windows 7 for xmas. now what do I do????

[theblueflash]

hi to all. new on this forum.

thanks to santa for bringing me a much needed copy of windows 7.

i have a few questions, my apologies if its been covered but its specific.
i cant find any exact info on the net about it.

I have a copy of 7 home prem. (upgrade from vista) and I currently run 32bit vista home prem

-Id like to install 64bit 7 but heard this isnt possible without doing a clean install???
If so can i clean install from the upgrade disc or do i need a full copy of 7???

-Also. If the above query is true would I be able to install the 32bit upgrade then upgrade again from the 64bit disc?????

-Lastly. If i indeed have to do a clean install do I need to backup, delete vista o/s then boot and install 7 or do I install 7 first then delete vista later???

many thanks for any answers in advance

Duncan

 

[Pauly]

Hi, welcome to SF

Firstly if u want 64bit then a clean install is required you cannot upgrade 32 to 64
Yes you can do a clean install with an upgrade disk, see here
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html?filter[2]=General%20Tips

Vista can stay if you want it to if you have two hdd or seperate partitions on one then you can make a dual boot system with 7 & vista then remove vista at a later date when 7 is up and running

Check out these tutorials for more info on partitions and dual boot installing
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/5166-dual-boot-installation-windows-7-vista.html
http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/95398-disk-management-shrink-partition.html

Hope this helps, any probs post back
Paul

 

[Kari]

Hello Blueflash, welcome to the Seven Forums.

In-place upgrade from a 32-bit version to a 64-bit is never possible, so you can forget both scenarios (Vista 32 to Seven 64 or Vista 32 to Seven 32 and further to Seven 64).

You have four possibilities:

1. An in-place upgrade to Win7 32-bit (read more about in-place upgrade here)
2. A custom, clean install formatting the C: drive and installing a fresh copy of Win7, 32 or 64-bit
3. A custom install on top of your current Vista setup, without formatting the C: drive. This method moves your personal files and settings to a folder called Windows.old; when installation is completed you can then move your files to corresponding folders in your new Win7 setup
4. A dual-boot system, keeping Vista and installing Win7 to another partition. (Read more about installing Win7 to a dual-boot system with Vista here)

Whatever you do, use Windows Easy Transfer to transfer your personal files to a safe location before starting the Win7 installation. Methods 1 and 2 should keep your files intact, but as always with computers it's better to be safe than sorry.

Kari

 

[theblueflash]

many thanks for the detailed replies guys. with that in mind i think i'll copy everything i dont want to lose onto my 2nd hard drive and clean install 64bit 7 onto that as well.

that way i can move any data or files i need and uninstall vista at a later date. will just mean changing the boot sequence in bios but id rather be cautious than delete everything and find i need it at some point.

thanks for the welcome, cheers again.

Duncan

 

[richc46]

One last piece of advice. Do not give your key when asked and uncheck the box for automatic activation. Give the number after you used the system and are happy. You have 30 days, but can get up to 120 before you give your number.

 

[theblueflash]

cheers for that. will keep that in mind. think i'll try all of that tonight. is it sad that im looking forward to it???

or is it just that i dislike vista so much.......?

 

[richc46]

cheers for that. will keep that in mind. think i'll try all of that tonight. is it sad that im looking forward to it???

or is it just that i dislike vista so much.......?

You should look forward to it. It is the greatest OS out there. Install and enjoy.

 

[theblueflash]

ok. windows 7 64 bit installed onto 2nd hard drive.

all looks good. internet explorer working (obviously!!)

im now looking at the easy tranfer options. ive used the program to save prgram files/music/pics etc. was about 140gb. this i saved onto the same hard drive as i installed windows 7.

if i go into easy transfer and try to open the 'from old computer' file, nothing happens. right clicking shows that the folder is empty. what has happened to the stuff i saved??? everything seems to be listed in folders beneath it. surely this doesnt mean i have to enter each folder into the new o/s manually???

 

[richc46]

ok. windows 7 64 bit installed onto 2nd hard drive.

all looks good. internet explorer working (obviously!!)

im now looking at the easy tranfer options. ive used the program to save prgram files/music/pics etc. was about 140gb. this i saved onto the same hard drive as i installed windows 7.

if i go into easy transfer and try to open the 'from old computer' file, nothing happens. right clicking shows that the folder is empty. what has happened to the stuff i saved??? everything seems to be listed in folders beneath it. surely this doesnt mean i have to enter each folder into the new o/s manually???

Did you just install easy transfer? There was an update not that long ago. Make sure you have the most current version.

 

[gregrocker]

Please let us know how it sorts out. If you can get just your files out you are ahead, since settings can import corruption.

