Just recently I seem to have spent some time with old laptops reseting them to factory defaults, changing their login to entirely local and deleteing all my files from them all in one fell swoop. It’s all in:
Settings > Update and security > Recovery > Reset this PC
One is then offered the option of removing all the apps (programs) and keeping all the personal files or removing everything. Either way a completely fresh version of Windows is installed.
Previously I just removed everything but a few days ago I decided it was time to reset my desktop and refresh Windows 10 but to keep all my files. One thing Windows does during this process is make a list of all the apps it removes which is very handy for setting it all up again. The only problem is that this list includes a lot of obscure operating system stuff like microsoft net but it is quite easy to make a list of programs that one does need to download.
Interestingly Microsoft office was completely reinstalled but a 2000 version of Publisher was not even though it was one of the few icons left behind.
Anyway it all went well and I reinstalled all the programs I needed some of which are getting very long in the tooth. Anyway this is my list of free, mostly open source, programs I can’t do without (thank you Microsoft):
There are a couple of old programs on disk (like Publisher) which aren’t included here.
BTW it is a pretty painless process so if your computer seems a but slow or not performing as it should then this might be the way to go.
It also should be said that the “deleting all the files” option doesn’t make them unrecoverable so it might be worth running a program like Eraser over the unused portion of the HDD if you intend to give away or donate the computer.
