Windows 7: help needed, tried to upgrade from 32bit win7 to 64bit (doh)

I know now that it cant be done.
Anyway this is where Im at. I got a new machine at Christmas, it has a TB hard drive, intel 3 processor, 8g video card, cant remember what else and I cant get into it to tell you but its is definitely able to run the 64 bit version of Windows 7. It came without an OS and as I already had a guenuine copy of Windows 7 that was fine. However, being a bit of a noob I loaded the 32 bit version and not the 64 bit version.



Today I decided to load the 64 bit version. yes, i now know that it cant be done as a simple upgrade. (im kicking myself)
It started to load....but now it is stuck at a command prompt screen. If i reboot i just get the command prompt screen. If i try to go back to loading from the windows vista disk all i get is the command prompt screen. I can open the registry, and it looks like the previous 32bit version has been cleared, but the 64 bit version has not loaded. I think it has cleared the 32bit version but not loaded the 64bit version.

I did think of just formatting the c drive but i cant remember the name of the partitions, The C drive was partitioned to have windows on one and my data on the other. I dont mind formatting because i backed up most stuff i would have needed....just have to download drivers again for the Graphic card....or just a horrible thought.. would i need drivers for the motherboard and other hardware??

Basically I am stuck and my beautiful gaming machine is flooked :

If all of your data is backed up, you should be able to boot from the Windows 7 disk, wipe all partitions, and reinstall Windows to a single C partition. Make sure only one hard drive is connected when you start.

But first a few questions:

You mention the PC came with no OS and then you mention Vista. What does Vista have to do with this? I assume you want Windows 7, not Vista.

Do you have a valid 25 character Windows 7 Product Key?

Is your Windows 7 installation disc a retail version?

Is it a full version or an upgrade version?

Have you set the BIOS to boot from the DVD drive first?

To upgrade from 32 bit to 64 bit, you need to perform a Clean Install Windows 7 with the 64 bit version.

Here is some more and important info : Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7

Edit: you need to format not only the C drive, but also the 100 MB system reserved partition, too. Then follow the installation process, it will guide you accordingly.

Are you aware that you need to boot the installer to clean install an OS?

Follow the steps given here to get a perfect Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7.

Be sure to delete all partitions during Custom install at the Drive selection screen, using Drive Options:



Then create partitions as you wish or if you have no scheme just click Next.

Sorry, I Did not make myself too clear. I mentioned Vista because I realised too late that I couldent upgrade from the 32 bit win 7 to the 64 bit Windows 7 so I was going to try and load a copy of Vista 64 bit so I could than load Windows 7.

And yes, I have a valid copy of Windows 7. It came on a DVD with two disks, the 32bit and 64 bit versions. It has a valid product key that I already validated.

I just looked in the registry and all the values are set to zero....does thats why i think i unloaded the 32bit Windows 7 when trying to put on the 64bit version. Basically, it looks like i have no OS at all.

It sounds like you have a retail version since you have 2 discs.

Do you know how to set the BIOS to boot from the DVD drive first?

I have no idea what you mean by "all the values are set to zero" in the registry. What are you looking at?

If this is Upgrade version, just boot the 64 bit Windows 7 DVD and it will see the underlying OS on HD to allow use of Upgrade version key during install - even if you delete all partitions during install as you should.

How to Boot your Computer from a Bootable CD or DVD

The steps in Clean Reinstall tutorial are the same for retail.

Great, Thank You,
I can follow those instructions if only I could get something on the screen apart from a screen asking me for instructions/
All it is loading at the moment is windows/system32/cmd.exe

I typed in this format :c
And it asked me for a name of the partitions to format. As far as i remember, windows created this [partition and i cant for the life of me remember what it is called. Nor do I know how to type the command to format the partitions.

PS. sorry for the bad typos I am on an old machine with a crappy keyboard.

You don't need to use the format command. Formatting will be done automatically as part of the installation.

You need to boot from the Windows 7 DVD.

To repeat: do you know how to set the BIOS to boot from the DVD drive first, before any hard drive?

Yes I can get into the bois and boot from DVD......but nothing happens when i boot from DVD.

Any ideas on what the command is for formatting the partitions please