Windows 7 reinstall

Associate
Joined
8 Mar 2010
Posts
13
Hi

The HDD in my nephew's laptop has died, it's a Dell Inspiron 15R.
I should be able to swap the HDD (although it looks a bit fiddly). The dead drive is a Western Digital 320GB and I'm thinking of replacing it with a 256GB SSD.

My only issue is the OS. He's got Win 7 Home Premium but no installation disk. I can get an .iso file of the OS but will the Dell OEM licence key work OK? I've heard you need a Dell version of the reinstallation disk.
 
Yes it will work, no problem. I would suggest you go to the Dell site and download the network, lan, wireless, bluetooth and chipset drivers before you do the install though. Also, don't activate the install until you are fully up and running.
 
Quick update, thanks for your help chaps, it all worked OK.

Taking the Dell laptop apart was a bit fiddly, especially as the UK version differs slightly from the US version in the youtube video, it uses double sided tape instead of a screw to hold the keyboard down.

Fitted this SSD https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-055-CR

Nephew now has a refurbished laptop to break again!
 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom