Rightek Rescue · vs Reset this PC
“Reset this PC” vs Rightek Rescue
Reset this PC is Windows' built-in last resort, and its “Keep my files” option is one of the most misread settings Microsoft ships. It does keep your files. It also removes every program you ever installed, which is not what most people hear.
What Reset actually keeps — and what it takes
| Reset — keep my files | Reset — remove everything | |
|---|---|---|
| Documents, photos, downloads | Kept | Erased |
| Your user account | Kept | Erased |
| Installed programs | Removed | Removed |
| Program settings and licences | Removed | Removed |
| Windows settings and customisations | Reset to default | Reset to default |
| Drivers you installed yourself | Removed | Removed |
| Files in the Public folder | Varies — check before you rely on it | Erased |
Windows does leave you a list. After a reset you will find Removed Apps.html on the desktop, naming everything it took out. It is a list, not a restore — reinstalling each one, finding the licence keys and reconfiguring them is the afternoon nobody budgets for.
Why people end up here
Almost always because something else failed first. Startup Repair could not fix it, or the machine keeps blue-screening, and Reset is the next button Windows offers. It is presented as the natural escalation, so it feels like the responsible choice rather than the destructive one.
The catch is that Reset does not diagnose anything. It replaces Windows wholesale, which means it also “fixes” problems that were never worth that price — a single corrupt registry hive, one bad driver, a wedged update. Those repair in minutes if someone identifies them.
Side by side
| Reset this PC | Rightek Rescue | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, built in | Paid, from $69.99/year |
| Keeps your files | Yes, in "keep my files" mode | Yes |
| Keeps your programs | No | Yes when Windows is repaired in place; after a rebuild they need reinstalling, and Rescue lists them |
| Keeps Windows settings | No | Yes when repaired |
| Diagnoses the fault first | No | Yes, and tells you before changing anything |
| Works when Windows won't boot | Sometimes, from Recovery | Yes, from a USB outside Windows |
| Works when Windows is missing entirely | No | Yes — rebuilds Windows and keeps your files |
| Checks the drive's health first | No | Yes — flags warning signs |
| Reversible | No | Repairs are targeted, not a wholesale replacement |
When Reset is genuinely the right call
We are not going to pretend it never is:
- You are handing the machine on or selling it — then "remove everything" is exactly what you want.
- You had almost nothing installed, so there is little to lose.
- The machine has been so comprehensively compromised that starting clean is the only thing you will trust.
The one thing to do before you press it
Back up first, even in “keep my files” mode. Reset is not reversible, and if it is interrupted — a power cut, a failing drive — you can end up worse off than when you started. If your files matter and the machine still reads them, copy them off before you commit to anything that rewrites Windows.
⚡ The alternative worth knowing about
If Windows is too damaged to repair, there is a middle path between "repair" and "wipe": lay a fresh Windows down around your existing files rather than over them. Your files stay where they are. Programs still need reinstalling because the registry is new — Rescue gives you the list of what was installed — but you end up with a working PC that still has your things on it.