Setting up your computer

Your computer arrives with Windows installed but not yet personalised. The first startup walks you through making it yours. Set aside about twenty minutes, and have your Wi-Fi password to hand.

Before you plug it in

If the computer has come in from the cold (a courier van in winter, or straight off a delivery in the heat), let it sit indoors for an hour first. Condensation inside a cold machine is a genuine way to damage it, and the wait costs you nothing.

Check the outside of the box for crushing or puncture damage. If you find any, stop and read Arrived damaged or faulty before going further.

Set it up

1. Connect the power and, for a desktop, the monitor. Leave a laptop plugged in for this; you don’t want it going flat mid-setup.

2. Press the power button. The first boot takes longer than normal. If the screen stays black for more than a minute or two, see Computer won’t turn on.

3. Choose your country and keyboard. Australia, and unless you know otherwise, the US keyboard layout. That’s the standard layout on Australian keyboards, confusingly.

4. Connect to Wi-Fi. Or plug in an Ethernet cable, which is faster and one less thing to go wrong during setup.

5. Sign in with a Microsoft account, or don’t.

   A Microsoft account syncs your settings and is required for OneDrive and the Microsoft Store. A local account keeps everything on the machine and doesn’t need an email address. Look for “Sign-in options” then “Offline account” if that’s what you want. Either is fine, and you can change later.

6. Decline what you don’t want. You’ll be offered a Microsoft 365 trial, Game Pass, and a set of privacy toggles. None are required. Read the privacy options rather than clicking through; they’re worth thirty seconds.

7. Wait. The final step takes several minutes and the machine may restart. Don’t turn it off.

Once you’re at the desktop

Let Windows Update run. Open Settings → Windows Update and check for updates. It’ll likely want to install a batch and restart, possibly more than once. Get this out of the way now rather than having it interrupt you later.

Check your licence is active. Settings → System → Activation should say Windows is activated. It should be, but see Windows licensing if it doesn’t.

Bring your files across. See Transferring your files.

Install a browser if you’d rather not use Edge, and whatever else you need.

Do you need antivirus?

Windows includes Microsoft Defender, which is on by default and is genuinely good. For most people that’s enough, and you don’t need to buy anything.

Don’t install a second antivirus product on top. Running two causes conflicts and often makes a machine slower and less stable, not safer.