a downgrade (Vista->XP).

Backing up needed data from a system partition should be very easy. It should all either A.) be in one location, such as your documents directory, or B.) on a seperate non-system partition or drive already. There should also already be constant backups made when using a BETA operating system meant strictly for testing, mostly amoung developers (hence available through MSDN).

I ask again... how did you happen upon Vista anyhow? :)
 
nicksinif said:
my trial period expired for windows vista, now i am having trouble deleting it. i tried deleting the c:\windows folder but it was write protected.
Click to expand...

Assuming you are booting from another Windows copy on another drive, take ownership of the directory, then you will be able to delete it.

Deleting it out this ways works just fine to uninstall it. After deleting the folders you don't want, delete the boot loading files left behind by Vista, boot from your Windows XP CD and run "fixmbr" and "fixboot". Uninstall complete.
 
I'm also curious about how you got ahold of Vista...cause I want a copy to test, and it appears to be too late to join the official Beta.
 
Zenwerks said:
I'm also curious about how you got ahold of Vista...cause I want a copy to test, and it appears to be too late to join the official Beta.
Click to expand...


Vista is readily available.....but not legaly.....And no, I dont have it and dont want it :)
 
WOW...........just give me a moment to suppress my laughter.......all setup files in one folder, clicking on setup.exe....that just reeks of bootleg to me, The fact that you admitted to using the method of trying to delete the windows folder for uninstalling purposes will get you a nomination for noob of year anywhere, well maybe except at tomshardware :rolleyes: . Maybe you could surprise us all and say on your next post that your processor does not use a heatsink and/or fan either.

I apologize for sounding like an ass, but I feel this thread should have been locked after you posted your install comment with pic.

But I find this humorous (besides the obvious) personally because it has the feel of when a 13yr old customer brought in his parents computer on a bike, scared crazy because he was surfing porn and managed to infect the computer with a nasty porn dialer pop up that hijacked their dial up connection and show up anytime something was trying to access the internet and his parents was going to be home in less than an hour.

edit........Do I even need to mention a thread created by you (LOCKED by BobSutan) last month asking about how hard is it to install windows vista beta coming from torrentspy?????????.
 
tazzmissionx said:
The fact that you admitted to using the method of trying to delete the windows folder for uninstalling purposes will get you a nomination for noob of year anywhere, well maybe except at tomshardware :rolleyes: .
Click to expand...

Glad to know I'm a noob and so are the KB article writers in Product Support Services at Microsoft. :eek:

I've been schooled. Here I was thinking that the standard uninstall procedure provided by Microsoft for the last 13 years for removing a dual boot installation of a Windows NT core OS was the way to go. Now I know better.

Thanks tazzmissionx.

Actually, there is now a better way to uninstall the dual boot in the later CTPs and Betas that doesn't need a Windows XP CD booted in recovery mode to fix the bootloader.

1. Open a Command Prompt.
2. Go to the C:\boot directory.
3. Type in fixntfs -xp -all and press [Enter].
5. Reboot and the Vista boot menu will be gone.
6. Delete the Vista "Windows" directory.
 
nessus said:
Glad to know I'm a noob and so are the KB article writers in Product Support Services at Microsoft. :eek:

I've been schooled. Here I was thinking that the standard uninstall procedure provided by Microsoft for the last 13 years for removing a dual boot installation of a Windows NT core OS was the way to go. Now I know better.

Thanks tazzmissionx.

Actually, there is now a better way to uninstall the dual boot in the later CTPs and Betas that doesn't need a Windows XP CD booted in recovery mode to fix the bootloader.

1. Open a Command Prompt.
2. Go to the C:\boot directory.
3. Type in fixntfs -xp -all and press [Enter].
5. Reboot and the Vista boot menu will be gone.
6. Delete the Vista "Windows" directory.
Click to expand...
So is that a 13 year old KB file? Can you link it up?
And if you do dual boot, that means its on a separate partition, which should be easily removed and rebuilt. No need for removing the windows directory.
 
ive installed vista, and server 2008 a bunch of times now since the original post. now i am working on windows 7. :) the best way to remove a windows folder that is locked is through linux. load any version of a live linux cd, and it will give you permission to delete just about any windows files or folders.
 
The best way to remove an operating system is the follow the proper procedures, and format the partition. If you are installing OSes on top of one another, where you can simply delete the Windows folder, you are only asking for trouble and instability down the road. Do it right the first time, and it sets the groundwork for a stable system later on. Whenever you want to switch to a new installed OS, you backup your data, wipe the drive clean, and start fresh.
 
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