Solved Need to wipe a HD and upgrade to W10 afterwards and need advice.

[graywoulf]

Hi guys, I'm back!

Different laptop and situation though. My wife wants to give her old Dell laptop to our son and wants me to wipe the HD and set it back up with W10 from W7 afterwards. I read over my last posts on just upgrading but I did not find the information I was looking for so I need a refresher course or new instructions please.

So many of you were extremely helpful (and patient) before so I hope you will help again. Thanks!

 

[Barman58]

The upgrade tutorial on our sister site Windows 10 Help Forums has a number of upgrade options Upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows 7 for Free | Tutorials

There are other specialist options on the site should you or your son need them

 

[graywoulf]

Thank you for reminding me of those how to posts.

 

[flavallee]

Depending on how old that Dell laptop is and how much debris and how many issues it has, an "upgrade" install from Windows 7 to Windows 10 may not be your best option, and the upgrade process may fail.

A "clean" install of Windows 10 may be the best option because it wipes out all of the debris and issues and starts everything out fresh.

What is the exact 7-character service tag number on it?

 

[Bree]

However cluttered its current W7 is, an upgrade to W10 will get it a digital license for W10.



Once W10 says it is 'activated with a digital license' you can wipe it and clean install the same edition of W10 as you got in the upgrade (Home or Pro). When asked for a key click 'I don't have one'. It will activate from the existing digital license as soon as it can go online.

 

[graywoulf]

Depending on how old that Dell laptop is and how much debris and how many issues it has, an "upgrade" install from Windows 7 to Windows 10 may not be your best option, and the upgrade process may fail. A "clean" install of Windows 10 may be the best option because it wipes out all of the debris and issues and starts everything out fresh.

What is the exact 7-character service tag number on it?

Sorry for the delayed response. The service tag number is DG2TZM1. The laptop was purchased in 2011.

 

[graywoulf]

However cluttered its current W7 is, an upgrade to W10 will get it a digital license for W10. Once W10 says it is 'activated with a digital license' you can wipe it and clean install the same edition of W10 as you got in the upgrade (Home or Pro). When asked for a key click 'I don't have one'. It will activate from the existing digital license as soon as it can go online.

Thank you for that information. I recall being informed of that just a short while back and that makes it sound simple enough.

 

[flavallee]

According to that service tag number, you have THIS Dell Inspiron 15 N5010 15.6" laptop.
It was purchased in February 2011 and came with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
That means you can upgrade it to Windows 10 Home 64-bit.

According to its support site, it came with these specs:
Intel HM57 chipset
Intel Core i3-380M 2.53 GHz dual core processor
2 GB x 2 DDR3-1333 MHz RAM
640 GB SATA2 hard disk drive
DVDRW/BDROM disc drive
Intel HD graphics (up to 1752 MB shared memory)
IDT 92HD79B1 audio
Realtek RTL8103T 10/100 Mbps ethernet
Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000 802.11g/n wireless

Its support site has drivers only for Windows Vista 64-bit and Windows 7 64-bit.
Hopefully, the install of Windows 10 will provide the needed drivers for its primary devices.

 

[graywoulf]

Thanks for looking into that for me. I don't know how you got all of that information but again, I do appreciate that you took the time to verify the upgrade compatibility.

I downloaded the Media Creation Tool and downloaded the Windows 10 iso file to the desktop then I burned it to a DVD. So, am I ready at this point to reformat the HDD on this laptop and start it all over? Not sure how to finish this up to be honest.

 

[flavallee]

Believe me, I'm not a magician.
The service tag number you provided me with allowed me to correctly identity that Dell laptop and locate its support site.
Because it's less than 10 years old, Dell still had a list of the hardware and devices and operating system that originally came in it.
That's how I obtained the list of specs that I provided to you.


If you're planning to do a clean install of Windows 10 Home 64-bit and not an upgrade install from Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit to Windows 10 Home 64-bit, you may have an activation problem afterwards.
I'm going to provide you with the guide that I use to do a clean install of Windows 10 in a computer that's already running an activated copy of Windows 7.
If you follow it carefully, it should work for you.


