Clean Install
Definition
An informal label for replacement with little retained configuration.
Detailed explanation
Clean Install is an informal term for replacing software while retaining little or none of its earlier configuration. Graphics vendors may use it for a package option that resets profiles, while third-party tools can remove a broader set of files and Driver Store records. The phrase has no single Windows-defined scope. A graphics installer’s reset option may retain Driver Store history, whereas imaging terminology can mean replacing the entire operating system volume. The retained scope—user data, services, firmware, licenses, extensions, and rollback packages—must therefore be stated before the label conveys technical meaning.
Where you are likely to see it
This term usually appears in Device Manager, Windows recovery tools, Event Viewer, or the installation details for a device package. The definition above gives the short meaning; the detailed explanation describes the term's role in the operating system and hardware stack.
Device status, hardware IDs, and event text identify which Windows subsystem produced a label. This glossary is informational and does not provide repair, installation, or technical-support services.
Related vocabulary
Explore connected concepts and nearby entries in the Windows hardware vocabulary.
- WHQLWindows Hardware Quality Labs, Microsoft’s certification program for drivers.
- INF FileA Setup Information file that declares package installation and hardware support.
- CodecHardware or software that encodes or decodes media in a defined format.
- DCHDeclarative, Componentized, Hardware Support App, a modern Windows driver-package model.