It's no secret Windows is not my favorite OS. As a developer and student of the industry, Windows is needed. I say this because it is more beneficial to have it than not need it all, than not have it at all and need it on occasion. The occasion had arisen several times where I did need it. In my efforts to reestablish my Windows OS, I sought many different paths. This blog is about that journey. I hope you enjoy and learn from my folly.

So whenever you get wild hair to plunge into the unknown. Do not forget to make a backup. When I started my journey to Linux, I did not make a recovery drive. The joke is on me, I got stuck trying to follow all the tutorials to recover Windows. The computer I bought came with Windows 10 and I gave it Linux without first making a rescue drive. 18 months later I am actually near a computer I can access to create a recovery drive which I did not have prior. I made one and it worked like a charm. The first time I attempted it, I was 3 hours in and the screen went blank. I hit the space bar to bring the screen back and it canceled the operation. Do not hit the spacebar, wiggle the mouse. I had to start over. Three hours later, I completed my task.

The online tutorials tell you to download from the website. You can do it that way. It did not work for me all that well. I downloaded the ISO, installed Ventoy on the USB drive, and fooled around with BIOS options. I couldn't get it to work right. So I assume that you needed to have Windows already and wanted to upgrade. I had Linux and wanted Windows. The file system went from Fat32 to NFTS, and you had to know a bunch of info just to get that done. I am not going to lie, I don't know everything. I did want to find the easiest way to get it done so I could share it with others. Because some of you are like me and just want to explore. Well, you must have the right tools before you go cave diving. This is an option you have to add to your toolbox.

So now I have thumb drives for Windows 10 Recovery, Ubuntu 22.10, and Kali Linux. So no matter which way I want to go, I got it. So as I write this article Windows 10 is loading on my laptop. I am writing this from a Raspberry Pi. When I had success with the Windows installation, it was a happy day. On the downside it takes hours, I mean hours to get it loaded. It took almost 3 hours to make the recovery drive, another 2 hours to plug in and recover the laptop, and about 3 hours to install Windows 10 so I had a workstation. Not including the time I had to redo because I hit the spacebar. When I got to my workstation I wanted to reset all the info. It looks like I got a few more hours to go. But I got Windows 10.

So not everybody is going to take as long as I did. You may have a faster computer and be using USB 3.0 drives which may reduce the time of the installation or the recovery process. I didn't have that luxury, so I had to wait. Sometimes you have to wait. I read a book on Python while I waited. I know next time it is going to take a while. I have the right tools now so 10 hours beats 18 months. Before you go have fun, make recovery tools and have multiple OS on different USB drives just in case.

Windows isn't that bad once you have the right tools and know how to access them. So now armed with the knowledge, I can better understand operating systems and how to interchange them. I can run Kali Linux from the USB drive which is completely separate from the Windows 10 environment. The 2 may share RAM, but no big deal. I use each one when I need it. The best of both worlds. I have heard some scary things about Windows 11, and my laptop will not upgrade to 11. I am content with Windows 10. So my people learn from my folly and create your USB recovery tools first. I hope you have enjoyed this entry.