I need advice whether or not to do a fresh install of windows

Zach1928 · Dec 4, 2012

My parents have a computer with w7 ult. 64 bit that my friend had installed and The only issue that happens is it will occasionally shut down randomly and come up with an error message saying it experienced a BSOD. My father has been calling me lately saying that it's doing it more frequently and it's really annoying, and I can say that my Dell laptop has done it occasionally in the past on occasion. Now I have discovered i can get a copy of XP pro 64bit through my school for free which I might install on it if i cant get the random "BSOD's" to stop. Ill get the error code next time it happens to post here, but in the mean time I was wondering if there would be an easy transition in the installation process from windows 7 to windows xp. The machine has a pentium e6500, 4gigs of ddr2, radeon hd 4850 and two independent drives, and I would imagine it would be pretty quick because XP is older. as far as installing is concerned, I figure i would just have to boot to the disc or flash drive and tell it to install on the C drive, but would it create a windows.old folder with all of the stuff? or is there an option to do a repair install with a windows 7 disc?

alphanumeric · Dec 4, 2012

You'll have to do a clean install to go from 7 to XP. Backup what needs to be saved to external media before you do anything. I'd also make sure you can find drivers for XP 64 for all hardware, including printers etc, before you install XP 64. I think you'll find that XP 64 isn't that widely supported, so drivers could be an issue. You can't use 32 bit drivers on a 64 bit OS. If Windows 7 was obtained via bit torrent there is a good chance its a pirated version, or its been modified in a bad way. That may be why it blue screens. Does it have a Windows COA sticker on it? If so what version of windows is it for and can you read the product code that is printed on it. Don't post the code here, I just want to know if its readable. If it is you can use that code to install Windows legally, if you can find the correct install media. I can post links to official Microsoft Windows 7 ISO images, not sure if I have any for vista.

Zach1928 · Dec 4, 2012

I can also get windows 7 pro through my school from dreamspark as well, so would if i downloaded windows 7 pro and went to install it on the machine with w7 ultimate, would that do a fresh install as well? or would it essentially downgrade it to the professional version of 7?

Katanyavich · Dec 4, 2012

I'd go the W7 Pro, myself.

As Alphanumeric says, drivers etc for XP64 may be very difficult to find.

You won't be able to 'upgrade' Pro over Ultimate, but you can do a parallel
installation, which will save a 'windows.old' folder in your c: drive.

But DO back all your files up first.

Zach1928 · Dec 5, 2012

Okay. One thing though; is it possible to actually fix the source of a BSOD without a fresh install? Would a repair install be able to correct it? I'm waiting on it to BSOD again so I can get the error code and maybe someone on here will be able to help

gregrocker · Dec 5, 2012

Yes, a fresh install will wipe away all issues and you'll have no more if you follow these steps to get a perfect Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 then stick only with the tools and methods which work best for Win7 based on thousands we've helped with here. The steps are the same for retail.

It was not wise to involve your parents in criminal activity since pirating software is a crime. This will not only make up for it but end up with them having one of the better installs around.

Just to be sure you have the cleanest slate and clear the boot sector of illegal activation cracks, when you boot into the installer start by pressing Shift + F10 at the first installer screen to open a Command Line, then run Diskpart Clean Command. Then close the Command Box, click Install Now, follow the illustrated steps in Clean Install Windows 7 to create and format your partitions, install Win7 to the first large partition (not counting the small boot partition created by installer).

Pay close attention to the Reinstall tutorial for how drivers are handled in Win7 as it is different than XP. The closer you follow those steps the more perfect your install will be - and stay.

alphanumeric · Dec 5, 2012

It's been my experience that BSOD are usually driver related. Also one BSOD usually leads to another, leads to another. What I mean is, they don't usually go away on their own and become more prevent. I highly recommend a clean install with install media you can trust. Try to find the latest drivers for hardware that Windows 7 doesn't have a driver for. Use the manufacturers driver where possible. When I say manufacturer I mean try the PC manufacturer first. If you can't find a driver there, then try Nvidia, RealTek, or who ever actually made part.

