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Windows 7 RC users will be able to install Windows 7 Upgrade discs
Microsoft has already stated that Windows Vista and Windows XP users would be able to use the upgrade discs. But this week the company also confirmed that those of you who have been using Windows 7 RC will also be able to upgrade to Windows 7 final using the upgrade discs.
There is a catch. While the Windows 7 installer won't overwrite your files, it will copy all of your existing data to a folder labeled WINDOWS.OLD, which means that you won't be able to run most applications without reinstalling them. But at least you won't lose your documents in the upgrade process.
Now here's the bigger catch: While you won't need to downgrade from Windows 7 RC to Vista or XP in order to install Windows 7 final the first, time, you will need to install one of those operating systems and activate it first if you want to do a clean install in the future. Because the Windows 7 upgrade disc will only work with an activated version of Windows. That means you'll need an activated version of Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7 RC to start with or the disc will be useless.
Comments
31
Subscribe to commentsminibarJul 12th 2009 7:34AM
what i wanted with win7 upgrade but never saw was the ability to upgrade my hardware, but i'm pretty sure that's not part of deal unless you meet the 7 points or however that works and while i can backup the volume serial and swap my nic (4 or 5 points), asking me to use the same hard drive, ram, dvd, etc. for so long is unrealistic. a software upgrade for an 8 year old operating system should allow significant hardware upgrades, no questions asked. call it what you will (new build, whatever), but seriously, it's 8 year old hardware and it needs to be upgraded too. i want to love microsoft, but as usual that's unrequited. would've been good for two sales.
KaBob799Jul 12th 2009 1:16PM
What?
kojo87Jul 12th 2009 10:54PM
wtf are you talking about. i've upgraded my everything on my computer except the HDD Windows is installed on without having to reinstall. the motherboard just has to be relatively the same. can't change brands or sockets or anything.
and why would you put Windows 7 on an 8 year old system anyway? even if you did upgrade you would have to upgrade the motherboard and then probably EVERYTHING else. just get a new PC or stick with XP
JoshJul 12th 2009 5:56PM
So, I guess us netbook users are screwed. Unless they make these on USB flash drivers for netbooks exclusively.
AdilJul 13th 2009 7:27AM
maybe they'll let you download an ISO file if you provide a valid key or something...
otherwise, i'm sure you can find an iso somewhere or another.......
Saint SeminoleJul 13th 2009 7:27AM
Fortunately, I'm one of the 80-90 percent of Windows users who's never once upgraded. We simply get the new version when we buy a new computer someday. It's a lot less expensive that way, and the only real hassle is uninstalling all the crap that manufacturers add to the PC.
minibarJul 13th 2009 1:38AM
it's called windows product activation and it prevents a lot of hardware upgrades. you can read all about it.
http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php
i thought the same thing until i reinstalled and i found out there were limits on numbers of times you could reformat. i now know you can back up and restore the volume serial number, but microsoft doesn't advertise this nor do they allow endusers access to information about their wpa hardware record, and since i've done a couple small upgrades, idk what's remaining allowed because microsoft doesn't let me know.
maybe you get a full wpa hardware record reset with the upgrade, but i wouldn't know because microsoft doesn't say that anywhere i could find. if you have an official source, please share with all of us, because i'm not going to shell serious cash because someone on a blog said it would work.
IknowMoreThanYouJul 13th 2009 11:00AM
I disagree. They'll still have a way to install a clean copy from the upgrade version, just as the double install worked with Vista. Why? Because the average user isn't going to keep 10 year old XP disks around for ever and there needs to be a way for them to re-install Win 7 if they ever need to in the future!
UndrhilJul 14th 2009 9:47AM
I thought there wasn't going to be an upgrade path from Windows XP directly to Windows 7. Is this not the case anymore?
GeorgeJul 15th 2009 1:54PM
Undrhil, according to Microsoft, you will be able to upgrade to Win 7 from XP. Go to the bottom of this page:
http://store.microsoft.com/microsoft/Windows-Windows-7/category/102
"Running earlier versions?
If you have Windows XP or Windows 2000, you can purchase Windows 7 Upgrade versions. But you must back up your files, clean install, and reinstall your applications"
DataCabbitKSWJul 15th 2009 4:42PM
Jash, just remember that the RC starts doing reboots every two hours on March 1st of 2010.
Sean, that is why it is the "upgrade" package, and not the full retail version. You can order the full retail and never have to worry about upgrade restrictions.
ShadowGod, no, you can not use an upgrade disc to install Windows 7 on to a blank pre-formatted machine. However if you have an activated Microsoft OS (2000, XP, Vista, 7 RC all qualify) then you can have the installer do a clean install and format the drive before it does the install. Otherwise, you will need the full retail version (or an OEM version).
Really for the full skinny on what is going on, I suggest people ask over on the official Windows 7 RC Support Forum located here http://tinyurl.com/9fhdl5 . It is supported by product specialists as well as engineers and support teams. They will have a real answer for you, and they are pretty quick to respond.