Windows 7: Reinstalling an Upgrade version of W7.

Hi,

I'm quite keen on purchasing an Upgrade version of Windows 7. I understand that the installation process first verifies whether I have a legit version of Vista/XP before it commits to installing Windows 7. Therefore, I have 2 questions relating to this:

1) Will my copy of Vista be deactivated after the upgrade to Windows 7?

2) Is it possible to perform a reinstallation of Windows 7 in the future?



I'm particularly concerned about Question 2 because the reinstallation means I won't have a copy of Vista/XP installed -- and my Vista serial key may be deactivated so I won't be able to install Vista as a prerequisite to Windows 7.

I've searched online for answers already but most of the results were written during the Windows 7 beta phase and may now be outdated. Some of the answers were also contradictory or very vague so I thought it best to ask the questions afresh.

Sorry for my ignorance and thanks for your time,
T.

Since you can do a clean or custom install with the upgrade media, you don't even need the prior OS installed. So the answer to number 2 is Yes.

Welcome aboard
The short answer to both question is yes.
There are several tutorials on those topics on this site.

Ken

No, it doesn't deactivate your prior qualifying OS, but under the EULA you cannot use it any longer.

I recommend a clean install booting from the Windows 7 Upgrade installer, wiping the underlying OS by choosing Custom>Advanced tools>Delete all>Create new partition(s)>Format. The installer will have already read the qualifying OS when it scans after bootup allowing you to insert your key and activate.

Save your XP/VIsta product key in readable condition for the life of the Upgrade in case it should be needed during reinstall, in the very unlikely possiblity that reactivation would be elevated to a MS phone person.

Even better, never reinstall again by making a backup image in Windows 7 Backup center, stored externally, which can reimage the HDD (or a replacement) in 15 minutes from the Installer's Repair console.

Thank you for your swift replies. You guys provide an invaluable service on this forum and I really appreciate it. I'll try not to be one of those who disappears and never posts again after finding the solution to his problem; hopefully I can stick around and help impart some knowledge on another ignorant fool.

Yes, I read into some of the tutorials before posting -- but there are so many buzz words and terminology and different variables to consider that my head gets fuzzy. Anyway, I think I found a suitable tutorial and I will continue my questioning in that thread. Thanks for the welcome.

Wow, thanks for the tip gregrocker! So just to get this straight, I can restore the image without going through a normal Windows "installation" process? If so, that is amazingly useful. I'm tempted to create a seperate partition just for that backup image.

Yes, I create a primary formatted Recovery Image partition on each of my computers, have WIndows 7 Backup save the image there (it immediately detects it as drive), then copy it to an external backup in case of HDD failure.

You can even schedule the excellent Windows 7 Backup Center to refresh that image and save other files of your choice on a schedule, or when the computer is idle.

AWESOME!!!!!!!!

Thanks gregrocker, I'll do that as well. Just one last question: What's the usual size of your backup partition?

I was also curious about whether the backup image is being exploited for piracy, but I suppose the image is hardware-dependent so it couldn't really be passed on with much efficiency.

Thanks again,
T.

What I do is select "Create an image" and have it auto-detect my available drives for saving the image. THen I click DVD drive just to see how much space it wants, go into Disk Management to create and format a Primary partition of that size, then go back to the Image creator and refresh (with the drop down menu) the Drives detected and tell it to save there.

It takes about 20 minutes to save, then offers to make a System Repair disk which has the same repair console that is on your Installer disk, and also accessible in the 100mb boot/repair partition (if you have it) by tapping F8 at startup. I just use my Installer.

Thanks gregrocker!!!! You've been really helpful and I appreciate it. Please keep up the good work!