How To Reset Your Chromebook To Factory Settings (2022)

Are you looking for a tutorial to reset your Chromebook to factory settings? You might experience a problem and see it as a solution to fix it. Or, you want to sell your computer so you need to wipe off the content in your hard drive. Whatever your reason, you need to do it with care.

This guide will show you how to restore your Chromebook to factory settings. Or, in Chromebook, it’s called Powerwash. A factory reset or powerwash means that your computer will go back to the condition when it was still brand new. The installation Chrome OS will also go back to the version once you had for the first time.

Contents

Why and How to Powerwash or Factory Reset Chromebook

When you do a factory reset to your Chromebook, you should be aware that your hard drive will be fully formatted. All the stored data in your hard drive will be completely erased. So, backing up all your data before you reset your Chromebook is a wise thing to do.

Thankfully, Chromebook is fully integrated with cloud storage services like Google Drive. So most of your data are already stored online and it will not take long to back up the data in your hard drive. Just make sure that you don’t forget your Google account’s password.

So, why would you reset your Chromebook? There are two main reasons:

First, you are experiencing issues with either your computer system or hardware that require you to restore Chromebook to its original factory settings. The errors can be like your computer acts slow and some functions cannot work normally. A factory reset will fix those.
Second, when you want to sell or give away your used Chromebook, you probably want to clear your data in advance. It’s to protect your private files so that no one is able to access.

The factory reset on Chromebook will not take a long time like other computers. It takes around 2 minutes to complete because you don’t need to install a new OS. And it is a lot easier to do. Most importantly, you’ll get a fresh operating system afterward.

What to Do Before You Restore Chromebook to Factory Settings

If you want to powerwash your Chromebook to fix some problems, there are several methods you can do before conducting a factory reset. If these methods work, powerwash will no longer be necessary.

Turn Off Extensions

Extensions can be the culprit of errors that you have on your Chromebook. Follow these instructions to turn off all installed extensions on your Chrome web browser:

1. Open Chrome web browser.

2. On the upper right corner, click More (three dots) > More tools > Extensions.

3. Turn off all extensions.

If you no longer need the extensions, click Remove to delete the extensions on Chrome.

Reset Chromebook Hardware

If you have issues with the hardware, such as the keyboard and touchpad, a hard reset might be able to fix them. By performing a hard reset to your Chromebook, you will restore the hardware to its default settings. However, this action might remove the files in your Download folder. So, you’d better back up your files before proceeding.

Here’s how:

Laptops

1. Turn off your Chromebook: Go to the clock at the bottom right and select Shut down.

Shut down Chromebook — Source: Chromebook Support

2. Press and hold Refresh and Power at the same time.

hard reset Chromebook — Source: Chromebook Support

3. Release Refresh when your Chromebook starts up.

Another method to do a hard reset

Some Chromebooks have different ways to reset their hardware. If the previous method didn’t work on your laptop, try the following instructions:

1. Press a special reset button.

2. Disconnect the power cable.

3. Remove the battery for a minute and insert it back.

Tablets

1. Press and hold Volume Up + Power for at least 10 seconds.

2. Release them after it boots.

Sync Your Account Settings

Before you learn how to reset Chromebook, the most important thing to do is to back up your account settings. So, you don’t waste your time when you need to set up after you reset your Chromebook to factory settings.

To prevent any account settings lost, you can save and sync your history, bookmarks, passwords, and Wi-Fi networks to your Google Account.

Here’s how:

1. Click the time at the bottom right.

2. Select Settings > Sync and Google services, in the Account section.

3. Select Manage what you sync.

4. Choose what you want to sync:

Sync everything to back up all settings.
Customize sync to sync specific settings only.

Back Up Your Hard Drive

Basically, the documents files that you create on Chromebook will automatically be saved in your Google Drive. You don’t need to worry about it because the factory reset will not affect the files on your Google Drive.

However, if you happened to download files, they will be stored in your Download folder. Make sure you check this folder and back up the files by uploading them to your Drive or copying them to your external hard disk to prevent data loss.

How to Reset Your Chromebook to Factory Settings

Have you completed your data backup? If the answer is yes, you are ready to powerwash or restore your Chromebook to factory settings. Do the following instructions:

1. Shut down your Chromebook.

2. Press and hold Ctrl + Alt + Shift + R at the same time.

3. Press Restart turn on your Chromebook.

4. On Reset this Chrome device screen, click Powerwash.

5. If prompted, click Continue.

Chromebook will start to delete everything and restore the functions back to the default settings. It will boot up several times and it’s normal. All you need to do is to wait until the Welcome screen appears.

From this point, you need to set up your Chromebook, such as connecting the Wi-Fi, sign in to your Google Account, and many more.

So those were how to reset Chromebook to factory settings. Should you have any questions, please write down in the comments box below or call Support.

NEXT READ:

How to Reset your Chromebook to Factory Settings (2022)

Why and How to Powerwash or Factory Reset Chromebook