Microsoft → Reimaging laptop

I got a new laptop (Lenovo) for work that needs re-imaging. I can boot PXE while connected to the company network, a bunch of stuff are loaded, I hit "start", laptop restarts, and then it boots to the OS that already on it with with a user name that I have no password for.

What do I need to do to make sure that re-imaging will start as it supposed to?

Initially, I thought about removing the SSD and wiping it, but it's a NVME SSD, and I have no adapter for that.

Looking at the security settings in the BIOS setup, I see an entry: "Reset to Setup Mode" and I wonder if that's the one that needs to be changed.

Note: the specific support team that imaged my previous laptop won't do it.

You could boot with a windows install disk, hit shift-F10 and use diskpart to nuke the partitions using these commands.

> list disk (to get the number)
> select disk # (use number found above)
> clean

If there's nothing on the laptop that needs to be saved, I would first download the drivers needed from Lenovo, or at least the WiFi driver so you can connect to the net after installation in order to download/update the others. If there is anything that needs to be saved and you can do so, do so. I'd then create USB installation media using the Media Creation Tool for your version of Windows, which you can download from Microsoft. Then boot to that installation USB drive and choose a Custom installation. When you get to the screen with the partitions, delete every one of them, then click Next to allow the installation program to create the needed partitions and install Windows.

When you get to the screen where it asks for your Product Key, click "I don't have a Product Key", or whatever it says.

When you first connect to the net the new Windows installation will activate due to Microsoft already having it logged on their servers from the current installation.

That's how I reinstall Windows on my machines, anyway.

Yes, I can presumably do that -- I just need to put Win10 on a USB stick, though I probably want to make a ghost image of the drive first, in case something goes wrong.

The corporate image must be installed over Ethernet, and I presume it should not need any additional driver. I cannot create a bootable media.

You could use the free version of macrium for the imaging too. I've got a usb drive setup with Ventoy, which lets you just drop ISO files on the drive and boot from any of them. Works fantastic.

Right, UEFI should provide an ethernet driver to do this. Change your boot order so that it does not boot the OS first.

I've tried resetting the above setting and toggling secure boot on and off several times to no avail.

So the only thing left now is nuking the SSD. The laptop currently has Win 11 while the image I'm trying to deploy is only Win 10, and that could be why the setup program fails.

Things I've tried:
1. Calling IT -- someone with a barely understandable indian accent wanted screen share (with a computer I can't currently log into!) and after telling that, he suggested to obtain the password, or have an account created for me.
2. Booting Win 10 with a USB flash drive so I can use its tools -- no go
3. Booting GParted via a USB CD -- biooted, SSD wiped!!

Just for the heck I tried to boot the laptop now -- no error message, nothing, just a blank screen.....

If this is for work, why are end-users responsible for imaging a device?

Good question, but I don't know the answer for sure.

I presume they think that the imaging process is so bulletproof and powerful that end users should not have any issue with it....

In any case, this time my laptop is not booting anything anymore -- it completes the first step of the imaging process, but after the mandatory reboot it goes to the boot menu, and the only entry that works is "PXE BOOT".... back to square 1, guess.

I'll probably be calling IT/tech support soon, and hopefully they won't ask me for a screen share this time.

I have never heard of end users doing their own imaging. Even in companies where everyone is a nerd, they do not do that.

It might be a pandemic special (until fairly recently, most people were working from home), but I can safely say that there is at least one company where users who have been there are expected to be able to do their own reimaging if needed.

They can still call helpdesk if they can't do it, but as per my experience, they strongly prefer help over phone/remote access.