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I have no any CD for this laptop but I have HP recovery partition there and I need to install Vista back on main partition. I do not see any option to boot from recovery partition Could anyone please let me know how to do it?

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2 Answers

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When the HP splash screen appears immediately after you turn on the laptop, press "Esc" to change the boot order. I think there is an option listed in there to boot from the recovery partition.

I have a DV9000, but I think I removed the recovery partition so I'm going by memory.

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That's the main problem - I do not see any option to boot from that partition – dv9000 Sep 20 '09 at 14:24
Using Google, some people say you can press F11 to boot to the recovery partition. Others say you are out of luck if you didn't burn the recovery disks yourself. – Chrisbux Sep 20 '09 at 14:37
Sorry, F11 does not help. – dv9000 Sep 29 '09 at 21:10
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You can get a restore cd from here:
Windows Vista Recovery Disc Download

EDIT
Alternatively, you can create a recovery cd from your machine by using the method found here : "RECDISC.EXE how to create a recovery/repair cd". This method required a Vista cd, which you might not have. In the past Vista was available from Microsoft for trial download, and is still available from here.

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I just found out that the direct download link above was replaced by a torrent. I hope that's not a problem. – harrymc Sep 20 '09 at 14:33
Thanks. But I cannot use torrent, otherwise I will have huge roblems. Is there any http link? – dv9000 Sep 20 '09 at 22:12
There are 3 alternative download locations in this link : brothersoft.com/windows-vista-data-recovery-download-63460.html – harrymc Sep 21 '09 at 6:10
Thank you. But these links point to some ntfs-fat-data-recovery utility. I wonder how it could help to reinstal vista rather than recover a deleted file. – dv9000 Sep 27 '09 at 21:27
You're right, and the above cd can do lots of things, but not reinstall. If you lack an HP installation cd, you can use a generic vista cd, but it will lack the HP drivers. In the past when having a similar problem with a dell, I've simply gone into the recovery partition and have initiated the reimaging myself. Could you please add the contents of the recovery partition in your post? – harrymc Sep 28 '09 at 6:16
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