Laptop Problem, Need To Backtrack The Os

I have a Dell Inspirion 11. It has Windows 8.1 I want to either backtrack to Windows XP or Windows 7.
Windows 8.1 is a nightmare. It won't even let me run my printer correctly.
Please help!

 

I had some trouble with this recently too. It's a bit complicated, but *usually* very doable. First, you'll want to check Dell's website to see if Windows 7 drivers are available for your specific laptop. I haven't delved into downgrading to Windows XP. As the process for that involves changing your bootloader and just seems more complicated to me. Plus, drivers for hardware on newer laptops for Windows XP are becoming harder and harder to find. So, I'll just ramble on about WIndows 7 haha.

Once you figure out if WIndows 7 drivers are available, you might want to create a COMPLETE disk backup to preserve Windows 8 if you want to migrate back to it. Or create Dell System Restore disks to return your laptop to factory settings. You will not be able to do this once you've downgraded to Windows 7 (unless you purchase system restore disks for your laptop from Dell's website).

Next, you'll want to create a proper Windows 7 USB installation disk. Make sure to back up any data on the USB drive before continuing.

You'll want to format the drive to FAT32, since Windows 8's UEFI is incompatible with booting from NTFS file system.

Download one of these:
Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool
OR
YUMI Multiboot Loader
OR
Rufus

Personally, I like Yumi because it lets you create multiple boot disks on a single flash drive.
Rufus let's you choose between FAT32 and GPT format as well, which, formatting to GPT might come in handy, since that's the normal file system format that Windows 8 uses.

If you need help with adding boot disks to USB, let me know.




Once you do all that, here's what I had to do:

1.) Go into your BIOS settings (usually by pressing the [esc] key upon starting your PC followed by the appropriate F# key, though it could be different for your laptop)
2.) There should be a 'Boot Settings' tab within the BIOS settings. From there you'll want to disable 'Secure Boot' and enable 'Legacy Support' if those options are available.
3.) Save changes and restart.
4.) Press [esc] key again upon restarting and select 'Device/Boot Options' and then select UEFI CD-ROM or UEFI USB depending on where you're installing Windows 7 from. (Also make sure it's Win7 x64. I'm not sure if Win7 x86 will work or not depending on your computer's specs)
5.) From there, you should be able to install Windows 7 as your main operating system.

Once the first stage of setup is complete, you'll probably want to remove the USB drive from the computer. I always ran into the problem of Win7 setup restarting when I left it plugged in.

And after all that, you should be good to go!



Here's where I found my information. IGNORE THE DRIVER DOWNLOADS on this page, as they aren't for your laptop.
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Operating-Systems-and-Software/HP-2000-bf69WM-DOwngrading-back-to-Windows-7-from-Windows-8/td-p/3683418
2nd post on page.



NOTE: It is somewhat of a tricky process, so if you don't have an alternative way to access the internet and troubleshoot problems if you run into them while trying to install Windows 7, make sure to do plenty of research before attempting this.

And if you need help, let me know

 

Also, if it's just your printer you're having trouble with, if you have the make and model number, I could help you find the right drivers for it.

All in all though, I'd root for switching back to Win7.