Old problem (2011) new for me - Win 7 Ult 64bit post-install

Was this Dell preinstalled with Win7, and you used the Dell Reinstallation or Recovery media to install Win7 on the Lenovo? If so you'd need to buy a new Win7 key, which comes with its own installation media to Clean Install Windows 7. Using Dell media likely accounts for the missing information on the System page.

If you already have a Product Key then use the same media provided and same steps as in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7.

I have a Lenovo G500 which required in BIOS setup disabling Secure Boot on Security tab, then enabling Legacy Mode and UEFI first if you want a UEFI install. If you want a Legacy install to an MBR disk then you need to set Legacy First, go to final BIOS tab to Reset to Factory Defaults (not Windows 8 defaults). Either way you should delete all partitions during the booted install.

Thanks for both replies.

1st - I can't re-install Windows 8 but I had done what you suggested when I did the initial install at least up to the point of simulating Windows 7 without the 'classic shell' part because I didn't/don't know anything about that. Long story short, I worked with Lenovo customer support and the Lenovo forum for almost 6 weeks but got nowhere; cs was looking for money and the forum had a bunch of questions almost exactly like mine because my machine was one of the first out the door (y410p) without any real, workable answers and I was way beyond the point of being without a computer (End of July 2013 - middle of September 2013) so I ultimately wiped the drive and installed the 7.

2nd - Yes, I know all about 'leasing' and I know when it began, around 1984 when I came home with software and for the first time I read it was leased and not purchased. Did you know that originally software was purchased/owned? I drove back to the store and demanded a refund but ultimately we are all over a barrel of greed but I'll say no more about that. Fact is I 'bought' Win 7 Pro 32bit oem for a black box desktop and Win 7 home 64bit oem for another one. The Win 7 Ult 64bit is a 'backup' disk that came with the laptop that died last year and I replaced with the y410p but since it was so late in the game I couldn't get a 'newly leased' version so I used my backup which registered fine no problem since it is a bona fide Microsoft product.

I am going to check out that link you sent me. Really, the only reason I want this OS is for the Bitlocker Drive Encryption utility; originally it was also for the 64bit but almost none of the software I have or can buy comes 64bit, at least not yet. And since I had gone into the BIOS to change all the settings to 'legacy' and then downloaded/installed the 7 drivers from Lenovo, the machine seems to run ok but I DID see different system characteristics like AMD cpu and Intel, etc. in different places and can not install SP1.

Thanks for reading all this; if there's a character limit it will blow my mind!!! I'm off to check that link

I don't know what you mean exactly by "leasing" software or who said anything about that here. You purchase Win7 retail in a box or with a PC and it then belongs to you for its life or the life of the PC to reinstall as often and in the way you please. OEM's may deny this to try to enforce their bloatware but that 's the reason MS requires them to put the COA sticker with Product Key on the PC.

You said you bought two retail OEM Win7's licenses, correct? Those are locked to the first mobo installed upon, so you'd have to have never installed one of them to use its Key to activate this install.

You said you used another PC's Reinstallation DVD to install Win7 on the Lenovo. What you haven't made clear is how you activated it. This disk should not activate on another PC because a branded reinstallation DVD contains factory SLP activation which works only on the PC it is intended for. Check now at Computer>Properties to see the activation status.

If you don't have SP1 then you've not got Win7 yet. I don't know why you can't install it from Windows Update unless you have not run them all yet. The first thing you should do after install is to enable Automatically deliver drivers via Windows Update (Step 3) then run all of your Important and Optional Windows Updates, with reboots, until there are no more to get your drivers and patches. Only import drivers from Lenovo that are still missing.

If you have a way to activate Win7 then I would start over as I said before with the official installer with SP1 for your licensed version provided in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7, then follow those steps so that you get a perfect install.

just lost 2 replies due to entering in 'quick' then clicking on 'post reply'

gregrocker said:

I don't know what you mean exactly by "leasing" software or who said anything about that here. You purchase Win7 retail in a box or with a PC and it then belongs to you for its life or the life of the PC to reinstall as often and in the way you please. OEM's may deny this to try to enforce their bloatware but that 's the reason MS requires them to put the COA sticker with Product Key on the PC.

