How to reimage a clerk computer

We have a computer that is four years old and runs very slow. Talked to Global Services and they said to re-image the computer. What is the process to do so?

[Moderator note: This post was moved to its own thread since it was a change in topic from the original thread.]

There's an article "Reimaging local unit computers" in the Help Center. I'd start there.

I could use some assistance. I have an older windows 7 clerk computer that needs to be re-imaged. The "Reimaging Local Unit Computers" instructions (mentioned above) only gives direction for Windows 10. It mentions calling Local Unit Support for further assistance. I called and they said I needed to talk to our FM group. I talked to our FM group and they have no idea what LUS is talking about. How do I get an older image to fix this PC? Who is the correct contact?

jwfranks wrote:I have an older windows 7 clerk computer that needs to be re-imaged.

I think the Global Services Department was thinking that if your computer is five years old, the FM Group should be replacing it.

I do not believe you will find a Win 7 image. On the other hand, a while ago Win 7 computers were supposed to be left online so that they could be upgraded to Win 10. I guess that did not happen in your case.

If the computer needs reimaging, I would let the FM Group know that it is not working and ask then how to get it "repaired" or replaced. If you are not the Stake STS, I would call him and let him handle it. He may have some other options up his sleave, or he may just ask the FM Group to replace it before next year, if they will.

Two things come to mind!
1. FM should be thinking about replacing the computer, as it is presumably around 5 years old.
2. Use a W10 image and run the Small Provisioning Tool, to set it up for Clerk use. It would appear you’ve already found the instructions on how to re-image.

All Church-owned desktops ship from the manufacturer with a Microsoft operating system (OS) installed. The only supported OS version is Windows 10 Professional. All clerk computers should have been upgraded to Windows 10 following instructions during the upgrade period. Local Unit Support cannot support Windows 7 operating systems due to the upgrade to Windows 10. Windows 10 computers come licensed from the manufacturer. However, these licenses are stored digitally on the device; there may be no visual indication present. If you are not the stake technology specialist (STS) then you should speak with your STS about either a Windows 10 upgrade or a computer replacement. He is the one who works with the stake physical facilities representative (PFR) and the FM Group on getting upgrades.

I'd second what others have said. Try to find a manufacturing date on the device. If it's over 5 years old (it probably is), report that to FM as a "broken" computer. It may take longer, but you'll get a newer machine.

If you're really in a bind, you can download Windows 10 from Microsoft. While the time for free upgrades has past, from what I've heard, no one told Microsoft's servers. It seems to be a open secret that most can do a free upgrade to Win10.

russellhltn wrote:If you're really in a bind, you can download Windows 10 from Microsoft.

Or just use the Church Win 10 image. Well, it is not really an image. I just loads Windows 10.

lajackson wrote:Or just use the Church Win 10 image. Well, it is not really an image. I just loads Windows 10.

I thought they were machine specific and may not work on a different model. No?

russellhltn wrote:

lajackson wrote:Or just use the Church Win 10 image. Well, it is not really an image. I just loads Windows 10.

I thought they were machine specific and may not work on a different model. No?

What is available online from Headquarters will install Win 10 on any machine that is capable of running Windows. It has worked on every Win 7 machine I have upgraded. It is akin to an installer.

I think it might not work if the hard drive was too small, or if there was not enough memory, etc., but again, most machines running Win 7 upgrade just fine. I do not know if the Church version is any different than the Microsoft website version.

I took a look. Unless I'm missing something, the church is no longer doing images (at least for clerk computers). Their link takes you to the same place as mine.

Since it's no longer an image, it's no longer specific to a particular model.

russellhltn wrote:I took a look. Unless I'm missing something, the church is no longer doing images. Their link takes you to the same place as mine.

As I said, what the Church provides is not really an image. It is an installer. And perhaps it does take you to the MS site now. The last time I did it, it created a bootable flash drive that I then took and used to install Win 10 onto a clerk computer.

Thanks for all the updates. I am the STS but this PC was not upgraded to windows 10 during the upgrade period. I believe unless you go through the upgrade process from windows 7 it will not license the key for a fresh install. I can see if the upgrade will take. At this point it will either work or not and they will have to wait regardless. FM does have a new PC ordered that should ship by end of the month. I was trying to get them something up and running so they can process tithing in the mean time.

jwfranks wrote:I was trying to get them something up and running so they can process tithing in the mean time.

If necessary you can have them share a computer for this purpose with another ward. See the Help Center article Setting Up A Temporary MLS Computer.

jwfranks wrote:Thanks for all the updates. I am the STS but this PC was not upgraded to windows 10 during the upgrade period. I believe unless you go through the upgrade process from windows 7 it will not license the key for a fresh install. I can see if the upgrade will take. At this point it will either work or not and they will have to wait regardless. FM does have a new PC ordered that should ship by end of the month. I was trying to get them something up and running so they can process tithing in the mean time.

