Permissions to re-install Windows

[elsiegee40]

A 'what if' really?

 

Staff cannot install on laptops because it's prevented by the usual range of permissions. Should someone decide they want to keep a laptop and decides to try and re-install windows by booting from an installation CD, reformatting the hard-drive, does anything stop them?

 

Is there any other way of them completely reformatting the hard-drive?

[glennda]

They could do it from either USB boot or from CD - easiest way around it is the block access to bios and disable booting from removeable devices/cds etc

 

other then that i don't think there is!

[Abaddon]

Lock the bios, and set boot order to not include the CD drive or USB?

[pscott]

They could "Upgrade" from within windows though

[bart21]

if cmd is accessable they can use diskpart to format

[elsiegee40]

cmd is not accessible and they don't have admin rights or access to the C: drive.

 

I think it's very unlikely to happen at my school, it was just a thought I was pondering.... the idea that a member of staff under disciplinary could perhaps run a windows installation CD and reformat the HDD in an attempt to wipe evidence from a school laptop. They wouldn't even need to complete the installation

[K.C.Leblanc]

the idea that a member of staff under disciplinary could perhaps run a windows installation CD and reformat the HDD in an attempt to wipe evidence from a school laptop. They wouldn't even need to complete the installation

 

There's only so much you can do, there's nothing stopping them whipping out the hard drive giving it a few sharp blows or just pretending the laptop has been stolen.

[Jamman960]

stopping access to cd drives etc on boot should stop casual attempts to wipe the drive but obviously anyone desperate enough could swap the drive out with a new one or even put it in another pc and install/format from there

 

Ooops - beaten to it!