Does anyone have a lenovo G555 laptop

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 04:25

It is a bit of a long shot but I am trying to find someone who has a lenovo G555 laptop, preferably a UK one.

I am trying to help someone with one of these machines. They come with a very nice 'onekey' recovery system, that will restore the machine to its factory default install, using an image on a hidden drive partition. Unfortunately a previous 'computer expert' decided the best way to reset the machine was to install an non genuine evaluation copy of windows 7 and in the process they have also destroyed the hidden partition where the proper recovery image is stored. A full set of recovery DVD could be made with a non damaged G555 machine and I could then use those to restore this one. However that is only possible if I can find someone with such a machine and use it to create the necessary recovery DVDs.

If you have this specific laptop and would be willing to let me use it to make recovery DVD please email me at erolz@cream.org. thanks

aussiejock



Joined: 06/10/2010
Posts: 350

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 17:25

erolz I thought you could only make 1 copy of the recovery DVDs, that's all I can make with my HP laptop, or you could send a request to Lenovo for the Recovery DVDs, at a cost, my son only had his Laptop for a month and the hard drive broke down he took it back to Toshiba but they wouldn't honor the warranty because he didn't make the recovery DVDs He had to pay $100 for the DVDs, I formatted my hard drive and put in Windows 7 ultimate I still have my recovery disks, but I wouldn't use them the whole laptop was bloated with HP content, I couldn't wipe it fast enough, Windows 7 found all my drivers and after I installed all my software I made a full backup with acronis true image,





Robert

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 17:32

Aussie I do not think lenovo has a similar limit, but even if it is the case that you can only make one set of recovery disks, one is all that is needed. I do not need to keep the disks once they are made and will happily leave them with the helping owner. I have not checked with Lenovo direct yet but my understanding is that their policy in such cases is not to ship disk, even for payment, but require the machine to be returned to them in the country of origin and they will re image the hard drive, at a cost. I am hoping for a better solution than this.

I have nothing against people choosing to use a non genuine version of windows should they wish too. However the laptop in question came with a fully paid for legitimate version of windows and if that can be properly replaced at reasonable cost I would say fo most users that is a better solution than using a non genuine version, especially given that this particular non genuine version is a beta release and does not allow for [cont]

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 17:36

updates and comes complete with annoying nagging screens on boot up and little message in bottom right of the desktop. It may not be posible to get the proper original licsensed install back on the machine but I would like to give it a go if it can be done via recovery disk created on an equivalent machine, which is what I am hopping to try.

I also use on my own machine Acronis true image. I actualy periodicaly just clone my system drive to an equivalent spare drive already in machine and should the main system drive fail I can simply change in my machines bios what drive it boots from to the cloned one and I am running agin in 1 mintue after a failure with my machine exactly as it was when I last did the backup. I also keep some offline historic backup images as well for a belt and braces approach.

aussiejock



Joined: 06/10/2010
Posts: 350

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 17:51

don't you have to press the esc key then the F11 key to go into system recovery, that's what I have to do if I wanted to make the recovery disks on the HP laptop, and I said nothing about a non genuine version of Windows 7, so when you boot up see if you can press the esc key to get into the startup menu.





Robert

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 17:58

Aussie, the lenovo has an actualy physical key that you can press instead of the normal power up button to start the machine. In a non damage machine pressing this will force the machine to boot up the image recovery software without the need for windows at all. However both the non widows software that this button uses and the image itself it would recover from have been wiped by the fresh install off a non genuine version of windows. Other than this the only options on the lenovo at bios startup are f2 to enter bios and f12 to select boot device. In addition to this 'one key' recovery there is also a windows program lenovo supply that alows you to make images of the current system and recovery disks either of the current system or of the factory default. However on the damaged machine there is no factory default image, the hidden partition where it should be was wiped by the new install and making a recovery disks that just return it to how it is now is not what I am trying to do.

aussiejock



Joined: 06/10/2010
Posts: 350

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:21

well it looks like your flogging a dead horse, just reinstall Windows 7 and it will solve your problem, whether anyone would give you their recovery disks I don't know, the activation key would be on two machines and likely one would shut down with the not genuine Windows, unless you have a genuine key for Windows 7.





Robert

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:27

aussie the laptop, like all laptops from legitimate sources has the windows key on a sticker on the back of the machine. changing the activation key in wiondows 7 is trivial. yes I could just resintall windows 7, but it would have to be either from a new paid for legitimate copy or from a non genuine version. Why pay for a new copy of windows when you have already paid for one when the machine was bought ? Why have a non genuine version when you have paid for it already ? I may yet have to go down this route if I can not get recovery disks made on an equivalent machine to work, which I will not know until I try it, but if I can find the disks it is certainly worth the effort in my opinion to avoid having to use a non genuine version of windows, buy a new genuine version or return the machine to lenovo in the UK and pay for them to reimage it.

