Important: 

  • If you’ve encrypted your device, you’ll need your BitLocker key to reset your PC. If you don’t know your BitLocker key, see Find my BitLocker recovery key.

  • During the resetting process, it is possible that your screen may go black for a long period of time (occasionally upwards of 15 minutes) and that your device may attempt to restart itself during this period. Manually attempting to restart the device yourself during this process could cause the reset to fail. Please be patient!

Resetting reinstalls Windows 11, but lets you choose whether to keep your files or remove them, and then reinstalls Windows. You can reset your PC from Settings, the sign-in screen, or by using a recovery drive or installation media.

Reset your PC from Settings

  1. Select Start  > Settings  > System  > Recovery .
    Open Recovery settings

  2. Next to Reset this PC , select Reset PC. Then choose from the options and/or settings in the table below.

Option

What it does

Keep my files > Change settings > Preinstalled apps On

  • Reinstalls Windows 11 and keeps your personal files.

  • Removes apps you installed.

  • Removes changes you made to settings.

  • Restores any apps your PC manufacturer installed.

Keep my files > Change settings > Preinstalled apps Off

  • Reinstalls Windows 11 and keeps your personal files.

  • Removes apps you installed.

  • Removes changes you made to settings.

  • Removes any apps your PC manufacturer installed.

Remove everything

  • Reinstalls Windows 11 and removes your personal files.

  • Removes apps you installed.

  • Removes changes you made to settings.

  • Removes any apps your PC manufacturer installed.

Note: Remove everything > Change settings gives you two options.

Data erasure On removes files and cleans the drive. If you're planning to donate, recycle, or sell your PC, use this option. This might take an hour or two, but it makes it harder for other people to recover files you've removed.

Data erasure Off just removes files. It takes less time, but is less secure.

The data erasure functionality is targeted at consumers and does not meet government and industry data erasure standards.

Reset your PC from the sign-in screen

If you can't open Settings, you can reset your PC from the sign-in screen. Here’s how:

  1. Press Windows logo key  + L to get to the sign-in screen. Then restart your PC by pressing the Shift key while you select the Power button  > Restart .

  2. Your PC will restart in the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) environment.

  3. On the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC, and then choose one of the options in the previous table.

    Choose an option screen in the Windows Recovery Environment.