Zach1928 · Dec 5, 2012

Heres another thought; would an upgrade from windows 7 to windows 8 get rid of any problems? Because I can also get a genuine copy of windows 8 pro through Dreamspark and I'm assuming it would basically be overwriting windows 7 I.e getting rid of any issues created in windows 7

bigmck · Dec 6, 2012

Zach1928 said:
Heres another thought; would an upgrade from windows 7 to windows 8 get rid of any problems? Because I can also get a genuine copy of windows 8 pro through Dreamspark and I'm assuming it would basically be overwriting windows 7 I.e getting rid of any issues created in windows 7

If you are trying to get rid of a problem, a Clean Install is the way to do it. Upgrading does not replace all of the files. It is quite possible you will still have the problem after the upgrade. Do yourself a favor and do a Clean Install.

kradangel · Dec 6, 2012

try to check things first what is happening with the system. go to the event viewer of your computer. if you cannot boot normally, then boot in safemode. Check all the system error, you can find lead to what is causing your BSOD. Then,check your device manager for the drivers, see drivers with yellow exclamation mark, try to reinstall its driver. To optimize and clean corrupt files, use freeware CCleaner (I'm not promoting ccleaner, its just that its very useful on cleaning the system and registry). This troubleshooting might avoid you do the clean install and save all the effort reinstalling all the application you have..

gregrocker · Dec 6, 2012

I notice that you edited your OP to remove the part about your friend installing a cracked version of Win7. Have you already replaced it?

Zach1928 · Mar 9, 2013

sorry for the long respond time.. I have not yet because it's working thus far. Its always been activated though so I'm sure I've probably caused any issues in my tinkering. But would a w7 pro disk work to do a repair install for 7 ultimate? I'm guessing it would check the integrity of all the core files and then repair/replace whatever is messed up

gregrocker · Mar 9, 2013

You need to Clean Reinstall to get rid of the cracked version your friend installed, then activate with the Product Key you already own on COA sticker.

Follow the steps in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 to get a perfect install, then stick only with the tools and methods given to keep it that way - backed up with a Win7 backup image so you never have to reinstall again.

Zach1928 · Mar 9, 2013

How would I go about restoring from a backup from a network drive? The pc is automatically backed up to a WD mybook live

gregrocker · Mar 9, 2013

What imaging program was used to store the image on the network?

Why are you opposed to getting the superior Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. You certainly need it if the image is of the bloated factory preinstall.

Zach1928 · Mar 9, 2013

It was just done using the backup feature within windows and I'm not opposed to a clean install, I have a genuine iso from Dreamspark but my parents use the pc now and if I do do a clean install, I just want to be sure all of their Stuff is replaced to make my life easy. And I quickly glanced at something that said a restore from a backup doesn't work on a network drive which is why I'm hesitant if the machine is working without any serious issues. And on a side note the cracked copy was a non bloated version

gregrocker · Mar 9, 2013

Use the latest official ISO in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7.

The tutorial explains how to back up everything in detail so you don't have to worry anything was left out. But if you want to be sure save a Win7 backup image as it can later be browsed for any files, as can the image you have on the network.

If you used Win7 backup imaging to save the image to the network then you should be able to detect it when you boot into the Win7 DVD or REpair CD following the steps for System Image Recovery. You can check now.
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/675-system-image-recovery.html

Zach1928 · Mar 9, 2013

If I install windows 7 pro over ultimate, doesn't it create a windows.old folder with all the user profile docs in it?

gregrocker · Mar 9, 2013

Not if you correctly boot the installer to Clean Install Windows 7.

Use the tools in Steps 6/7 to delete all partitions, create and format New as you wish before installing to first partit- ignore the 100mb boot partition installer will create.

Zach1928 · Mar 10, 2013

I'll keep that guide handy. Again my only reluctance is that my parents are the only ones who use the machine and I don't want to lose anything important in the process. Do you think the event viewer would have anything worth while that could root out an issue without having to just wipe everything?

I need advice whether or not to do a fresh install of windows

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