Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version

For what it's worth, stories are around that MS is more tolerant of re-installing OEM on a new motherboard than it was a year or two ago. But it's still a chance. So I understand why you wouldn't want OEM.

You asked what I'd do in your shoes.

I see only 3 choices unless you get very lucky and find an ordinary retail copy of 7 Ultimate.

1: take a chance on a legit OEM at somewhere like Newegg. Hope you never have to reinstall and that if you do, MS will be lenient.

2: take a chance on a copy on Ebay or elsewhere.

3: Go with Win 8.1

In your shoes, I'd take the last choice, no contest. Taking a chance on Ebay would be my last choice. Buying 7 OEM would be my second choice.

I assume you don't want 8.1 for some reason. Expense? You don't like the Metro interface? Whatever.

You can easily get back the start menu so it looks very much like 7. Win 8 is slightly superior to 7 in some respects. I didn't upgrade because 7 is fine for me and I don't want to go through re-installing apps and reconfiguring everything.

I'll probably get Win 9 shortly after its released next spring, but I assume you can't wait.

Considering your distaste for Microsoft and all things related, you might be better off fighting Linux issues or giving up and going Apple.

Win 8 is all touchscreen! I HATE touchscreen! It's everywhere these days & irritates me to no end! Call me old fashioned, but I like buttons, knobs, switches, etc, & on a computer I prefer using the keyboard & mouse! I don't wanna feel like I am at the ATM using my computer! Plus, my arms would get tired having to hold them in the air to do all that crap on the screen! **** that!

I thought about Mac but I'd have to buy a whole new computer which I cannot afford right now! I just spent $1,300 on this one at the end of 2011, & wasn't ale to assemble it 'till early 2012, & have had major mobo probs, so I have to RMA it, get it fixed or hopefully replaced! I'll never again buy another ASUS mobo! ****ing BIOS chip issue from day one, & they couldn't tell me in the 1/2 dozen calls about all the probs I had w/it? Seriously?! & I flashed the BIOS w/what wound up being the wrong one, becauise they are retarded & put it in the worng section on the site, like I'M supposed to know this shit? & that just amped up the probs! & now my HD is ****ing dying too, &other misc. BS probs! I have the worst luck w/mobos, & it spreads like a virus to all the other components! Same BS w/my last PC, too many HD failures (**** WD!), & then my vid card died, RAM got all ****ed up! I swear, I could spend $20,000 on a computer & STILL have a billion & one probs w/it! Pisses me off too! I don't have ALOT of $, & $1,300 is ALOT of $ for me! My vid card alone was $400! IT WOULD'VE been a nice systsme if ASUS wasn't retarded! I think next time I might try MSI or EVGA mobo! Or maybe even an AMD chipped board! I switched to ASUS from Intel as they lied & said that old mobo for this rig was fully compatible w/XP! *bullshit!* Computers are a necessary evil, but I am REALLY starting to hate them! & I used to love them too!

I'm gonna try w/a retail version. Ebay stands by sales, if what you get is not what was supposed to be! If not, I guess OEM & there's not a snowball's chance in HELL I won't have to format & reinstall. It's inevitable to need to be done a few times a year or more! It's Micro$uck afterall! Corruption happens, viruses, etc.!

People who use 8 regularly tell me they can avoid touchscreen entirely. I'm like you, I will never use a touch screen, strictly keyboard and mouse. I used Windows 8 for a couple of days with no touch screen at all. You can avoid it, if you care to. I'm not sure why you think you must use a touchscreen, but so be it.

I haven't reinstalled in probably 8 years other than when I wanted to---when I bought a new motherboard, OS, or hard drive.

The only motherboard I ever had fail was an Asus. I've used Intel and Gigabyte with no issues.

Good luck on Ebay. You might run into a situation where you get a non-counterfeit "good" disc that will install perfectly and even activate. Then find out months later that MS decides your installation is unauthorized and illegal because the disc you bought has the wrong type of license.

But suit yourself.

I used this "Clean Install with a Upgrade Windows 7 Version" tutorial to install Windows 7. After installation I ran into a activation Error Code: 0xc004f061, when I typed in the product key. The Option 3, step 2 .bat file worked and allowed the product key to be entered and activated. So thanks Brink/Seven Forums for the tutorial and .bat file worked well for me.

Not sure if I should ask this here or start a new thread somewhere else? But I installed Win 7 Upgrade on a new SSHD. I have one System Reserved 100 MB NTFS partition and a Local Disk (C:) drive (Boot, Page File, Crash Dump, Primary Partition).

My question is: Can I partition this type of SSHD disk into separate partitions, ie: OS, (D:) DATA, and a recovery partition? Which I haven't done yet. Or just leave it the way it is?

Thanks, Vista32toWin7.

Hello, I used your method with the Error Code: 0xc004f061 to activate Windows with my Upgrade key, but it didn't work because the trial version of Windows had changed from Windows 7 professional (the version that's on the upgrade CD) to Windows 7 Ultimate when i restarted my pc and then Windows wouldn't accept my key of Windows 7 professional. Do you know how to fix this?

Haha, yes I know but the version changed when I ran that bat.file and I restarted my PC. Do you know how I change it back?

I did a clean install with a student upgrade cd of Windows 7 professional 64 bit.