To install Windows cleanly on your Rok Box (if you cannot recover from your Windows Recovery Image), please follow the below steps.
First:
If you've not logged-in in Windows using a Microsoft user account, please login using one with the PC as it is currently operating. Instructions are here:
This will link your system ID to the user account, which helps us with when we install Windows clean, because Windows requires that you log into a Microsoft user account when you do a clean Windows installation.
Next:
Please click the link below to get the Windows Media Creation tool for your Windows version.
Then, run this tool, and when prompted, choose the default options of the tool:
Now, we will install the installation media onto the USB thumb drive we plugged into the PC:
Windows will now create a bootable Windows installation USB:
With this USB stick created, reboot your PC and boot from the USB thumb drive as such:
Hold down the F11 and F12 keys on your keyboard if you have a Rok Box MC or CR series Rok Box.
Hold down F7 if you have a Rok Box MC Mobile laptop.
You will be prompted to choose which disk from which you'd like to boot. Depending on your motherboard hardware, this screen will differ, but will look similar to this:
Select the USB drive inserted into your Rok Box as your boot option. It will generally be listed as UEFI USB DEVICE or similar.
The Windows installer will load from the USB thumb drive.
You should then be prompted to install Windows to the OS drive in your system.
You may choose the option, "I don't have a product key", when prompted. This is because your Windows installation key was registered to Microsoft's registration service when your PC was built and is linked to your motherboard hardware ID. Windows will be automatically reactivated upon booting and connecting to the Internet.
Next, choose "Custom" as your installation type:
You'll be presented with an option to choose the drive onto which you will install Windows -- this will typically be the drive listed as "Drive 0":
You may see other drives listed -- their names will show next to them (Audio, Samples, etc.).
DO NOT choose to install Windows onto one of these drives. This will result in loss of your data on your drives.
NOTE: If Drive 0 is listed as having multiple partitions, such as below:
You may click each of the Drive 0 partitions, and then click DELETE to delete the partition data.
Once this is done, you should be presented with only one Drive 0 partition:
Click to select this partition as the target installation location for Windows.
Hit "Next". Windows will begin the installation process.
This will completely reinstall Windows, and so any files on your primary drive will be lost.
Windows will finish the process, and then reboot itself:
When that is done, let the PC reboot and it will start the Windows onboarding process, which will walk you through setting up a few things, and it will ask you to connect to the Internet, and then login to your Microsoft user account.
You will need to sign into a Microsoft user account upon the startup of Windows 11 after the initial install. You may create a user account here:
https://www.microsoft.com
Once you sign in, go through the rest of the Windows onboarding process (you may ignore/decline any of the special offers from Microsoft).
Login to the Microsoft user account, and if prompted to set up the PC using the settings that came from your previous Windows configuration, you have two options:
1. If you had previously logged-into your Windows OS on your Rok Box using a Microsoft user account, your PC's settings would be linked to the Microsoft user account. In this case, you can choose the option to restore settings from your PC that are stored in your Microsoft user account.
2. If you did not previously login with a Microsoft user account on your Windows OS, and were opting to use the local user account (called PCAudioLabs) that was on the PC when it arrived, you will will want to choose the option, "Set up as new PC". You'll see an option, "Select a device to restore from", where you may choose to restore from your previous Windows settings. This will recall system configurations, themes, and apps that were installed using the Windows Store. It will not, however, reinstall apps such as DAWs, plugins, etc.
Once you make this decision:
Let the installer finish, opting-out of all the additional Microsoft services (365, Xbox, etc.).
The PC should boot into Windows, which will be a completely clean Windows installation.
Windows will need to download and install a number of drivers, which may be done using Windows Update.
Run Windows update, and download/install all drivers.
In Windows update, click Optional Updates, and opt to install all optional updates.
If you wish, you may contact PCAudioLabs Support for help with tweaking your Windows installation.
You may also refer to this article:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/reinstall-windows-d8369486-3e33-7d9c-dccc-859e2b022fc7
For more information on how to reset your PC.