Although officially the free W10 upgrade finished awhile back, the upgrade should still work. Microsoft just doesn’t go on about it. You have nothing to lose by trying!

If a brand-name PC (Dell, HP, etc) has a Windows 7 Pro license, you can upgrade it to Windows 10 Pro.

drepouille wrote:If a brand-name PC (Dell, HP, etc) has a Windows 7 Pro license, you can upgrade it to Windows 10 Pro.

Usually, a PC from First-tier manufacturers will have the license burned into the motherboard where Window will see it and self-license. No need for a key.

russellhltn wrote:I'd second what others have said. Try to find a manufacturing date on the device. If it's over 5 years old (it probably is), report that to FM as a "broken" computer. It may take longer, but you'll get a newer machine.

If you're really in a bind, you can download Windows 10 from Microsoft. While the time for free upgrades has past, from what I've heard, no one told Microsoft's servers. It seems to be a open secret that most can do a free upgrade to Win10.

I can confirm that you CAN upgrade from Windows 7 to 10 for free still.
Even though the free upgrade period is over, it still works, and I do this almost daily as I have been upgrading old Windows 7 PCs to Windows 10 for 3 elementary schools I run IT for.
Download an image of Windows 10 and install to a USB or burn to a DVD. When installing Windows 10 onto your old computer, it will ask you for your Windows 10 product key. Enter your Windows 7 product key into this window and it will accept it.
OR
You can hit the "I don't have a product key" option to make the install move forward, and once you have Windows 10 up and running, you can enter the Windows 7 product key in the activation menu.
Works great!

I have encountered this problem on reimaging a clerk computer resulting in the Windows OS not activated.

Online search has led me to this site: https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/serv ... oduct-key/

I successfully retrieved the Windows Product Key from BIOS using PowerShell and entering the following command as instructed in the site:

(Get-WmiObject -query ‘select * from SoftwareLicensingService’).OA3xOriginalProductKey

After getting the 25 character product key, go to Windows activation, click on Change Product key and input the retrieved product key.

You will see a screen saying that Windows is Activated.
In the Activation Window you will also see the Windows Edition and Activation info.

Our stake clerk computer is is need of being reimaged and we cannot get the windows 10 key. The computer will not load windows. I can get to command prompt, but that’s about it. I was able to save documents to a thumb drive via xcopy. I was hoping there would have been a backup.

What is the best way to get a new key? Call GSD?

Under Windows 10, once the computer has been licensed it should license itself automatically when given a chance. Just install Windows. Make sure you have a working network connection and activate when prompted.

sareid wrote: Thu Aug 25, 2022 6:52 pm Our stake clerk computer is is need of being reimaged and we cannot get the windows 10 key. The computer will not load windows. I can get to command prompt, but that’s about it. I was able to save documents to a thumb drive via xcopy. I was hoping there would have been a backup.

If the computer has never had Windows 10 installed on it, you could use a Windows 7 or 8 license key to activate Windows 10. But let's take a step back. Even if you do not have a Windows license key, you should still be able to install Windows 10 ("I don't have a product key.") and get to a desktop screen. Windows 10 will not be activated until you enter a Windows 7/8/10 license key, or until the computer is able to reach out to Microsoft to check for a previous activation for this computer's footprint.

So you need to explain what you mean by "The computer will not load windows. I can get to command prompt, but that’s about it."

Top-tier computers (Dell, HP, Lenovo) will have a "key" burned into the ROM. Keep in mind wards and stakes should not be buying or accepting donations of clerk computers.

I've never had an issue with licensing a top-tier computer for Windows 10 at home/work/church, even old ones that shipped with Windows 7. I've never needed a key.

What will run into problems is if you're trying to license a higher version of Windows, such as Enterprise. That would take a license key since clerk computers only come with Professional.

Thank you. Yes, when I turn on the computer, it tries to go into recovery mode. I am sometimes able to launch windows, but the Windows desktop does not load and gives me the error that "c:\windows\system32\config\systemprofile\Desktop is unavailable. If the location is on this PC, make sure the device or drive is connected or the disc is inserted, and then try again. If the location is on a network, make sure you're connected to the network or Internet, and then try again. If the location still can't be found, it might have been moved or deleted.". After which I click ok, and see a blank desktop, and cannot click or action anything from here. Recovery mode doesn't seem to help or provide anything further.

My guess is, that I should be good to reimage the computer with a fresh copy of Windows10, which is what was installed on it previously.

sareid wrote: Sun Aug 28, 2022 8:12 am My guess is, that I should be good to reimage the computer with a fresh copy of Windows10, which is what was installed on it previously.

Yep. Microsoft should have your back with a cloud copy of your PC's license. Try to use the latest version of Windows 10 you can to avoid some of the long updates (some updating will be unavoidable) and if you're given a choice, select Windows Pro, although it may autodetect that. Best wishes.