Win 7 Clean Install

[Pezzy]

Hi all.

I'm going to be picking up a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate this week. I know there's a sticky thread here called Windows 7 FAQ and Questions, so maybe what I'm going to ask has been covered in that thread, but dang.....that thread is loooooong.

So if you could, please provide some info.

I currently have a dual-boot system (two separate hard drives): Win XP Pro and Win 7 RC; I use EasyBCD software to do the dual boot. I won't use XP anymore after installing Win 7 Ultimate.

- Can you or can you not use an upgrade version of Win 7 Ultimate to do a "clean" install? Win XP Pro is the latest Microsoft operating system I have; I skipped over Vista and never got it. In the long sticky thread here on Win 7, I was never really clear on whether or not having Win XP was sufficient to do a "clean" install of Win 7 using an upgrade disc.

I remember when I went from Win 95 to Win 98 with an upgrade disc, but, I wanted to do a "clean" install on a blank HDD, the installation process recognized that I was using a upgrade disc and asked for "proof" of the previous operating system. Back then, I think I had to put the old operating system disc in the drive and navigate to the setup.exe file as "proof".

Same thing when I went from Win 98 to XP using an upgrade disc.

But I think I may have come across in the long Win 7 sticky thread something about providing your product key as "proof" when using an upgrade disc. True? Or is it putting in the disc itself?

And how about this:

- Whether I end up getting an upgrade disc or a full install disc, can I do a "clean" install of Win 7 on th HDD where I currently have Win 7 RC? I want to totally erase the current install of Win 7 RC and not save any of the previous configurations.

In the old days of 95 & 98, I remember doing "fdisk", and you were able to totally delete partitions. That feature hasn't existed for a while.

And this:

- When doing the clean install of Win 7, can I use the Win 7 disc to partition my HDD? I'd like to split my 320GB HDD into a "C" and "D" drive(s). I've seen mention of the program/ software of "Gparted" here on these forums. I've never used it, but, is it necessary if the Win 7 disc can do it?

And then this:

- After getting Win 7 installed and up & running, can I hook my old HDD with Win XP Pro on it to my motherboard and copy over files and such? Will the Win 7 operating system be able to "see" it? The other HDD even though Win XP is on it? I remember in the past I had trouble with this one time. I think I had to go into something called Disk Management and make it "active". I have lots of pics, mp3's, video files, install programs and such I want to keep.

I'd appreciate any info and help on the things I've asked before I make the big move!!!

- Upgrade disc of Win 7 to do a "clean" install going from XP Pro?

- Do a "clean" install of Win 7 on top of the current Win 7 RC that's on my HDD and delete any previous settings/ configurations?

- Win 7 to partition HDD or use "Gparted"?

- Can I copy files from my XP HDD over to Win 7 without any problems?

Thanks!!
Pez

 

[KSoD]

Please read the thread. Seriously. A lot of hard work went into that thread.

Technically NO you can not just install Win7 with a upgrade disk. As it is a upgrade disk and not made for clean installs. But there are unsupported methods to doing it. That is covered.

No matter what you do you can not techically install with the upgrade media. Doesnt matter if you have XP, Win7 RC or older versions of Windows on there. Upgrade media is for upgrades only. Again there are unsupported methods to do this. But they are unsupported so we dont help you do it.

The Win7 disk can do it just like any other windows install disk. We recommend GParted cause the Windows format tool used during the setup process sucks.

Yes you can copy the files over. There is no reason why you couldnt.

 

[DoubleHelix]

Actually, Microsoft does allow for a clean install with a Windows 7 upgrade disk. You can simply call them to activate or do a double install the same as you could with Vista.

Here's the link:
http://www.winsupersite.com/win7/clean_install_upgrade_media.asp

It is legal as long as you have a valid, full license for a qualifying upgrade product such as Windows XP.

 

[KSoD]

Actually that is NOT a support method by Microsoft. I have gone over this before. That is not the method that Microsoft officially supports. That is the method that can be used to do it. Paul Thurrott is not partnered with Microsoft so he can make those remarks. For even more here are some topics directly from Microsoft to show this.

Microsoft counters Windows 7 upgrade hack advice ? The Register
Microsoft SMB Community Blog : No, OEM Microsoft Windows licenses cannot be transferred to another PC
Microsoft SMB Community Blog : Regardless of what any hack says, a Windows 7 Upgrade is an Upgrade. What you need to know.
Microsoft SMB Community Blog : More Answers from Windows 7 Upgrade Install Hack post

Microsoft does NOT suggest this method. It is not supported by them. My statements above are fully correct. Microsoft does not support these methods and we do not either. While it can be done, it is not officially support which i have pointed out.