I am not recommending Easy Transfer any longer. Drag your folders to an external, verify.

Not to mention that it is a corruption path by copying settings from Vista (worst OS ever) into Win7.

 

[richc46]

Please let us know how it sorts out. If you can get just your files out you are ahead, since settings can import corruption.

I am not recommending Easy Transfer any longer. Too many problems.

Not to mention that it is a corruption path by copying settings from Vista (worst OS ever) into Win7.

Its not that much more diffcult to save your documents etc,, on a flash, HD or even CD.
I was lucky I used easy transfer, went smoothly, I also had back up on a flash.

 

[richc46]

ok. windows 7 64 bit installed onto 2nd hard drive.

all looks good. internet explorer working (obviously!!)

im now looking at the easy tranfer options. ive used the program to save prgram files/music/pics etc. was about 140gb. this i saved onto the same hard drive as i installed windows 7.

if i go into easy transfer and try to open the 'from old computer' file, nothing happens. right clicking shows that the folder is empty. what has happened to the stuff i saved??? everything seems to be listed in folders beneath it. surely this doesnt mean i have to enter each folder into the new o/s manually???

As a last resort unless you formatted, you have everything saved in windows.old.

 

[theblueflash]

ive managed to locate the easy transfer file. i designated the D: drive, which is my secondary as a destination for the file but after searching i found it on the C: drive. which is where vista is installed. not exactly sure why it did that but it seems to have installed a lot of my settings, backgrounds, pictures etc. so i guess its worked.

thanks for everyones help. just have to go through the tedious task of installing programs and drivers again. fun.

windows 7 is awesome. no error messages or a single crash yet. good times.

 

[myzr7]

TheBlueFlash. Congratulations on your install. Wish you continued success and Happy New Year!

 

[gregrocker]

Wouldn't change any drivers Win7 installer/Updates provides as they have them first now with Win7. This is not XP or Vista; MS sponsored WHQL partnership with manufacturers to develop Win7 drivers so they have them first.

Check for missing drivers in Device Manager, find them on drivers/apps CD in Upgrade Kit, or on the Support Downloads page for your computer model, or Google exact device name.

When complete, be sure to save a Win7 backup image so you never have to reinstall again, just reimage HD or replacement from your Win7 DVD in 15 minutes using the stored image .

 

[TaraSWinTeam]

ok. windows 7 64 bit installed onto 2nd hard drive.

all looks good. internet explorer working (obviously!!)

im now looking at the easy tranfer options. ive used the program to save prgram files/music/pics etc. was about 140gb. this i saved onto the same hard drive as i installed windows 7.

if i go into easy transfer and try to open the 'from old computer' file, nothing happens. right clicking shows that the folder is empty. what has happened to the stuff i saved??? everything seems to be listed in folders beneath it. surely this doesnt mean i have to enter each folder into the new o/s manually???

Congratulations on the installation! I hope you enjoy Windows 7. For Easy Transfer and other information regarding installing your files: Transferring files and settings: frequently asked questions.

Cheers,
Tara
Windows Outreach Team

 

[theblueflash]

somebody please help!!! im tearing my hair out.

i now have two o/s on two seperate hard drives.
id like to remove vista from the 1st and change it to the slave hd.
that will leave win 7 and all future data on larger hd which i want as master.

problem.
i cant remove vista!!!! this seems to be a simple fix for some. some suggestions are to overwrite it with another o/s. pointless as ive installed win 7 on a diff hd.

re-format the drive. tried in discmanagement but it wont let me.

and another problem. after restoring setting from easy transfer file my 500gb hard drive only has 50gb free!!! windows 7 is 450gb??? wtf?

im in a lot of bother so any advice will be seriously appreciated. thanks

 

[gregrocker]

Vista holds the boot critical files which need to be moved to Win7 first.

Please post back a screenshot of your full Disk Management map so we can advise you of the specific steps to achieve what you want. Use Snipping Tool in Start Menu, attach file using paper clip in reply box.

Study the files in your Win7 root with file view set to Details to see what is there. Look for windows.old, which is the entire previous OS files if you clean installed from Vista? You can delete it using Disk Cleanup after retrieving all needed files.

 

[theblueflash]

so does that mean its a shared file? if i remove vista 7 wont function properly?

ive got everything important on an external hd. i wouldnt mind removing vista and seven, then installing from scratch. if thats possible?

 

[zigzag3143]

so does that mean its a shared file? if i remove vista 7 wont function properly?

ive got everything important on an external hd. i wouldnt mind removing vista and seven, then installing from scratch. if thats possible?

should you decide to do that, install vista first then seven


Ken J+