T-Series recovery partition wiped but no back-up DVDs

[voxish]

I recently bought a 2nd hand i7 T-Series SVT1312X1ES. It has 32+320GB SSD and HDD hybrid drive.

Instead of using 'Sony Care' for system recovery I just used the standard Windows 8 reset but this appears to have wiped my HDD including the recovery partition and installed W8 on the SSD.

How can I rescue the situation? I now need to get the system back to factory state (the reason I went for the Windows recovery was that I thought it'd just be a refresh - my bad!) but unfortunately the previous owner omitted to burn the recovery DVDs. It's also tricky because of the hybrid setup - presumably the recovery media would fix that side of things as well. Is there a link to ISOs of the DVDs or will I be stung for a huge amount from Sony for the media? Even better is there any kind soul out there who can burn me a set (for which I'll pay postage and DVD costs)?

[Blencogo · Accepted solution]

Hi voxish and welcome.

Firstly, just recheck that your Recovery Partition has been wiped - it is a hidden partition and may possibly still be there.

Close the Vaio down completely and then press the "ASSIST" button. Does the Vaio Care Rescue screen open? If it does, then choose 'Recover or Maintain your System' and follow the screen instructions for a full recovery to factory settings. If Vaio Care Rescue does not open, you will need a set of Recovery Discs. These can be obtained from Vaio Support for around £50.

[voxish]

Yes - sadly I had to get the recovery discs, all working fine now. I wasn't impressed that £20 of the cost was shipping from Belgium!