Clean Install of Win 7 64 from Upgrade Disc

I just ordered a Win 7 upgrade disc. Here's my question. I have Vista Home Premium 32 bit installed on my Dell. No restore disc, (at least I don't remember seeing one), but it has that restore partition. I'd like to add a new hard drive to my system and do a clean install using the Win 7 Upgrade disc but I'd like to make it the 64 bit version.

Can this be done? I can leave both hard drives in the system. Will a Win 7 Upgrade disc install a 64 bit version if it can find a valid 32 bit Vista installed on a second hard drive?

If this works and I later delete all traces of Vista off the old drive (as in the re-install partition) will the Win 7 Upgrade disc be useless for a fresh install?

Thanks,
regkaz

Unfortunately you cannot perform a Clean Install with an Upgrade cd with 7 the way you could with Vista and XP.

However, I believe if you load the Windows 7 cd from inside Vista and choose Custom install, that should give you a fresh install of Windows 7 on whichever hard drive you choose. Once it is up and running, you can format your Vista drive and you should have a completely clean Windows 7 install.

I am not sure about running the 64-bit setup from a 32-bit OS though...that could be a problem.

I would like to know the answer to this question also, from XP to 7. I know that you have to do a "custom install" i.e. "clean install" from inside XP so that it can verify the prior OS is installed, but once I wipe that partition to install 7 (obviously without activating it, since we don't have the keys yet), will it just be a matter of running the non-activated 7 OS until we receive the upgrade key we purchased?

Probably the best answer is just to wait. But I am just curious once the RTM comes out, how this might work.

Damon

ps not asking for any hacks, cracks or other illegal methods of installation

regkaz said:

I just ordered a Win 7 upgrade disc. Here's my question. I have Vista Home Premium 32 bit installed on my Dell. No restore disc, (at least I don't remember seeing one), but it has that restore partition. I'd like to add a new hard drive to my system and do a clean install using the Win 7 Upgrade disc but I'd like to make it the 64 bit version.

Can this be done? I can leave both hard drives in the system. Will a Win 7 Upgrade disc install a 64 bit version if it can find a valid 32 bit Vista installed on a second hard drive?

If this works and I later delete all traces of Vista off the old drive (as in the re-install partition) will the Win 7 Upgrade disc be useless for a fresh install?

Thanks,
regkaz

Ok first we need your computer specs.

thanks

ken

It's a Dell with a quad core Intel. I'm at work so I don't know the exact chip. Has to be 64 bit if it's quad, right? I've got 3 gig of DDR2. Video is Nvidia 8800. 650 gig SATA HD, 2 SATA DVDs.

Use Easy Transfer for your user settings and backup everything. Then boot from the Win7 CD, Win 7 will see your copy of Vista, then go to custom install, and select advanced, format the C drive, then follow the instructions to install Win7 64. You will have a clean install. then you can then reinstall all your programs. .
have fun.
Kenn

Very cool. That's what I was hoping. Thanks.

ken9122 said:

Use Easy Transfer for your user settings and backup everything. Then boot from the Win7 CD, Win 7 will see your copy of Vista, then go to custom install, and select advanced, format the C drive, then follow the instructions to install Win7 64. You will have a clean install. then you can then reinstall all your programs. .
have fun.
Kenn

I thought that the consensus (if there was one) was that in order to do a custom (clean) install with the upgrade disc, you have to run the installer from **inside** the previously installed OS, because that is how W7 verifies that you have a licensed OS already on the machine.

Are you saying that you can boot directly into W7 install disc and it will verify the previous OS license? I would hate to over-write my old OS with W7, and then on Oct 22 try to enter my license key and find out that it doesn't work because I used the incorrect "upgrade" procedure.

I have Fujitsu S6510 laptop 4GB ram 32 bit XP (purchased pre-order upgrade Home Premium and would like to install 64 bit).

Damon

DWillens said:

I thought that the consensus (if there was one) was that in order to do a custom (clean) install with the upgrade disc, you have to run the installer from **inside** the previously installed OS, because that is how W7 verifies that you have a licensed OS already on the machine.

That is my understanding since it's an upgrade disc.