Exact Answer: 30 minutes or half an hour to even 3 hours (factory setting)
A pc is made to reset when it doesn’t work properly, or when the malware doesn’t go away with the use of an antivirus. Then the factory settings are done which is also known as the recovery or delivery status. But it results in the deletion of the data such as photos, documents, downloads, music, or any programs that were installed after the machine was purchased. One should back up all the data online or to an external hard drive.
Summary
For a laptop made by Apple, there will be a particular set of instructions. If there is a pc laptop then there are many types of pc laptops and they all vary from each other in case of the resetting process.
How Long Does It Take To Reset A PC?
If the pc laptop is of HP, Toshiba, Sony Vaio, or any other brand the factory reset can be easily made and the computer will be put back into its original form.
Laptop or PC | Factory resetting time |
HP | 30 minutes to two hours or more |
Toshiba | 15 minutes to over 2 hours |
Sony Vaio | Up to 2 hours |
Some other PC’s that can be taken into consideration are-
Laptop or PC | Factory resetting time |
Mac book Air | 15 minutes |
Mac book Pro | More than an hour (mid-level) |
iMac | From 1to5 hours, it can even go until 12 hours |
Windows 10 | 20 minutes |
Windows 7 | 30 minutes to 3 hours |
Windows 8 | 30 minutes to 3 hours |
Some essential resetting tips that can be applied are-
- A solid internet connection. Then we can easily download the necessary programs back onto our computer or else it will become difficult to do it.
- If there is trouble finding the files after factory resetting the laptop? Then it is better to try the installation manually rather than using the system or doing a complete factory reset. From this step, the missing files can be easily found and restored.
Why Does It Take That Long To Reset A PC?
The following points help us to know the amount of time that would be required to reset it-
1. Longevity of the pc- If the pc has been used for a few years or a couple of years then it would take the time according to that to reset. As the slow processing starts to happen when the laptop gets older.
2. The number of programs-The more the number of programs that have been installed on the laptop the more would be the difference in the amount of time taken.
3. Hard drives– The number of hard drives that have been installed. If a laptop has supposed 4 hard drives in it, it will take a longer time to reset. If there would have been just 1 or 2 then it would take less time. It depends on that. Similarly, if there is an SSD installed then the resetting will take much lesser time than a traditional HDD hard drive.
4. The RAM- The more is the RAM installed on the laptop the lesser is the time taken. For example, if the laptop or the pc is having 12GB of RAM, then it will take less time than that of the one having 6 GB of RAM installed.
5. OS (Operating System) – If the laptop has Windows XP, Windows 7, or Windows Vista then it will take a longer time to factory reset than those having a Macintosh OS.
Conclusion
If the computer is under heavy use and has been open for a few years, the time taken will be more than that of a laptop that has just been opened for a factory reset.
On buying a brand new laptop, during manufacturing, the hard drive will have already been factory reset and it only takes a few minutes to complete.
If the backup of data has already been performed, we can access everything. The restore becomes irreversible if it is performed in Safe Mode. It also cannot be undone if the restore is performed through System Restore options.
References
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/84898
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/1600653
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