X200: Reformatting Without CD Drive

[Barriecuda]

I have an X200 laptop that does not have the CD drive. The harddrive is partioned into three; SW_Preload, where most of my files are kept, and also has a "Lenovo" partition and a "Service" partition.

I am considering reformatting my computer to its Day 1 state. I would like to do this to increase its speed, and basically start fresh. But I am unfamiliar with this process. Most of what I've found about it talks about using a CD drive, which leaves me confused.

I would be grateful for any suggestions about if I should reformat, and also how to do it on this particular computer.

[buddinggeek]

Press the think vantage button when your system starts and choose the factory restore option.This will make your X200 good as new

[Barriecuda]

Thanks, I will give this a try.

My other concern is that I belive my current Hard Drive is failing. It's making a lot of noise, and reminds me of the lats time an HD failed on me. My concern is that with all this pre-loaded data, and no CD drive, am I able to replace the harddrive somehow?

Does Lenovo have any solution for such a dilemma?

[lead_org Microsoft MVP Contributor]

do you have warranty still? if you have warranty, they can send you a new hdd out, but you would still need a cd-drive to get the os/recovery partition onto the new hdd.