Acer Aspire 5742--How do I install Win 7 on new HD? I have recovery discs, which do I use?

I have an Acer Aspire 5742 series laptop that the hard drive went bad. I'm in the process of purchasing another hard drive to intall, but understand that I will need to reinstall the Windows 7 operating system to get the computer up and running again. When I first got the computer new, I made 4 recovery discs (1-4), along with a disc called "AppDr1", a disc called W.7 64-bit, and finally a disc called Acer back-up. Does anyone know which disc I will need to load the operating system onto the new hard drive or will I need all of these? If so, in what order should they be loaded? The new HD will not have any e-recovery files, so not sure how this will work. Thanks for any help!!

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finlux

Hi bowtiefan

Firstly, make sure that the DVD drive is set to boot first - you can change the settings in BIOS or use the F12 boot menu. Install Disk 1 first - it will tell you when to insert the next disk. Once all four recovery disks have been inserted, WIndows will go through the installation progress - just follow all on screen instructions.

You may not need the AppDrv1 disk - this is just a backup of all drivers & applications that shipped with the computer. The disk marked Acer Backup may be just a back up of documents & files, and is not part of the recovery process.

bowtiefan

Thanks for the reply. What about the Win 7 64-bit disk--Will this disk be part of the recovery process as well? Is this disk the system disk? Thanks!

finlux

The Win 7 64 bit disk, just sounds like an ISO image of WIndows 7 - Did you make this disk yourself or did you get this disk from Acer?

If it is one you made, or even if it is a "proper" disk, but NOT from Acer, you will not need it. The 4 recovery disks are usually sufficient.

bowtiefan

Thanks for all your help! I got my new hard-drive today and was able to use the 4 recovery disks that I originally made at the time I got the computer new. All the disks reloaded perfectly and Windows 7 is operating properly on the new HD. Only wish my original hard drive didn't break as I cannot retrieve any old files from it. It's dead with no movement or sound when I connect it to another computer via a SATA 2.5 case. Oh well, at least I can still use the computer now! Thanks again for the very helpful assistance!

finlux

You're welcome, and I'm glad you're now fixed.

If the data on your old hard drive was important/precious to you, there are some companies out there who may be able to retrieve data from a dead hard drive - but they can be expensive!

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