Way to reset all Windows option to default?

[Mr. Perfect]

Does anyone know of a way to reset all of Windows 7's option to their default values? No, I don't mean formatting or system restore. Just a non-destructive method that won't blow away applications and data.

We purchase our work PCs from a local shop, and they seem to think that it's a great idea to toy around with the settings before shipping their machines out. Just today I was wondering why Windows 7 wasn't doing it's usual awesome job at finding and installing drivers for a printer, when the Solution Center popped up with a message stating that the feature had been turned off. Epic.

Anyhow, if there's some way to reset all Windows 7 options to default, I could be sure that all the users have the same configuration rather then wonder why X person's machine can't install printers, or Y person's machine isn't using some other OMFG-this-useful-feature-wasn't-in-XP-kill-it-with-fire option.

 

[leSLIe]

an easy way would be to create a new user (admin), and then delete the current ones.
A new account has the default settings, so...

 

[Mr. Perfect]

That's the thing though, we don't use any of the accounts they create. We add the machines to our domain upon receipt, so it's nothing but new accounts from there on out. Some setting would seem to be machine wide, rather then user specific.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Tell the source that you're purchasing the computers from...to stop putting their customized "touches 'n crap" on the computers. You're purchasing the computers...and I'm assuming in some sort of bulk...so what you ask for, they should comply to. The power of the dollar!

 

[Forceman]

Does sysprep affect settings, or just the hardware layer?