Clean Install Windows 7

How to Do a Clean Installation with Windows 7​

   Information

This will show you how to do a clean installation with a retail Windows 7. A OEM Windows 7 may have a few different screens than below, but basically the same.

Yes, you can do a clean install from a upgrade Windows 7 version.
NOTE: See this tutorial for how: Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

   Note

Do a Clean Installation if:

• Your computer has no operating system installed, or it’s running a version of Windows prior to Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 (including Windows XP).
• You do NOT want to preserve your data, programs, or system drivers.
• You want to delete your current operating system and replace it with Windows 7.
• You want to create a multiboot system by installing Windows 7 on a separate hard disk partition.

   Tip

• Sometimes you may have a problem with installing Windows 7 with more than 2 GB of RAM installed on some older motherboards. If you have this problem, then you should install Windows 7 with a maximum of 2GB of RAM installed and add the rest of the RAM after Windows 7 is fully installed. You may need to flash your motherboard BIOS with the latest version to support more RAM like this. (WARNING - DO NOT FLASH THE BIOS if you do not know what you are doing. Please ask for help instead. One mistake can kill your motherboard permanently.)
• Before doing this clean install, you should download and save all of your device drivers to a USB flash drive, DVD, another HDD, or some other media to have them handy to make setting Windows 7 up easier when finished installing Windows 7. For example, having the network driver available in case you cannot connect to the internet until it's installed.

   Warning

Windows 7 Minimum Hardware Requirements:

NOTE: For more information on this, see: Windows 7 system requirements

• 1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor
• 1 GB RAM for 32-bit Windows 7 OR 2 GB RAM for 64-bit Windows 7
• 16 GB available hard disk space for 32-bit Windows 7 OR 20 GB for 64-bit Windows 7
• Graphics card or chip that supports DirectX 9 with 128 MB memory (to have Aero theme enabled)
• DVD-R/W drive, or bootable USB 2.0 port with Windows 7 USB flash drive
• Internet or phone access to activate Windows 7.

Here's How:1. Boot the computer from your Windows 7 installation DVD/USB.
NOTE: Make sure that the CD/DVD drive is selected first and your HDD second in the boot priority order in your BIOS settings. Usually it is by default.

   Warning

If you want to install Windows 7 using UEFI instead of BIOS, then see this below first.

How to Install Windows 7 Using "Unified Extensible Firmware Interface" (UEFI)

   Note

If you do not have a Windows 7 with SP1 installation DVD/USB, then you can download the latest official Windows 7 with SP1 ISO file at the links below.

:ar: Microsoft Software Recovery

:ar: Microsoft: Windows 7 Direct Download Links

You can use Windows 7 USB-DVD Download Tool to create a bootable DVD or USB flash drive with the ISO to do the clean install with.

2. If using a DVD, then when prompted, press any key to boot from the installation DVD. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: You will only have about 8 seconds to press this key. If you miss it, you will have to restart the computer.
3. Set up your language preferences, and click on the Next button. (See screeshot below).
4. Click on the Install Now button to start the installation. (See screenshot below)
5. Check the I accept the license terms box, and click on Next. (See screenshot below)
6. Click on the Custom (advanced) option. (See screenshot below)
7. Select the hard drive or partition that you want to install Windows 7 on, and click on the Drive Options (advanced) link. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: If the hard drive or partition that you have selected is unallocated, then you can just click on the Next button instead and go to step 9 since it is already empty.
WARNING: You may not have the Drive options (advanced) option unless the installation is done at boot, and not running the installation from within your current OS.
8. Select a hard drive or partition that you want to do a clean install of Windows 7 on, do what Drive options (advanced) you want if any, and click on the Next button when finished. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: If you have your hard drives in a RAID setup, then connect your USB key with the RAID drivers on it, click on Load Driver, select the folder on the USB key that contains the RAID drivers to install them. Afterwards, your RAID drives will be available to select from to install Windows 7 on.

   Tip

Drive options (advanced)

• If you have more than one partition for a disk # (hard drive) and want to get rid of them to make that disk # one partition drive again, then select a partition with that disk # and click on the Delete option for each partition with the same disk # until there is only one "unallocated space" with that disk # left as in the screenshot below.
• To shrink an existing partition to create another partition to install Windows 7 on instead, select the partition you want shrink and click on the Extend option. Type in how much in MB (1 GB = 1024 MB) that you want to shrink it by. Now select the new extended partition.

