Windows 7: Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

A follow up to that. == Since either an Upgrade or OEM full install can be used for Win 7, is one better than the other? It appears to me since they are both clean installs there would be no difference. Is that correct?

A retail Upgrade Windows 7 can be reinstalled and activated on any computer as long as it is uninstalled from any previous computer first.

A OEM Windows 7 can only be reinstalled and activated on the same computer that it was originally installed on. It cannot be used on another computer.

Brink,
I am not 100% certain that your 'Option One' works.
Thousands of Win 7 packages were sent out with 'Upgrade' on the media and box, but did in fact have 'Full' keys.

This is the only explanation I can see as to why it works for some ,perfectly, and not others.

Time will tell for sure. My copy was a retail upgrade box of Windows 7 that I tested with.

Thanks Brink,
I am not suggesting that your copy was a student purchase, but I found the following interesting.

The student download for $30 was actually a ‘Full Retail Product’
with ‘Full Key’…………..but the packaging clearly said ‘Upgrade’ on some
boxes and media.
This has led to confusion as many users now believe that the ‘upgrade’
version will easily install clean. ( Hacks excluded from discussion on MS website)

Proof? See below ……….Quote:

Dear Customer,
Thank you for choosing Windows 7 Online store.
We apologize for the confusion. The Windows 7 offered in this promotion is a full version. You can install this product even though you do not have a previous Operating System installed in your computer or if you want to make a multi boot using Windows 7. The "Upgrade" included in the product name is just
because Windows 7 is the latest Operating System Windows developed.

Sincerely,
Joanna A.

Windows 7 Offer online store ,Customer Service……….Finish Quote.

It looks like Digital River, MS and Students get Windows 7 for $29.99 - Sweet Deal! Hurry - Get it Today made mistakes.

Ah, true. I figured that the downloads or student copies may have been just a temporary promotion like that. OPTION ONE should continue to work with the retail bought copies though, unless MS decides to change it in the future.

okay, this is a bit ugly.

in the webshop for students here in holland theres a description that the upgrade versions will not work on PC's without LEGALLY preinstalled vista or XP(but in the case of XP there needs to be a clean install).

Can i deduct from this that if you dont want to save anything thats currently on your pc u can just format it and put the upgrade version on?

because i jsut ordered retai Fulll Home Premium for 90 euro's, but the student Upgrade 64bit Ultimate! version i can get for 70...

what do u guys think?

Hello Jesse, and welcome to Seven Forums.

It is true that you can do a clean install with a retail (store bought) copy of a Upgrade Windows. The students upgrade copies have been given out with a full version key number as a promotion, so it's not a guarantee for how long the student copies will still be able to do a clean install. To be safe, I would stick with a retail copy instead.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

I just bought a new HD that I want to install the 64 bit version of Win 7 Pro. When Windows asks for the product key, I'm getting an error message stating that it is an invalid key. I double-checked the email that I got from digital river, and the key is correct.

Is the reason I'm getting an error b/c you have to have a previous Win install on the HD, or is there a problem with the Product Key? Thanks for the help.

Hello Nabilalk,

Could be a problem with the key number. If it was an issue about a clean install VS upgrade, you would get a error like the one in OPTION THREE of the tutorial. You might contact Digital Rivers about it to see if they can get you a replacement key number.