Hi can anyone help me? I pre ordered 2 copies of win 7 full retail premium discs,The website I ordered from sent me 2 copies of win 7 premium upgradeI'm not sure how the upgrade works,Do these discs come with their own cd keys,so all I need is a previous operating system to install.Or do I need two copies of vista with vista keys or even xp before I can upgrade to windows 7?
I need to know before I send these back to get full copies...thanks in advance
Welcome aboard
Keys should come with the DVD's. If you payed for full copies then send the upgrades back and get the correct product.
Ken
If you already have Vista or Xp on the machines, then you can go ahead and use the Upgrades if you accidentally paid for them by mistake.
Just run the disk from the desktop and have it do a Custom clean install over the Vista/XP, which will put your files in a windows.old folder for redistribution. If you have Vista you can even do an in-place Upgrade which reinstalls your Programs, files and settings.
Or boot from the disk and do a Custom clean install that will allow you to delete Vista and do a cleaner install using Advanced Tools that Delete old, Create New, and Format.
Thanks.As long as I can do a fresh install and don't need vista or xp keys first then these upgrades will do me.Or am I wrong?
Upgrade installers haven't asked for keys since XP release.
However you need to have XP or Vista to qualify under the EULA to Upgrade. If either of these OS are installed then the Installer will read them whether it is run from the desktop or booted into.
If your XP or Vists are not installed, you can use this workaround to install to a blank HDD:
http://community.winsupersite.com/bl...he-answer.aspx
I totally erased the HD on my laptop and did an install with the Home Premium Upgrade DVD.
When it complained that this was only for upgrades and not fresh installs (since it didn't find anything at all on the HD), I just ran the install again.
A bit slower than the registry change, but easier.
P.S. - The image took 2/3 of one DVD after I have loaded in IObit, MSE, WinPatrol, Shark's codecs, IrfanView, Tunnelier SSH, and some gadgets. Not bad.
I paid £70 for each,on the site the upgrade is £70 and now the full is at £85.There wasn't any upgrades on the site when I ordered.I think they got mixed up somehow with the pricing.If i had have known the price was going to stay low on release I would have just went to a local shop to get them,Now that I know I can clean install then I'll just keep these.Thanks for help everyone.
Keep your XP/Vista keys readable for the life of the Upgrade in case qualification for Upgrade should ever come up during reinstall, perhaps elevating activation to a MS phone person.
But you'll never have to reinstall again if you use Win7 Backup Imaging to store externally a backup image of your HDD which can reimage your HDD (or a replacement) in 15 minutes from the repair console on your Installer.
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