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:30

And just to be clear I am not asking anyone to give me their recovery disks. I am asking to borrow them. I will not use their widows product key, the affected machine already has its own unique paid for key on a sticker on the base of the machine. If they have not already made such disks I will help make them, pay fo the blank disks and return them back to the helpers.

aussiejock



Joined: 06/10/2010
Posts: 350

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:47

I still do not know if you can use the key that's on the back of the machine, it may not accept it because it comes from a different disk, I have tried this before with XP legit disk but wouldn't accept the key from the back of machine, that means you would have to change the key once you were in Windows, but you have to change the key over the internet it may come back that the key will not be accepted, as its not the original disk, I'm not 100 % sure on this, anyway it was good talking to you enjoyed it.





Robert

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:53

aussiejock this is why I need recovery disk from an equivalent machine and not just any copy of windows. The licsense that comes with a laptop is not the same as a retail licsense for windows but is know as a OEM licsense (original equipment manufacturer). If I were to install windows 7 from a retail instal disk and then just enter the serial key on the laptop it will not work, because the key is for an OEM version and the install disk is from a retail version. What is more even if I can find an OEM install disk for windows 7, which are rare as most laptops makers do not provide such anymore but instead provide images that are specific to a given machines hardware there will still be issue because there is an OEM code that applies to the specifc maker. It is possible to bodge say a dell OEM version of windows onto an HP laptop, but this will invalidate the warranty of the machine and may cause problems down the line.

[cont]

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 18:57

An image of the factory state from another g555 with the same version of windows and from the same countty will have the right OEM code and should work with the licsense key stuck to the bottom of the laptop and will not cause any problems with the hardware being different. Which is why I am looking for someone with the same make and model of a machine from the UK. Actualy someone with such a machine who is happy for me to make and borrow the recovery disks has contacted me, so I will post later on in the week and let you know how it goes.

aussiejock



Joined: 06/10/2010
Posts: 350

Message Posted:
30/12/2011 19:00

thanks let me know how you get on.





Robert

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
04/01/2012 02:18

aussiejock, I said I would let you know how I got on, so here goes. As ever with computers it didnt go quite as smoothly as I hoped. Basically the lent machine refused to actualy make the needed recovery disks. I am still not 100% sure why, I suspect it is that something has been added or removed from the machine that is casuing problems with the make recovery disk option. I did not want to mess about with the lent machine, so I took another approach, which was to use Acronis to clone just the hidden partition that conatins the factory restore image that is used to make the recovery disks. I then used this image to restore the hidden partition on the machine with the dodgy windows version on it and then uised that machine to make the factory restore DVDs. I then used these on that same machine to restore it to factory default settings.

On the issue of the key used to activate the windows install from the factory restore disks again tnis was ot quite a simple as I had hoped. [cont]

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
04/01/2012 02:25

I had hoped to just use the 'change key' option in windows 7 found on the 'my computer / properties' page. However on these OEM pre activated installs there is no such option. However a bit of poking around and reading up I discovered that the big manufacturers (OEMs) like Lenovo, HP , Dell and the like use a special kind of OEM licsense. Basically machines from these manufacturers come with 2 keys, the factory preinstalled key, that is the same for all machines from a given manufacturer and given model and then the COA key that is stuck by sticker on the machine. The auto activating generic (to that make and model) factory install key will only work with the specific hardware for that make and machine, via a bios code, if it is installed on any other type of machine it fails ot auto activate and falls back to a needing activation state. The COA key on the stocker that is unique is only a 'backup' should something go wrong with the auto activating key. [cont]

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
04/01/2012 02:32

So in summary the machine that had a dodgy non genuine version of windows on it and had the 'hidden' partition on it that could both reinstal the orginal genuine windows via the 'one key recovery button' and make recovery DVDs destroyed, now has the proper genuine activted version of windows on it and the hidden partition restored so the one key recovery button works and the make recovery disk function works. It does have the same OEM key as the the 'lent' machine but my understanding is it SHOULD have the same key. It is only if the auto activation fails that you need to use the key on the bottom of the machine to activate it (via a call to MS). Both machines are working, showing as genuine windows and activated and both runing windows update fine.



So not as easy as I had hoped, but all in all the 'damaged' machine is in a much better state, running nicely and with no detrimental side effects on the lent machine.