Computers, Laptops & Tablets > Microsoft 105 105 people found this article helpful How to Factory Reset a Lenovo Laptop Resolve performance issues with a clean slate By Yoona Wagener Yoona Wagener Writer, Commerce Editor Bowling Green State University Yoona Wagener is a tech editor and writer. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on June 15, 2022 Reviewed by Ryan Perian Reviewed by Ryan Perian Western Governors University Ryan Perian is a certified IT specialist who holds numerous IT certifications and has 12+ years' experience working in the IT industry support and management positions. lifewire's editorial guidelines Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email What to Know In Windows 11, go to Start > Settings > Recovery > Reset PC.In Windows 10, go to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Reset this PC > Get Started. Choose between resetting while saving your files or deleting everything and reinstalling Windows. This article explains how to factory reset a Lenovo laptop running Windows 11 or 10. Lenovo offers two options for factory resetting your device: You can keep your files or remove them. How to Reboot a Lenovo Laptop How to Reset Your Lenovo Laptop While Saving Files You may opt to delete just your files or wipe all files and clean the hard drive to start from scratch. Whichever route you choose, resetting also includes a fresh installation of Windows on your Lenovo laptop. If you have a Lenovo IdeaPad or ThinkPad laptop, you may have the option of using the NOVO button to enter the Lenovo OneKey Recovery mode to factory reset your device. Instead of a button, your laptop may have a recovery button pinhole that you activate with a paper clip. To preserve your documents and files when you reset in Windows 11, follow these steps. Go to the Windows Start Menu and select Settings. Select Recovery. Select Reset PC. Choose Keep my files. Pick how you want to reinstall Windows. Choose Cloud Download or Local Reinstall. Select Next to begin the reset. Windows 10 For Windows 10, the process is similar but slightly different. From the Start menu, go to Settings > Update & Security. Choose Recovery and under Reset this PC, select Get Started. Choose Keep my files to save your documents. You’ll see a message saying This won’t take long as the system readies your machine for a reset. Next, you’ll be prompted to review the changes, including removing all apps you’ve added, resetting the machine to system defaults, and reinstalling Windows. Click Reset to confirm and start the process. Factory resetting your Lenovo laptop may take a long time. To ensure it goes smoothly, keep your laptop is plugged into a power source. Even if you choose the reset option that preserves your files, it’s best to first back up your files manually just in case something goes wrong. If you don’t have a file backup system, consider using a cloud-based storage service or an external hard drive. How to Perform a Hard Reset and Remove Files If you’ll be donating your laptop or you want to fix nagging issues with a clean slate, try a hard reset to wipe the machine of everything and sets it to zero. Here's how in Windows 11: Go to the Windows Start Menu and select Settings. Select Recovery. Select Reset PC. Choose Remove everything. Pick how you want to reinstall Windows. Choose Cloud Download or Local Reinstall. Select Next to begin the reset. Windows 10 Follow these steps in Windows 10: From the Windows Start menu, choose Settings > Update & Security > Recovery. Under Reset this PC, select Get Started > Removing everything. If you’ll be keeping your PC, choose Just remove my files. This option is the faster of the two, but it’s potentially less secure if you’ll be giving your laptop away. You may want to opt for the longer but more thorough option to remove all files and clean the drive. If you are donating your laptop or prefer to perform a more detailed reset, choose Remove everything > Remove files and clean the drive to delete all apps and custom settings. If you choose this route, there’s no way to walk it back. This choice resets your device to its original factory settings, which means the process will remove all applications and files. Whichever option you select, once you’re ready to begin, click Reset. Unsure about whether you need to reset your laptop or if a reboot could help? Dive deeper with this guide on the differences between rebooting vs. resetting your laptop. How to Fix It When a Lenovo Laptop Isn't Working Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit