Windows 7: new hardware, can i do a clean install with a retail upgrade version?

nattylife · 20 Dec 2011

my current setup is that i (believe) i did a clean install of win 7 prof over my old win xp. but in any case, i have a new mobo, cpu and ram and im assuming i have to reinstall windows because of the hardware change.

since this is an upgrade version, do i have to reinstall xp first before i install win 7? or can i just install the win 7 w/o having to bother with the xp at all?

Brink · 20 Dec 2011

Hello Natty, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Yeah, usually with a new different model motherboard you'll need to reinstall the OS.

You will not have to install XP first. The tutorial below can help show you how to do a clean install with a upgrade copy of Windows 7.

Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

Hope this helps,
Shawn

nattylife · 20 Dec 2011

thanks for the info! i assume i can use the windows easy transfer to move my current users and files onto the new system? would i do this after i activate windows?

Hipster Doofus · 20 Dec 2011

Get everything setup first then activate . Just in case it goes south.

Brink · 20 Dec 2011

You're welcome.

You'll need to use Windows Easy Transfer first to save what you have on the old system to another location (ex: external HDD or partition), then setup the new system and use Windows Easy Transfer to copy it back to.

Windows Easy Transfer - Transfer To & From Computers

theog · 21 Dec 2011

First check to see if your new MOBO has a uEFI BIOS.
As the new MOBO's now have a uEFI BIOS.

When using a Upgrade to install, you will need to use those two tutorials together.
How to install Windows 64 bit on a uEFI BIOS:
UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) - Install Windows 7 with
Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

nattylife · 21 Dec 2011

Quote: Originally Posted by theog

First check to see if your new MOBO has a uEFI BIOS.
As the new MOBO's now have a uEFI BIOS.

When using a Upgrade to install, you will need to use those two tutorials together.
How to install Windows 64 bit on a uEFI BIOS:
UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) - Install Windows 7 with
Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

hmm, not sure. my new mobo is GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket 1156 - GA-P55-USB3 (rev. 1.0)

i dont see anything on google about it having uefi so?

nattylife · 25 Dec 2011

last question, i did a full windows backup of my current system. since the new mobo i got is a secondhand unit from a friend (who said it SHOULD work but no guarantees), if the new install doesnt work, i should be able to do a complete restore from the backup as long as all the original hardware was setup exactly the same correct?

Brink · 25 Dec 2011

If you did a system image backup, then you will be able to do a system image recovery with it to any HDD that is the same size or larger than the one you created it from, and if it's the same motherboard it was created from.

ignatzatsonic · 25 Dec 2011

Quote: Originally Posted by nattylife

hmm, not sure. my new mobo is GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket 1156 - GA-P55-USB3 (rev. 1.0)

i dont see anything on google about it having uefi so?

That motherboard was introduced at least a year ago and is very unlikely to have a UEFI BIOS.

Just proceed with the installation per this link:

Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

Windows 7: new hardware, can i do a clean install with a retail upgrade version?

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