   Note

The 100 MB System Reserved partition is used for the Boot Manager code, BCD (Boot Configuration Database), System Recovery Options (Windows RE), and start up files for BitLocker (if turned on).

• If you want to have the 100 MB System Reserved partition in addition to the Windows 7 C: partition on a HDD or SSD after installation, then you would need to make sure that all partitions on the drive have been deleted until it is only unallocated space. Next, select the unallocated drive to install Windows 7 on. If there are no partitions on the disk, you will get the 100 MB System Reserved.
• If you do not want to have the 100 MB System Reserved partition and only the Windows 7 C: partition on a HDD or SSD after installation, then select a formatted partition or drive to install Windows 7 on. If there are any partitions on the disk, you won't get the 100 MB System Reserved.

9. The installation of Windows 7 will now begin. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: During the installation process, your screen may flash and computer will restart a few times.
10. After the final restart, you will see this screen for a moment. (See screenshot below)
11. Type in any user name that you want for your default administrator account and any computer name, then click on the Next button. (See screenshot below)
12. Type in a password you want for your default administrator account. Type it in again to confirm it, then type in a hint for your password. Click on the Next button. (See screenshots below)
WARNING: The password will be case sensitive. The hint will be seen by all users on the computer, so do not type your password as the hint.
NOTE: If you do not want your your user account password protected at this time or do not want to have to type in a hint, then leave this blank and click on the Next button. You can create a password later for your user account in the Control Panel User Accounts after installing Windows 7 without having to type in a hint.


13. Type in your Windows 7 product key number. (See screenshot below step 14)

14. Uncheck the Automatically activate Windows when I'm online box, then click on the Next button. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: You can activate Windows 7 later after you make sure it is running properly. (See step 21 below)
If you chose to automatically activate Windows 7 online when you set up your computer, automatic activation begins trying to activate your copy of Windows three days after you log on for the first time.
15. Click on Use recommended settings to allow automatic Windows Updates and proper security settings. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: For more information about these recommended settings, click on the Learn more about each option link in this window.
16. Select your time zone and set your time and date settings, then click on the Next button. (See screenshot below)
17. Click on your computer's correct network location type location to select it and have the settings for that location automatically applied. (See screenshot below)
18. Windows 7 will now prepare your desktop to startup. (See screenshots below)


19. When it's finished and you are at your desktop, you can now remove or disconnect your installation DVD/USB from step 1 above.

20. Install all of your device drivers, then Windows Updates.

21. Refresh your Windows Experience Index (WEI) score.

22. When finished, all you will need to do is to activate Windows 7. (See screenshot below)

   Tip

If you are dual booting with another OS (ex: Vista), then that OS partition may not show up in Computer with a driver letter in Windows 7. You will need to add a drive letter to the OS (ex: Vista) partition in Windows 7 Disk Management for it to show up in Computer with a driver letter.

That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

---

• How to Downgrade Windows 8 to Windows 7
• How to Do a Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version
• How to Use Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor
• How to Do a Upgrade Installation with Windows 7
• How to Setup Windows 7 to Boot from a VHD (Virtual Hard Disk)
• How to Create a Windows 7 VHD at Boot to Start with from Boot
• How to Do a Repair Install to Fix Windows 7
• How to Activate Windows 7 Online
• How to Extend the Windows 7 Activation Trial Period Up to 120 Days
• How to Change the Default Operating System to Start in Windows 7
• How to Change Time to Display Operating Systems at Boot in Windows 7
• How to Delete an Operating System Listed in Windows Boot Manager
• How to Create a Windows 7 Installation USB Key
• How to Install Windows 7 from USB Pen Drive Using Grub4Dos
• How to Create a New Partition or Volume in Windows 7
• How to Fix Missing Vista Hard Disk Partition Letter in Windows 7
• How to Setup a Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista
• How to Setup a Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and XP
• How to Install Windows 7 FAST without a DVD or USB Device
• Install Windows 7 Without Using Any External Device
• How to Do a Custom Installation of Windows 7
• How to Partition the Hard Drive in a Windows 7 Install
• How to Install Windows 7 on Computer with Less than 512MB RAM
• Slipstream Windows 7 SP1 and Updates to Create a Bootable USB, Installation DVD, or ISO File
• How to Do a Clean Install of Windows 7 from the Windows 7 Desktop
• How to Do a Clean Install of Windows 7 from the Windows XP Desktop
• How to Install Windows 7 Using "Unified Extensible Firmware Interface" (UEFI)
• How to Clean Reinstall a Factory OEM Windows 7
• New Installation: How to Create a General System Image in Audit Mode
• How to Clean Install Windows on a MSATA (SSD) Drive

 

[dooglo]

Have to say conrifmed here as well.

