Users Guide

Starting SupportAssist OS Recovery
You can start SupportAssist OS Recovery in the following ways:
Steps
1. Automatic start of SupportAssist OS Recovery—when your computer is unable to boot to the operating system even after
repeated attempts, SupportAssist OS Recovery starts automatically.
2. Manual start of SupportAssist OS Recovery—you can manually start SupportAssist OS Recovery to reset your computer to
factory state or to back up your files. See Manually start SupportAssist OS Recovery.
3. BIOSConnect for SupportAssist OS Recovery—SupportAssist OS Recovery is installed on a special partition of the system
hard drive. If this partition is absent, corrupt, or needs repair, BIOSConnect provides an alternative method for starting
SupportAssist OS Recovery. See BIOSConnect.
NOTE: This feature is available only on certain Dell system models. For the list of system models where BIOSConnect
feature is supported, see the Dell SupportAssist OS Recovery Support Matrix on the SupportAssist OS Recovery
documentation page.
4. Start SupportAssist OS Recovery using Windows Recovery—Windows Recovery is a redirection utility that helps in
redirecting to the SupportAssist OS Recovery environment when your computer is unable to boot to the operating system
even after repeated attempts. See Start SupportAssist OS Recovery using Windows Recovery.
Topics:
• Manually start SupportAssist OS Recovery
• Start SupportAssist OS Recovery using Windows Recovery
Manually start SupportAssist OS Recovery
About this task
You can manually start SupportAssist OS Recovery at any time to back up your files or to reset your computer to its factory
state.
Steps
1. Turn on or restart your computer.
2. Press F12 to access the one time boot menu.
NOTE:
If you wait too long and the operating system logo is displayed, wait until you see the Windows desktop, restart
your computer, and try again.
The available boot options are displayed.
3. Select SupportAssist OS Recovery, and then press Enter.
Results
The SupportAssist OS Recovery home page is displayed.
If the SupportAssist OS Recovery user interface is displayed for the first time, click APPROVE to accept the privacy policy. A
walkthrough option is also displayed. Click START WALKTHROUGH to learn about various options available in the tool, or click
SKIP to skip the walkthrough process.
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8 Starting SupportAssist OS Recovery