Im about to order and replace a new HD for my Dell Laptop. What to do after that?

[Huntfishcamp]

Hi and thank you for taking the time to read and maybe help me solve my issue. Im kind of a novice here.

I have a ( i think about 2 years old) Dell laptop and the HD crashed. With my limited expertise level i can successfully order and replace the HD.

So now what? Im kind of stumped as to what to do next as far as obtaining the operating system without paying an arm and a leg and successfully getting it up and running. I mean, do i have to go and buy a copy now? Thats my biggest fear i guess here. When i originally bought the laptop online, i dont believe i was given a Windows disk or anything like that; in fact, the unit doesn't even have a CD ROM. I know i can probably download whichever operating system i need on another medium such as a usb etc and then transfer it to the new HD, but again...what is my best avenue to getting the OS without paying a bunch of money?


Thanks

 

[AUnlikelyPotatoe]

Pretty sure you can get a unlicensed windows 10 version online, boot off a USB drive, them get a key later. Or you could go with Linux, I'd look into that.

 

[william p]

There should be a label on the laptop with COA (Certificate of Authenticity) with an activation code unique to that computer. I t will say what OS and version it's for. You should be able to get a downloaded copy from Dell to put on a bootable USB drive. Set your BIOS to boot from USB first. Install the OS from there, it will ask for the activation code which makes it legal. Then have Dell Support scan your computer for drivers and updates. There will be a lot of them. BIOS updates are easy on Dells also. Don't load drivers for things you computer doesn't have like maybe a camera, or WAN card. Many Dells didn't come with OS discs, there was a backup utility partition hidden on the HDD.