Installed this weekend. Wiped XP Pro 32 Bit and installed 64 Bit W7. No problems, found all drivers easily.

D.

 

[2therock]

Same here for a 4 or 5 year old HP dv6000t laptop. wiped Vista 32 and Win 7 provided all drivers. I only had to make one change in installing a driver for a Belkin express-card N adapter. It gave me BSOD until I ran the driver in compatability mode. She is all good!

 

[coldy]

this is the most important thread on the forums i reckon due to all the information on
windows 7 and how to do a proper installation and making sure its working fine..

thanks for all the great useful info

 

[2therock]

When in doubt run it in compatibility mode.

 

[ErikT]

Is this the whole story?

I did a clean install of W7 on a machine that previously ran Vista. To have a back-up I decided to invest some money in a new HD and install W7 there.

This all went fine, just as in your post, but it failed the last step: validation. During validation it was reported that the product key was invalid. I checked with MS Support and they bluntly put the blame on me: how could I expect an upgrade version to work on a new disk. It should be clear to anybody that you first would have to re-install Vista and then run the update.

I appealed this support answer at MS head office in my country and got a similar stupid answer: they would not be able to either enter my activation code or to provide a new activation code, because I had been so stupid to de a really clean install, and "everybody" would know that this would not work.

I gave up. I will have to live with the fact that Windows will tell me every time that I am running an illegal copy of W7.
So unless somebody comes with a real solution for this, this computer will run the rest of it's life with a "illegal" copy of W7.

 

[Brink]

Hello Erik, and welcome to Seven Forums.

No worries. You just used the wrong tutorial since you have a "Upgrade" copy of Windows 7. This tutorial is for a "Full" copy instead. The tutorial below is the one that you need to follow instead for this.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[ErikT]

Thank you. I will try this procedure one of these days.

 

[Brink]

You're most welcome. Please let us know how it went.

 

[johnnydaman]

on step 7, on mine it shows 3 things. they are winre, vista and data, what one will i choose?

 

[theog]

on step 7, on mine it shows 3 things. they are winre, vista and data, what one will i choose?

Choose Vista.

Ref:
http://www.sevenforums.com/general-discussion/133225-how-format-before-upgrade.html

 

[Johnny577]

Hi all I'm trying to Wipe my Hard drive clean and install windows 7 I have restarted and booted from optical drive and no ware in the installation do I get the scree that says



Install Windows



Which type of installation do you want?



Upgrade



Custom (advanced)



in the steps above i do step 1



then step 2



then step 3



I do not see step 4 option



or number 5



or number 6 (THIS IS THE OPTION IM MISSING)

I cant seem to get to this point my installation puts me past this step

I don't know how to make this one show up

thank you for your time and any help

 

[Brink]

Hello Johnny, and welcome to Seven Forums.

What type of Windows 7 installation DVD do you have?

For example: retail, OEM, upgrade, student, etc.....

 

[Johnny577]

I have windows 7 ultimate full copy

bought from future shop black box and all

 

[Brink]

Johnny,

Could you let me know what steps in the tutorial that you cannot get to. The step numbers that you describe in your post to not align with what's in the tutorial, so it's hard for me to know where you are at with it.

 

[Johnny577]

6. Click on the Custom (advanced) option. (See screenshot below)

it skips past this step on page on of this forum

 

[Brink]

Johnny,

When you are at the sceenshot under step 7 (if that is where it take you to next), does clicking on the back arrow at the top left corner take you to the screenshot under step 6?

As long as you are able to finish doing a clean install, it really doesn't matter that you had this step or not though.

 

[Johnny577]

I get to the screen under step #7 with the advanced option but the back arrow is grey when i picked the advanced options it lets me format the drive and install windows but it wont register for some reason it says i have 30 days

 

[Brink]

That shouldn't be a problem. If you haven't already entered your product key number, then you could change the key number to enter it and be able to activate online or activate by phone if it will not do so online.

 

[Johnny577]

perfect works great now all registered and every thing just missed that one option thanks for all the help and time on this matter next problem now external 1tb HD not showing up

thanks again for all the help

 

[Brink]

You're most welcome Johnny.