[SOLVED] Using applications on external ssd after windows restore

[BirdOfParadise]

I am currently having an issue with what seems to be a corrupt windows os. I want to either completely rreinstall windows or do a factory reset however I have all of my games and applications installed onto a 1tb external ssd. If I plug the USB ssd out and then do the factory reset, will I be able to boot the apps again after the reset or will I have to do a clean installation of the games again?

 

[ex_bubblehead]

Steam apps, yes, with a little work. Most everything else must be reinstalled in order to reestablish the necessary registry entries. There's no way around that.

 

[mdd1963]

If WIndows is reinstalled or factory reset, apps and games that used to be installed are no longer installed/launchable, despite their presence on the external drive....

I'd not bother with a 'factory reset', as typically this installs an old version of WIndows, dooming oneself to several bouts of even longer WIndows feature updates; if you get the latest ISO on USB via the Media Creation Tool, it will ultimately save time.

Reinstallations are fine.