Sony Vaio System & Hard Drive Total Failure

[MissLaraCroft]

Firstly, Hi Everyone and I'm new to this having just started a new Custom PC Build & Repair Service and I have a relatively good sound knowledge of computing but this particular issue I have with trying to fix a friends pc is starting to make my hair fall out !!!!

Ok, to begin... The make & model is a Sony VAIO PCG-282M which coincidentally is not listed on sony uk support site, the other code I have is on the quick start reference guide which shows VGC-LM1* which shows up on sony uk support as one of a potential 4 / 5 variants, the * being replaced with a letter...

Sorry, I'm babbling........

PC OS is Win Vista Home Premiun OEMAct with Product Key Label on reverse side ( I hate Vista !!!! - XP was far more stable!! ) and was infected with an encryption virus that encrypted all outgoing emails and data therefore being unreadable by recipient pc's.

Used avast pro which cleared and removed certain files and then the pc became slow and in some cases totally unresponsive.

Created recovery discs which took 3 attempts and crashed between disc 1 and 2 stages but finally managed it.

Tried all recovery options including total system recovery but gets to 26% and then creates 3 error messages and shuts down.

Finally used the wipe and erase feature and now have "no operating system found" on boot up.

1st Attempt :
Removed original HDD and used my Master PC to look at the HDD using "MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Edition".....All data is missing and is showing one single NTFS partion with no label name. Re-installed original HDD and booted using recovery disc 1 and it boots but there is no OS found and asks to load drivers but I don't know which drivers it refers to when I browse the RD1, so I'm now stuck.

When I entered the BIOS settings I notice that there are 2 HDD listed, No name or model serial number, simply...

HDD 0 : 320GB
HDD 1 : 0GB

Funny ????? My partion software sees it as a 290 GB HDD ??????????????

Attempt 2 :
Naively I admit, but I then thought, OK I will reboot using a Windows XP Install disc that I have and it progresses thru loading drivers and then asks for option to install or repair, I chose install and then it says that I have no hard drive on the system ?????????
BIOS says it's there as HDD 0 so ***** !!!!!!

If anyone is still awake at this point and can make any sense of everything I have detailed above, u can pass Go and collect £200 and help yourself to a get out of jail free card cos I'm baffled !!

Thanks in advance

LC

[MissLaraCroft]

Hi, yes I had.....

Now I have a feeling I know what I've done wrong, I used the "wipe and erase" feature thinking I could do that to start from scratch, and according to this thread :

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/252625-44-reinstall-windows-vista-recovery-disk-wiping-erasing-h...

and as TenPc says, I've destroyed everything on the HDD, even the hidden partition, so my only option is a fresh install, in which case I have the 2 last options as detailed by Blencogo earlier in this thread post.

I just need to weigh up my options of what OS I want (because I have to admit I hate Vista - I personally thought it was a step backwards from XP), cost against time & labour alongside hassle. It's tempting to pay the £50 to Sony for the discs with OS, drivers and utilities included for easy life, but don't really want Vista and certainly don't want all the associated "Freeware" software that comes pre-installed and I'm not convinced that simply using the program uninstall from the control panel, truly does remove all the program files of the software you don't need or even want.

I have never been a fan of buying a "label" prebuilt system over the shop counter and think custom build is a far better option, at least you get exactly what you want and if you have problems, you're not held to ransom by the "label" manufacturer.

I guess I'm hoping to gague peoples opinions on here before I commit to one option or the other in order to get this sorted for my friend who is showing immense patience lol

Lara

[sgdavies]

Do a clean installation of windows 7.

[Blencogo · Accepted solution]

Hi again Lara - just keeping an eye on how you are getting on!

You will have to make a decision by balancing the pros and cons of each method. I don't think we can do that for you.

The cheapest route is to borrow a Vista HP installation disc and do a 'clean install'.  Although it is not guaranteed, it is likely that Microsoft will activate Vista HP for free over the phone if you explain the circumstances. You can then install the 'Preinstalled Drivers and Utilities' from the Support website for your Vaio.  This is likely to be a Zero Cost option.  The only cost may come from replacing any preinstalled software that your friend relies on such as WinDVD BD for Blu-Ray playback etc..

The simplest route is to buy a replacement Recovery Disc set from Sony Support.  The advantage of this is that everything is automatically installed including OS, Drivers and original software.  All you will need to do is update the system using Vaio and Microsoft Updates.  The cost will be about £50 (this was the cost the last time I heard).

The best route is to clean install Windows 7 (as sgdavies suggests above) but this will be both the most expensive and the most time consuming.  You will need to buy a License Key for Windows 7 which will cost about £80 for OEM or £120 for the full version.  When providing Windows 7 drivers for your model, Sony assumes that you will already have Vista installed and that you will be installing Windows 7 as an UPGRADE in place.  This uses the already installed Vista drivers and only provides upgrades for W7 so you will need to install Vista drivers where W7 drivers do not exist or just upgrades to existing drivers are provided.  I notice Sony do not provide a W7 nVidia graphics driver, which may be a problem.  You may have to search for some missing W7 drivers as well as any replacement software.

As I said, all these choices have ups and downs so you will have to take these into account when making the final choice.

Good Luck!!