Reboot, Reformat, Reinstall
Encyclopedia
In computing, the three-letter acronym
RRR stands for "Reboot, Reformat, Reinstall". It is also sometimes referred to, even more simply, as 3R. The system is a widely accepted and humorous methodology employed by technical support
technicians.
RRR is most commonly found amongst technical support people whose customers work with Microsoft Windows
-based systems. This is arguably because Microsoft
systems are so prevalent in modern computing, rather than the implication that it is more commonly needed for Microsoft products (either applications
or operating system
s) than alternatives such as Mac OS X
, Unix
or Linux
.
RRR is intended to imply that there are three simple steps to making (almost) any problem go away, and suggest that the work of technical support can be done by anyone who has a basic knowledge of the systems. Its use is likely to be a transliteration
of the English education initialism of the same name (see the three Rs
), widely used in the later part of the 20th Century.
Some server administrators use 3R or RRR for "Repartition, Reformat, Reinstall" in relation to servers that have been infected with a rootkit
. Considering how aggressive some rootkits install themselves, repartitioning is often considered the safest extra step to be entirely sure the rootkit is completely removed before reinstall.
Three-letter acronym
A three-letter acronym, three-letter abbreviation, or TLA is an abbreviation, specifically an acronym, alphabetism, or initialism, consisting of three letters...
RRR stands for "Reboot, Reformat, Reinstall". It is also sometimes referred to, even more simply, as 3R. The system is a widely accepted and humorous methodology employed by technical support
Technical support
Technical support or tech support refers to a range of services by which enterprises provide assistance to users of technology products such as mobile phones, televisions, computers, software products or other electronic or mechanical goods...
technicians.
RRR is most commonly found amongst technical support people whose customers work with Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
-based systems. This is arguably because Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
systems are so prevalent in modern computing, rather than the implication that it is more commonly needed for Microsoft products (either applications
Application software
Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with...
or operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s) than alternatives such as Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
, Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
or Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
.
RRR is intended to imply that there are three simple steps to making (almost) any problem go away, and suggest that the work of technical support can be done by anyone who has a basic knowledge of the systems. Its use is likely to be a transliteration
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
of the English education initialism of the same name (see the three Rs
The three Rs
The three Rs are the foundations of a basic skills-orientated education program within schools: Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic.The phrase is attributed to a toast given by Sir William Curtis around 1825...
), widely used in the later part of the 20th Century.
Some server administrators use 3R or RRR for "Repartition, Reformat, Reinstall" in relation to servers that have been infected with a rootkit
Rootkit
A rootkit is software that enables continued privileged access to a computer while actively hiding its presence from administrators by subverting standard operating system functionality or other applications...
. Considering how aggressive some rootkits install themselves, repartitioning is often considered the safest extra step to be entirely sure the rootkit is completely removed before reinstall.