Your Surface comes with Windows recovery info that you can use to refresh your Surface or reset it to its factory condition. Always try to do that first before downloading a recovery image. To learn more, see the links below.

Booting from a USB device doesn’t refresh or reset your Surface. Instead, it lets you start your Surface using Windows or another operating system that’s on your USB device. For info about how to create a bootable USB drive for your Surface, see Creating and using a USB recovery drive for Surface.

Create a recovery drive with a downloaded factory image. If you're able to use your Surface or you have another Windows PC, visit our Download a recovery image for your Surface page. From there, select your Surface and download a recovery image .zip file for the device you selected.

You can download free, pre-built document templates with useful and creative themes from Office when you click File > New in your Office app. Templates can include calendars, business cards, letters, cards, brochures, newsletters, resumes, cover letters , presentations, social media and much more.

To save space on your PC, you can delete the recovery image from your PC and use a recovery drive instead. Windows 8.1 includes a built-in tool to create a USB recovery drive. Windows will let you know how big the recovery partition is, and you'll need a USB flash drive at least that big.

Get to know your way around Windows 11, from where to search to how to stay organized. Watch the video and read tips about new features.

The easiest way to find which Surface model you have is to use the Surface app. It shows the model name of your Surface device and each Surface accessory. Note: When signed in to the Surface app, you can see information for other Surface devices that you've also signed in to. Open the Surface app.

Sending a message. If you haven't already set up messages, do the following: On your PC, in the Phone Link, select Messages. To start a new conversation, select New message. Enter the name or phone number of a contact. Select the person you want to send a message to.

While typing, use a light touch and keep your wrists straight. When you're not typing, relax your arms and hands. Take short breaks from computer use every 15 to 20 minutes. Learn how to use your computer keyboard and take advantage of convenient keyboard shortcuts.

If you are unsure if your device meets the Windows 11 minimum system requirements and have Windows 10 already installed, you can download the PC Health Check app, which will assess eligibility and identify components of your device that don't meet the minimum requirements.