Windows 7 Upgrade

[rohitreddyb]

I have few questions on Windows 7 Upgrade....Currently i'm using windows vista home premium 64 bit and I bought an windows 7 home premium 64 bit upgrade disk.

first thing is I want to format my previous operating system and all the data in my laptop and install windows 7 in it using the Upgrade disk.

second thing is I dont have my vista installation disk with, my laptop was pre-installed with vista so in future if I want to switch can I get back VISTA using system restore.

third is can i install windows 7 on a new hard disk using a windows 7 Upgrade disk???

 

[Gilly Boy]

Hi rohitreddyb,

Yes you can use the upgrade disk to do what is called a "clean install". Clean install will wipe out all the data in your hard drive. Please back up your important files though before doing clean install.

If you don't have your Vista installation disk, I would suggest for you to install windows 7 on another partition, this will give you the option for dual boot.

Yes you can install windows 7 on a new hard disk using the upgrade disk.

Note however, for questions 1 and 2. You need to do a keyless install. During the installation, it will require you to input your product key, but it will not accept your key since it is an upgrade DVD. So just skip that part and continue with the installation. Do the following commands after you verify that your windows 7 is installed and working.

click Start
go to run or search
Type Regedit

"HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\OOBE\MediaBootInstall" = "0" (DWORD)

Run command prompt as an administrator (i.e. type command on search, from the jumplist, right click on command prompt and select on "run as administrator")

Type cd \windows\system32
Type cscript.exe slmgr.vbs –rearm
Exit

Reboot your PC

After PC has rebooted,

Click Start

Right click on "Computer"

Select Properties

Click on "Activate Windows"

Put in your Product Key...follow the steps and this will activate windows

 

[bobkn]

second thing is I dont have my vista installation disk with, my laptop was pre-installed with vista so in future if I want to switch can I get back VISTA using system restore.

Microsoft requires that every commercially sold Windows PC come with some means of restoring the operating system.

For many machines, that's done with a partition on the hard drive. The restore partition may not be accessible after you go to Win7, though, even if you don't modify it during the Win7 install. (Something to do with the drive's Master Boot Record, I think. That sort of detail is beyond my understanding.)

However, some machines come with a utility that allow you to generate backup DVDs. (I did that on my cheap Compaq Cq50-105NR.) That's useful to have in case there is a physical failure of the hard drive, which would make its restore partition unavailable. If your laptop has that feature, I suggest you use it.

Otherwise, some manufacturers will produce restore disks for a fairly modest charge.

You could also use a third-party utility (like Acronis True Image) to backup your current installation to an external drive. That's maybe the safest way; if something goes wrong with the change to Win7, you can restore the complete Vista installation is less than a half hour.

 

[gregrocker]

Since you most likely won't want to ever go back to Vista, and it isn't needed to install Win7 Upgrade, you can try now to make the Vista Recovery Disks but if it fails then just wait til you need them to order them from your tech support.

Boot from the Win7 installer and choose Custom>Advanced tools to delete, set up partition(s) as you want and format before install. The installer will "see" the Vista before wiping it and allow you to input the product key and later activate after going online.

After you get Win7 installed, use Win7 Backup Imaging to save a backup image so you never have to reinstall again, just reimage the HDD (or a replacement) using your Win7 Installer Repair console> "Recover Using an Image" which will detect the image stored in a primary partition on your HDD. Be sure to also back it up to another drive in case your HDD fails.

 

[rohitreddyb]

Thanks everyone from solving my problems........