If you read i said it TECHNICALLY cant be done. I did NOT say that it couldnt be done. I said that there were ways it could be done. Microsoft DOESNT allow for it. It is a trick used to allow for it to happen just like there was the trick to use the Vista Upgrade Disk to do a full install. That also was not supported by Microsoft.

 

[MindoverMaster]

Go, Mak!

Yeah, an upgrade is an upgrade, not a full install. There are ways of getting around that, but we aren't allowed to talk about it at TF.

 

[Pezzy]

Hi; thanks for the replies everyone.

Mak: sorry if I came off as lazy by not wanting to go through the Windows 7 FAQ thread. As of this moment, it's 142 pages long, and I was just looking for some specific information. I frequent the boards here a lot, basically everyday, but don't always post a message. I pick up bits & pieces of information all the time. It's a learning experience just coming here.

The Windows 7 FAQ thread is a thread that I also read a lot (as it was building to its current 142 pages). I remember coming across the info that I asked about in this thread, just couldn't pin-point it at the moment.....hence this post.

But out of all the things I asked in this post, one of the main things I was concerned about was doing a clean install of Win 7 using the upgrade disc. I have Win XP Pro, not Vista, and since Vista was the most current OS up to this point before Win 7, I wasn't sure if a person could use the upgrade disc of Win 7 when owning a copy of XP and not Vista.

I remember coming across the information before about upgrading from XP to Win 7 here on these forums. But with so much information floating around here on these boards and elsewhere on the 'Net, I wanted to clarify and make sure, that's all.

And now that you've mentioned his name again - Paul Thurrott - I remember coming across it here in the Win 7 FAQ sticky thread.

It's not like I was asking for info on trying something "shady" here that borders on illegal. I own a legal, licensed copy of Win XP Pro. Mak, after your response here along with DoubleHelix and MindoverMaster, I did some more searching on the 'Net.

I'm sure you'll correct me if I'm wrong, but there seem to be legit articles out there that say you can do a clean install of Win 7 using the upgrade media even if you have Win XP. Here's a link to an article over at Tom's Hardware:

Windows XP Can Upgrade to Windows 7, Sorta - Tom's Hardware

And a quote from it: "Microsoft has said that it will offer upgrade options for users to move from Windows XP to Windows 7, but to be clear, those are only for purchasing software licenses. There will be no software upgrade path.......I can confirm that customers will be able to purchase upgrade media and an upgrade license to move from Windows XP to Windows 7 - however, they will need to do a clean installation of Windows 7, a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to The Register. “This requires the user to back up their data, install Windows 7, re-install the programs and restore their data."

I realize from this quote that it only says "a Microsoft spokesperson" and does not name names.....but I hope this article from Tom's Hardware can be trusted.

I guess since the upgrade version of Win 7 is cheaper in price than the full version, people thought they could get away with something here....especially if they didn't have a previous version of Windows as "proof". Since I have a legal copy of Win XP Pro along with its product key, from some articles I found today (along with the link I gave above), it sounds like I should be OK.

From the above quote I gave, it says, "....there will be no software upgrade path" in regard for current Win XP users. Meaning, you can't place the Win 7 upgrade disc in your optical drive while you're already booted into your Win XP operating system, correct?

Instead, they're saying that with your upgrade Win 7 media, you can instead do a clean install by booting from the Win 7 DVD, and then there will be the point during the install process where you'll have to give your "proof" of your previous Windows operating system (XP), correct?

I wasn't trying to do something sneaky here or asking for a "hack". From some searching I did today, there seem to be plenty of legit articles - including the link & quote I gave above - that say you can use upgrade media for a clean install of Win 7 when having the previous OS of XP.

But out of all the places I visit on the 'Net in regard to tech info, this is one of my favorite places to come to get the clear picture. Well-informed, engaging people here.

Thanks again!!
Pez

 

[Trotter]

You're fine, Pezzy. Here's a quote from one of Mak's links (http://blogs.msdn.com/mssmallbiz/ar...de-is-an-upgrade-what-you-need-to-know.aspx):

Now there are many, many, many, many of you out there that already own Windows licenses that qualify for the Windows 7 Upgrade, so this is a non-issue for you. (I am talking about people who own a FULL license for a previous version of Windows for their computers already, as shown in the first picture example above.) For you, since you have the previous version FULL Windows license and qualify for the Windows 7 Upgrade, you have the rights to do a “clean” install.

Since you have a full license for XP, you can use the upgrade media to perform what is tantamount to a full install. Even though XP will not directly upgrade to Win7 and requires a full install, it is still an upgrade from one version of Windows to another.

 

[KSoD]

Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7 - Help & How-to - Microsoft Windows