New Info release from MS on UPGRADE

fakeasdf said:

I've been wondering if it had to be ultimate... Have you read somewhere where it said you needed to upgrade to ultimate? It makes sense from ultimate to ultimate, but I haven't read any specifics on it having to be to ultimate...

Yes you can't downgrade you have to upgrade to the same version or a higher version that is allowed. I just assume most people are using ultimate since that is what version MS gave a key for, you could of course be using a lower version and upgrade from that.

Microsoft recently confirmed that it is also possible to upgrade a pre-RTM version of Windows 7 with a Windows 7 Upgrade edition. This means that users who are already running Windows 7 RC (or another build) can buy a Windows 7 Upgrade edition and get a full installation of Windows 7 this way.

blog msn gives 100% concrete on how to upgrade from 7100 to RTM.

blogs.msdn.com/e7 said:

One other related caution is INSTALL ONLY OFFICIALLY RELEASED BUILDS FROM MICROSOFT. It will always be tempting to get the build with the “mod” already done but you really never know what else has been done to the build. There’s a thrill in getting the latest, we know, but that also comes with risks that can’t even be quantified. For the RC we will work to release a hash or some other way to validate the build, but the best way is to always download directly from Microsoft.
Here’s what you can do to bypass the check for pre-release upgrade IF YOU REALLY REALLY NEED TO:

So I can't do a clean install with a Home Premium Upgrade disk from any of the betas since they are all the Ultimate version? Some say the installation process will ask you to insert a qualifying disk, others don't seem to think that's the case. I didn't use an upgrade disk with Vista, so I'm not sure how that went.

Snuffy said:

blog msn gives 100% concrete on how to upgrade from 7100 to RTM.

100% recommended way to upgrade (clean install) but you can still do an upgrade without having to clean install.

dmb219 said:

So I can't do a clean install with a Home Premium Upgrade disk from any of the betas since they are all the Ultimate version? Some say the installation process will ask you to insert a qualifying disk, others don't seem to think that's the case. I didn't use an upgrade disk with Vista, so I'm not sure how that went.

You have it backwards, if you purchase the home premium upgrade you have to do a clean install because it is a lower version than the ultimate you are currently using.

You have it backwards, if you purchase the home premium upgrade you have to do a clean install because it is a lower version than the ultimate you are currently using.[/QUOTE]

Ok, gotcha. That is how I understood it and that is what I want to do. Reading too many opinions!

Thanx!

dmb219 said:

So I can't do a clean install with a Home Premium Upgrade disk from any of the betas since they are all the Ultimate version? Some say the installation process will ask you to insert a qualifying disk, others don't seem to think that's the case. I didn't use an upgrade disk with Vista, so I'm not sure how that went.

Yes, you can clean install from the BETA Version. All you have to do is install the Beta version of Home Premium.

Need more info PM me for details.

The RC is ultimate, right? Well I just pre-ordered the Home Premium upgrade disc, can I clean install (with "windows.old") to Home Premium from the RC which is Ultimate?

quickquestion said:

The RC is ultimate, right? Well I just pre-ordered the Home Premium upgrade disc, can I clean install (with "windows.old") to Home Premium from the RC which is Ultimate?

Yes.

I just read in another thread that a validated install of XP, Vista or W7 Beta will qualify you for a clean install from the upgrade disc, but once you've installed the final version, you can't do a clean install again with the upgrade disc - the final version of W7 isn't acceptable. That makes no sense but that's what is being said. I find that hard to believe.