New to Windows 7 , could use Advice

[KnorSan]

Hi all i am an Windows Xp profesional home user and want to do an OS Change to Windows home premium 64 -bits Edition , and i could use some advice on how to proceed with this , to be honest my Pc " Know how " is limited to average at best


I,ve read , and bin told anlot that Windows 7 is more secure on system security , is more stable and apparently performance is above that of Windows xp .

i,d like to use the 64 -bits Version because this offers the use of more System RAM and thus more performance i reckon , but i am hesitant aswell because i,m not sure if it would be compatible with anlot of programs used these days ,

What are the most important things i should be aware off ? ...is basicly my question



i have checked all my system hardware and they should be compatible with Windows 7 Pro 64 -bits

this is my hardware :

-Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 / 2.83 GHz ( 1333 MHz ) - LGA775 Socket - L2 12 MB

-OCZ Gold Dual Channel Kit - memory - 4 GB : 2 x 2 GB - DIMM 240-pins - DDR2 - 1066 MHz / PC2-8500 - CL5 - 2.1 V

-Samsung SpinPoint F1 Desktop Class HD502IJ - 500 GB - intern - 3.5" - SATA-300 - 7200 tpm -buffer: 16 MB , 2 HD,s

-corsair Professional Series HX750W - PSU - ATX12V 2.3/ EPS12V 2.91 - 120-240 V

- Asus P5Q deluxe -p45 Chipset with DDR2 motherboard

-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro Series - soundcard - 24-bits - 192 kHz - 109 dB SNR


i Bought it all recently and it,s running well in my Windows Xp pro setup


Could i use for example the exact same Memory Module wich i use for this and Add it in windows 7 , 64 Bit ? so that will make up for 8 Gig RAM

and for the users of 64 bit windows 7 how do you expirience this OS , what is your opinion on it ?


Some replies would be greatly appreciated

 

[mickey megabyte]

well, i love my x64 and i've never had problems running 32-bit software. windows 7 is clever enough to run either type.

the only issue some people have is finding 64bit drivers for their hardware - but thanks to windows 7, there are a lot more x64 users out there, so most hardware manufacturers do now provide 32 and 64 bit drivers. if you've got an old printer (for example) you may have driver troubles...

...and yes , you can have 8gb ram if you need it. you can use 192 gb if you really want with windows 7.

 

[KnorSan]

Ah Thx Mickey for the quik reply so you,re saying it,s even possible to use anlot of 32 -bit,s program,s without much trouble ? ..that,s nice


did you never had any stability problems with your setup ,crashes , mhnn bleuscreens , performance isseus or maybe an " needed " driver

are you satisfied aswell with the security of it?

thx again

 

[fireberd]

You will have to do a complete "clean" install, as you can't "upgrade" from XP to Win 7. Generally, the install is the same as XP except you need Windows 7, 64 bit device drivers so get all the drivers before you actually do the install.

You should consider getting a new hard drive for Win 7, that way you will still have XP on the current drive in case there is a need to fall back or use XP. Install the new drive as the primary (drive 0) and disconnect the XP drive until Win 7 is installed. Then install it as a second drive (SATA port 1). You can boot from it if you wanted to run XP for whatever reason through the boot menu in your BIOS (I have an Intel and F12 at boot will allow me to select which drive to boot from). After you have Win 7 running and your applications installed you will probably find you don't need XP and you can then use the second drive from backups of your Win 7 drive (I use Acronis True Image and do regular full hard drive backups).

I have been in computers since "before PC's" and find Win 7 the best graphical OS that Microsoft has put out. It is very stable and I have never had a "blue screen" or hang up when shutting down the system, like XP is prone to have. One "shock" you will have is that Windows 7 does not include an e-mail program, you can download the free Microsoft "Windows Live Mail" program but it is much different than the Outlook Express that comes with XP. I would also suggest you download and install the free Microsoft Security Essentials Antivirus program and use that. It is highly rated (and rated higher than some major "name" security software).

 

[DocBrown]

I have 5 computers running X64 Windows7, 3 Ultimate, 1 Prof, 1 Enterprise. All the x64s have run just fine with very few minor problems. Security has been good with AVG antivirus, MalWareBytes, & my Linksys router & Windows Firewall

 

[mickey megabyte]

Ah Thx Mickey for the quik reply so you,re saying it,s even possible to use anlot of 32 -bit,s program,s without much trouble ? ..that,s nice


did you never had any stability problems with your setup ,crashes , mhnn bleuscreens , performance isseus or maybe an " needed " driver

are you satisfied aswell with the security of it?

thx again

personally, i've found that x64 runs 32 bit software with no problems.

personally, i've had no stability problems, and all my hardware is relatively new and standard, and no problems finding drivers.

security is also no problem. windows 7 comes with windows firewall and defender, but you will need an antivirus solution - i use the free and highly-regarded microsoft security essentials.

of course, some people do have trouble with x64, but i would say that most people do not have problems.

 

[DarkScorpion]

My Windows 7 64 bit runs my 32 bit software with no problem. Windows 7 is great improvement, and it is very safe, reliable, and speedy.

Your computer will easily run Windows 7, and if you are not sure if you want to switch, you could do a dual boot system, installing Windows 7 next to your Windows XP, just install on a different partition. You can check out these guides below. I've actually Quad booted before, and it was Very easy.

### Dual Boot- Windows 7 with XP installed First. ###

 

[Layback Bear]

MSE and Windows 7 built in firewall is a very good choice. Most of the problems that people have is not Windows 7 problems. It's installing drivers and programs that are not acceptable to Windows 7. Many problems come from trying to tweak Windows 7 like we did with older operating systems. Not needed in Windows 7, it works great all by inself. IMHO you will not need a bunch of third party programs to tweak Windows 7 either. Most of them cause more problems that I know you don't want. Having said all that, Windows 7 is a operating system that we have looking for. If installed with due indigents and using programs that are accepted by Window 7/64 you will love it. It doesn't do things the way XP does so there will be a short learning curve. Give Windows 7 and yourself a little time to get use to each other. Of course you can always come here with any questions. I have Windows 7 Home Premium 64 and I think it's GREAT.

 

[gregrocker]

When you boot the Win7 upgrade installer, it will see XP and pass a flag to allow use of upgrade version key - even if you then go on to delete, repartition and format using the Custom>Advanced drive tools.

Make your Recovery DIsks or save a backup image of the entire HD first so you have a path back to factory condition if needed. Backup your files externally and gather your program installers. If you need any Product Keys for programs, audit your HD using Belarc Advisor.

The installer is mostly driver-complete, with newer arriving quickly via optional Windows Updates. Any drivers then missing in Device Manager can be found on the Support Downloads webpage for your model computer or device.

Install updates and then programs slowly over time to gauge performance after each. Don't let any programs write themselves into msconfig>Startup as they become freeloaders on your RAM/CPU and can spy on you. I only allow AV and gadgets. http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-debugging/70248-troubleshooting-msconfig.html

Use a lightweight free AV like MS Security Essentials which works perfectly with Windows 7 Firewall. http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/

When it is finished, clean and order the HD perfectly using state-of-the-art free CCleaner then Auslogics Disk and Registry defraggers monthly.

Then save a Win7 Backup image externally so you never have to reinstall again, just reimage the HD or replacement using DVD or Repair CD. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/663-backup-complete-computer-create-image-backup.html

 

[Layback Bear]

Just a little something extra. After doing all that installing of operating system and your chosen programs I would do a defrag. Some time things get spread all over the hard drive.