1. Insert the bootable Windows 10 disc in its drive, then expose its contents.
2. Expose the contents of the sources folder.
3. Copy the gatherosstate.exe file to the desktop.
4. Right-click that file and then click "Run as Administrator".
5. A GenuineTicket.xml file will appear on the desktop.
6. Copy that file to a USB thumb drive or burn it to a disc.
7. Do a clean install of Windows 10.
8. Skip the step to enter a product key.
9. After Windows 10 is installed, navigate to the C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\ClipSVC\GenuineTicket folder.
10. Use the media you have the GenuineTicket.xml file saved in to copy it inside the GenuineTicket folder.
11. Restart the computer.
Notes:
The above steps should work in a computer that already has a working activated copy of Windows 7.
The GenuineTicket.xml file will only work in the same working computer that it was created in.
Before you complete step 9, navigate to File Explorer, then click "View - Options - Change folder and search options", then click "View - Show hidden files, folders and drives", then click Apply.

 

[graywoulf]

So, I should not reformat the HDD before I do the upgrade. Is that what you are saying? That is what I was planning to do. I thought that after I reformatted the HDD that I then had to have the DVD with the iso files in it in the CD drive then reboot the laptop and it would read the DVD on bootup and start the W10 install. I guess I have it all wrong in that respect.

 

[Barman58]

You have a currently working Copy of Windows 7, this obviously has access to the correct key, or the fact that the system is legally licenced, which is recognised by the update software and should upgrade "as is" with all your programs and data in place, you may find that some specific manufacturer options, that are not supported by the manufacturer on Windows 10 may not work, (this would also apply to a fresh install).

Once you have your working windows 10 you can then wipe the drive and reinstall Windows 10 as a fresh copy (as factory) and it will use the licence from Microsoft's Servers without any issues (when asked for the key simply select "I'll enter later" option

The option of a fresh install onto a blank disk is a preferred one, But ONLY if you have a copy of the Unique Key on the outside of the device, as the one that shows on the system currently will not work for upgrade (it's a general default that is accepted by the manufacturers install software only, they use this for initial install at the factory and provide the external key for other update routes)

By doing the upgrade you will end up with a key registered against the system you have (based on various hardware options ) stored on Microsoft servers that will work for future installs and updates, and may also be transferred to new hardware in future as long as you set up a microsoft ID, (Outlook.com email address), and use this at least once to log into windows.

 

[flavallee]

graywoulf:

You said you want to do a clean install of Windows 10 in your laptop which has a working activated copy of Windows 7, so I provided you with the method that I successfully use.

Barman58 is correct in what he told you:
You can do an upgrade install from Windows 7 to Windows 10, then use the Windows 7 product key to activate Windows 10, then do a clean install of Windows 10.

My concern though about doing an upgrade install from Windows 7 to Windows 10 is that the upgrade process may fail - which has happened to me in about 1 in every 5 computers that I've upgraded.

It's your choice on how you get Windows 10 in your laptop.

 

[Barman58]

The reason for my recommendation for the upgrade is duel, first it should automatically revert to the current status on failure, second is thet you need the full details of the COA sticker showing the unique Licence key for the specific computer, the one in the current Windows 7 install is the default key so will not work for a fresh install

If you have the full key from the sticker then the fresh install to a wiped disk should work

 

[graywoulf]

Thanks guys, I apologize for being a pain over this but I'm just trying to be certain I understand the process. I will do the upgrade from W7 first then go from there. The W7 key sticker is intact on the bottom of the laptop so that is a plus.

Thank you all very much and I will let you know how it goes.

 

[Barman58]

One thing I should have asked before anything else - Do you have a backup of your current system?

If not you should seriously consider making one Things like Macrium Reflect Free and Aomei Backupper Free are available

 

[graywoulf]

One thing I should have asked before anything else - Do you have a backup of your current system? If not you should seriously consider making one Things like Macrium Reflect Free and Aomei Backupper Free are available

Thanks for asking and the answer is yes. My wife did a backup using the Aomei Backupper but I may redo it as I have used Revo Uninstaller to remove most of everything that was not needed. I might switch to the Macrium Reflect Free instead.

 

[Barman58]

I myself use Aomei Backupper Pro, as I find it more like the old systems I used to use, but Macrium Reflect is a good system Too

 

[graywoulf]

Thank you everyone for the help and education. The deed is done and it went smoothly. Was even able to clear the HDD during the process and so any leftover personal data is gone and it is just as good as new as far as the OS is concerned. So this journey is done and marked as solved.

Thanks again!

 

[Bree]

...The deed is done and it went smoothly...

Great news. Now would be a good time to make a system image so you can easily restore it if you son breaks anything.