- Starting with the new Windows 10 version 2004, you can use the new cloud download option to get Windows from the cloud to reinstall.
- If you have a strong Internet connection, resetting your PC with the cloud option can be faster and even more reliable.
- Don’t worry if you have problems resetting your PC. Go to our PC Resetting section and troubleshoot your problem.
- Out Tech Tutorials Hub is hugely populated with complete guides on how to do all sorts of procedures. Use it with confidence.
Starting with the new Windows 10 version 2004, you can use the new cloud download option to get Windows from the cloud to reinstall.
If you have a strong Internet connection, resetting your PC with the cloud option can be faster and even more reliable.
In other words, you won’t need to download Windows 10 and create a bootable USB stick. The cloud download feature is already built-in.
How can I reset my PC using the new cloud download?
If you have a Windows 10 Insider Preview Builds 18970 or newer, you can start Reset this PC and select the cloud download option using the Settings:
- Click on the Start button and click on the Settings button (the cogwheel above the Power button).
- Click on Update & Security, then click on the Recovery option from the left pane.
- Click on the Get started button below the Reset this PC option.
- You will be prompted to keep your files or to remove everything. After you validate your selection you will see the option to Cloud download in the next window.
The Cloud download option will connect to Windows Update over your current network connection.
Note: Make sure you have more than 4 GB of free space on your drive as you are warned that the Cloud download option can use more than 4 GB of data.
For the same reason, you want to be connected to a reliable, paid Internet connection where you don’t have data restrictions.
How Cloud download works?
After you hit the Cloud download button, Windows will start the preparation phase, checking if you have the necessary requirements.
And if all is OK, you will see the image below.
When you click on the Reset button, the download will begin. After this, everything will continue without anything to do from your part.
When the download completes, the system will reboot into Windows RE and it will start applying the image that was downloaded.
If you selected the option to keep your files, the system will get the user profile from the previous OS and will apply it to the new OS.
Next, it will apply the optional features and languages to the new OS. It Switches the OS root folder from the previous OS to the new OS and it deletes the downloaded payload.
Finally, it will reboot into the new OS and apply the drivers and OEM settings, including preinstalled Windows apps.
If you didn’t choose to keep your files, the system will reboot to the Out-Of-Box-Experience (OOBE). If not, it will skip OOBE and jump directly to the login screen.
Did you encounter any problems when performing this operation? Let us know about your experience in the comments section below.