Had to choose between a full Windows reinstall or just fixing the bootloader on a client's bricked laptop

The laptop was stuck in a boot loop after a failed update. I figured a clean install would take about 2 hours with all the driver hunting. Instead, I spent 20 minutes making a bootable USB with the Windows Media Creation Tool and used the command prompt to run bootrec /fixmbr and bootrec /rebuildbcd. It worked and saved the client's data. Has anyone else had luck with this method on newer systems with secure boot enabled?

2 comments

2 Comments

lane.mason9h ago

Honestly, that's a huge gamble with a client's machine. A clean install is the only sure fix and avoids wasting more time if those commands fail. You got lucky this time, but next time you might just make the data recovery harder.

the_hugo9h ago

Hey wait, that's not how it works... a clean install would've wiped the data completely.