Troubleshooting and Maintenance 
  Reinstalling and Updating Software 
    Reference Guide  121 
 
Reinstalling and Updating Software 
You can use the Recovery CDs to recover the original factory software for your 
notebook. 
The Recovery CDs also provide Windows drivers specific to your notebook to configure 
a custom system. You can find drivers in these locations: 
?? On your notebook’s hard drive under C:\hp\Drivers. 
?? On the Recovery CD under \hp\Drivers. 
?? On the HP Business Support web site (www.hp.com/go/bizsupport). This web site 
contains the latest updates of software drivers for different operating systems.  
To recover the factory installation of your hard disk 
You can use the Recovery CDs to reinstall the original factory software on your 
notebook’s hard disk. You can also use the same process to create a larger Utility 
partition on your hard disk, or to create a Utility partition on a new hard disk. The hidden 
Utility partition contains the e-Diagtools diagnostic tests and stores hibernation data for 
operating systems that don’t provide hibernation. 
CAUTION 
This procedure formats the notebook’s hard disk drive and erases all data on the 
disk. After the hard disk is formatted, you’ll need to reinstall your applications.  
 
Do not interrupt the following process or unplug the AC adapter until the process 
is complete. 
1.  Important: back up all data from your hard disk. The following steps delete all data 
from the disk. 
2.  Connect the AC adapter to the notebook. 
3.  Insert the Recovery CD (disk 1) into the notebook’s CD/DVD drive. If the notebook 
is turned off, use a pin or straightened paper clip to press the release switch on the 
drive door to open it. 
4.  Turn on or restart the notebook. If the notebook is running, click Start, Turn Off 
Computer, Restart. 
5.  When the HP logo appears, press Esc to display the Boot menu. 
6.  Use the arrow keys to select the CD-ROM/DVD drive as the boot device, and press 
Enter.