@shortstories @special-boy @DeezMistaReez @Zergling_man Most refurb outfits ship windows by default because they get a deal from Microsoft where it is basically free or the motherboard already has a license associated with its motherboard serial number. There is nothing insidious about it. It's actually better because MS makes nothing off your purchase like they would with a legit DIY build or new vendor unit.

The OS does not work the way you think it does. There is no way for windows to reinstall itself if you wipe the drive. Some PCs are set up with a recovery partition which holds the install disk, but it is still on the hard drive, which you choose to wipe.

You can buy a linux preinstalled unit like this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/196354188883

But whose to say the person (((State Actors))) who sold it didn't also install spyware. If you are taking your concerns seriously the answer is to take control of your OS install.

Honestly, your concerns all sound pretty silly considering you were happy with your Chromebook which is definitely spying on you all the time without the level of security control you would even get with Windows. You can't even install a real operating system that google didn't personally author without going jailbreak mode.

Speaking of which, I did find better resources on degoogling in that regards:
https://docs.chrultrabook.com/