You said you bought two retail OEM Win7's licenses, correct? Those are locked to the first mobo installed upon, so you'd have to have never installed one of them to use its Key to activate this install.

You said you used another PC's Reinstallation DVD to install Win7 on the Lenovo. What you haven't made clear is how you activated it. This disk should not activate on another PC because a branded reinstallation DVD contains factory SLP activation which works only on the PC it is intended for. Check now at Computer>Properties to see the activation status.

If you don't have SP1 then you've not got Win7 yet. I don't know why you can't install it from Windows Update unless you have not run them all yet. The first thing you should do after install is to enable Automatically deliver drivers via Windows Update (Step 3) then run all of your Important and Optional Windows Updates, with reboots, until there are no more to get your drivers and patches. Only import drivers from Lenovo that are still missing.

If you have a way to activate Win7 then I would start over as I said before with the official installer with SP1 for your licensed version provided in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7, then follow those steps so that you get a perfect install.

I can't believe how much typing I've lost but now I want to mark this as solved by you.

And what was the exact solution?

Well, there were several that you provided, namely the links to your site. For those I am happy.
As far as the mobo comment, I am fully aware that you've answered your own question as to who was talking about leasing vs buying (above) and truth be told, since last writing I bought a USB DVD RW for $45 which now makes my defunct Dell operational again and will most likely re-install this OS back on it and put the 'Retail Box' on here because that transcends hardware, as I'm sure you know. OEM with a pc is tied to the hardware; Retail Box is in no way tied. You think anyone would pay whatever, $400+, for an OS tied to hardware?
But I really didn't want to go there! The simple fact is, you are one of the, if not THE most knowledgeable Windows technicians since:
"Cd Mom the Mother of All Windows Books"by Woody Leonhard (Author), Barry Simon (Author)


and
PC Mom: The Mother of All PC Books by Woody Leonhard and Barry Simon (Oct 1994)



What you suggested, I intentionally did not do, namely during installation enable Windows Update; I also did not load the .NET framework and I don't remember what else because I had no intention of doing any updates, etc. It was only later, much later, that I began to load programs that needed Windows updates (some) to be present.

This machine was to be my 'offline' machine and the desktop the online machine. Lenovo provided drivers for 7; they did not provide the option of purchasing the OS.
BTW, the 7 Update Advisor just told me the Lenovo ACPI-Compliant Virtual Power Controller and WSE 3 runtime are both not compatable with Win 7 but I don't care.

So, much as I hate the thought of it (time-wise), I am going to do exactly what you said:

"If you have a way to activate Win7 then I would start over as I said before with the official installer with SP1 for your licensed version provided in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7, then follow those steps so that you get a perfect install."

and THAT is the solution to my issue and I truly thank you too!

Old Man Pete

So my machine made 2 trips to Lenovo since the end of this thread, one in 8/2014 to their Texas facility and the other in 9/2014 to their North Carolina software SWAT team (yes, that's what they call them). Both times it returned with Windows 8.
Long story short, last week plugged in the external drive with my system re-image and the system repair dvd into the optical drive, did a diskpart> clean all ... followed by a clean re-image of the system disk with the backups I made after first registering Windows. Then found the SP1 in the Windows online center and installed it so now I'm a happy camper with a lean OS and the exact applications I installed a year ago and of course, just did another system image and system repair set of backups so I won't have to go through hoops again should I need to do a refresh.

Who solved the problem? Me? You? I'm pragmatic and have a sense of humor too so perhaps I'll throw in Lenovo's terrible support as a possible solution provider too but I just wanted to formally close what I had opened and in a quick perusal of the entire thread I am mystified as to where my head had gone for all those months ... Nevernever Land!