Vista 32 bit to Windows 7 32 bit

craney5 · 02 Jan 2011

Hi all

Im thinking of upgrading my dell laptop to windows 7, currently running vista 32 bit and i hate vista more than anything. Anyway my main point is im looking to buy windows 7 32 bit to install to the laptop, on my main desktop i also have windows 7 installed but i used the 64 bit disk. As I have both the 32 bit and 64 bit home premium disks can i use the 32 bit disk i already have to install onto my laptop and say go and buy a 64 bit oem disk and use that license to activate the 32bit install on my laptop?

I would rather install the 64 bit but not sure if my laptop cpu supports it, its a dual core Pentium t4200 2.0ghz

Just curious to know also how long do you get until you need to activate windows? i was thinking of ordering it tonight and installing it tonight with the disk i have then activate it once the oem key come thru?

hope you can help

many thanks

EDIT

I have just run the upgrade advisor and i can install windows 7 32 bit and all the devices on the laptop will work fine. Will i need to download all the drivers from the dell site 1st or will windows pick them up by itself?

Bare Foot Kid · 02 Jan 2011

Hello.

Run this on the lappy to see any issues you may face with 64-bit.

Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

You get 120 days.

Activation Trial Period - Extend Up to 120 Days

theog · 02 Jan 2011

If you use a OEM key 32 or 64,& Retail key 64bit you need to do Clean Install.
If you use a Retail key 32bit, you can UpGrade from Vista.
Download all drivers from dell to USB stick.

craney5 · 02 Jan 2011

HI mate i have run the test and it says the 32 bit will work fine so i would prob go with that. I only have 3gb of RAM so i wont really benefit from 64bit i guess anyway.

All the devices seemed to be compat with 7 as well which was a good sign. Would i have to download all the drivers from the dell site 1st or will windows pick them up? im guessing i would have to install the wireless adaptor driver manually or i would not be able to even get on the internet :)

As i already have a 32b bit home premium disk from my desktop installation could i install 7 onto my laptop using that disk and then activate it once i have bought another disk or could i even purchase a license online?

Thanks again barefoot

Bare Foot Kid · 02 Jan 2011

craney5 said:

As i already have a 32b bit home premium disk from my desktop installation could i install 7 onto my laptop using that disk and then activate it once i have bought another disk or could i even purchase a license online?

Just don't enter a activation key when presented with this dialog box during the installation process, then use the tutorial I posted above to extend the activation period until you get a new key.

See the post made by theog above.

click to enlarge

Vista 32 bit to Windows 7 32 bit-no-key.jpg

gregrocker · 02 Jan 2011

You're not qualified to run OEM to upgrade your laptop from Vista whether you clean install or in-place Upgrade.

Builder's OEM is restricted to use by a computer builder only: Windows 7 OEM and Regular?

You need a retail Upgrade version. The best deal right now is Home Premium Family 3-pack at $125 on Amazon and newegg.com which is almost 3 licenses for the price of one. These can migrate to any qualifying computer for life, as long as it has XP or Vista or you have a retail Xp/Vista on hand as qualifier.