Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7

Molds2014 · 25 Jan 2015

First, thank you for such an excellent post!! It is very informative and useful.

I recently purchased Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 32/64 bit, and installed the 32 bit version by mistake. (I upgraded from XP). I did not realize at the time that my hardware was compatible with the 64 bit version.
Ran the compatibility test, and everything looks good to go.
I now want to start over, and install the 64 bit version on the same machine.

I have read most of this thread, follow most of it and still have a question: Are there any little nuances involved in what I am trying to accomplish here?

If so, your advice would be appreciated.

gregrocker · 25 Jan 2015

With 12gb RAM shown in specs you'll definitely want to change to 64 bit version asap.

Use the ISO here: Win7 Professional x64 English Official ISO Download with the tool provided in tutorial.

There isn't much other than in the tutorial to flag except that you'll want to be sure to back up everything first, then delete all partitions to start over - unless you saved the Dell Utility partition because it will boot Dell Hardware Diagnostics from F12 Menu as suggested in the Special Note for Dell Owners.

If you have a partition scheme in mind, do that durings Steps 7/8 of Clean Install Windows 7 which are the actual install illustrated Steps, otherwise you can merely Delete all and click Next to let the installer format your install partition and begin on its own.

ICIT2LOL · 25 Jan 2015

Hello and welcome Molds in addition to Greg's fabullous tutorial mate personally if the drive is quite old and you can afford it I would put in a new one and then copy over stuff as needed. In fact what a lot of folks do now is to install a SSD for the boot (not expensive these days) and a large drive for the data if you can fit two drives - there is a tutorial for doing that but I cannot find it off hand. So for the cost of a large SSD you could get those drives as described quite easily:)

The old drive you can connect using a USB adaptor to pull off data you want and they are not expensive either.
Bur of course it all comes down to budget I suppose but good luck!:)

Molds2014 · 27 Jan 2015

So, here is a copy & paste of a question that I put out to the Dell community (under my same handle):
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Thank you once again.
Before I pull the trigger there are a few more items to try and understand:
1. Is this a good time to be thinking about & setting up a partition scheme? Right now, it is the default that came from Dell, one giant partition (blob). Never did this before, so no idea what might be the latest-greatest. The original discs were for a W Vista machine that was then downgraded to XP, so no idea if they would even be useful.
2. Is the Windows "Easy Transfer" tool a good idea? This is what I used to get from XP to 7, but now we are going from W7 32bit to W7 64bit.
The weekend is coming, so I might just be ready to do it.....
***************************************************************
Reaching out to the Dell peeps is helpful too! :)

Thanks to ICIT2LOL for that suggestion too. Budget is the main drawback here. A 6 year old machine, questionable life-span etc. Will probably pop for something new with digital drives then.

gregrocker · 27 Jan 2015

Read the Special Note to Dell Owners at the end of tutorial to determine which partitions to keep. If Dell Diagnostics will boot and run then I'd keep the Utility partition, otherwise all the others can be deleted with new partition(s) created in the space.

Since you asked Dell let us know what they reply, too. They are the least resistant to Clean Reinstall and the only brand who for years provide a clean Reinstallation DVD with only branding and Activation added. Gradually all other OEM's have dropped resistance to Clean Reinstall when early on in Win7 most would not even support it in order to enforce their bloatware which makes them extra money keeping PC costs down.

Blkfeather · 03 Feb 2015

Been reading all instructions and following the links before I start this project. My question is , can I do a clean reinstall on just the "C" drive, while leaving the other drives intact? From what I've read it sounds like I can. But I want to be sure. I had resized my drives in the past. I downsized "c" to just what was needed, and added a drive("E") where all my data is. (I assume along with the OS, that "C" also is where all the bloatware is.)

gregrocker · 03 Feb 2015

Let us see a screenshot of Disk Management - Post a Screen Capture Image.
Either label or tell us what is on each partition.

There is more about which HP partitions to keep in the Special Note for HP Owners at the end.

Blkfeather · 03 Feb 2015

Thanks for the help! All my data is on "E".

gregrocker · 03 Feb 2015

You can reinstall to C only and your data on E should be safe as long as that partition isn't touched, but data should always be backed up anyway to be safest since the HD can fail at any time.

Did you check if your HP System Recovery offers a Minimal Recovery which is nearly the same as a Clean Reinstall except for the HP wireless manager which can be uninstalled immediately afterward to connect via Win7's superior wireless manager in system tray? You'd definitely need to have your files backed up there even if it lets you keep a second data partition since Recovery can go belly up, for which you have the Clean Reinstall alternative.

MBorrick · 03 Feb 2015

I had this great tutorial lined up for my install of a new SSD tomorrow using an ISO from the links provided but as of today the servers are being taken down! You are forced to use microsofts new downloads page which requires you to input your authetation code in before download. As mine is a OEM licence it won't let me and advises me to contact my vendor

Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7

Moving from 32 bit to 64 bit

Last minute issues