Details about purchasing, downloading and installing Windows 8 can be found in my wiki Upgrading to Windows 8 via A Clean Install. An external hard drive is a great device to back ones data up on. Documents, Music, Pictures and Videos in particular.
A standard user should make regular back ups in case of hard drive failure. Carry out Step 15 to recover your data.
I recommend carrying out Step 1 in all cases and formatting the drive. Belarc Advisor will obtain details about your system. It is free for home use and gives you a print out of your computers hardware and software. It also gives you your product keys. This is particularly useful for obtaining your Microsoft Office product keys. It is handy to keep a print out of this data. CutePDF Writer may be used to create a pdf print out of it.
Save this in a folder in the external harddrive e. You should take a note of the 25 character key on your COA. This sticker is usually found on the base of laptops, although some people have reported them to be present under the battery.
On a desktop they are usually on the top or side. If you purchased Windows 7 separately from your system e. If the COA is exposed on the outside, especially if it is on the base of laptops, it is advisable to cover it up with Scotch Magic Tape to prevent any fading. Dell are taking preventive measures to protect the COA on newer models. The sticker for the Dell Service Tag should be located in a similar area.
You should take note of it. You will be in one of three situations, quickly review the notes applicable for your Windows 7 license before deciding on what media to use:.
This type of Windows 7 license is known as the retail version. Obtaining the Media. It unfortunately can't be downloaded. Thus no additional activation should be required Step Yes but you will need to activate via automated phone activation Step Use of the Digital River.
Dell technical support will be unable to assist you with product activation should you run into issues and will simply suggest use of a Reinstallation DVD. However Windows Anytime Upgrade can be used for the following cases:. This will give you a retail product key with an original install with OEM media. You do not need to reinstall anything when using Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade.
I have a 32 bit version of Windows 7 can I install the 64 bit version instead and vice versa? Yes, the product keys for the 32 bit and 64 bit version of Windows 7 are the same. You may use your OEM product key Step 2 with the correct 64 bit retail. For the Retail product keys again internet activation will work Step You should however run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor to check if your system is 64 bit capable before running the 64 bit version of Windows 7. Should you wish to switch from the 64 bit version to the 32 bit version, note that you will not be able to use more than 4 GB of RAM.
For this reason Dell tend to have only 64 bit drivers for their newer systems on the Dell Drivers and Downloads Page Step 5a but the 32 bit drivers often exist on the Dell ftp website Step 5b. You should only have 32 bit or 64 bit installed. Technically you should have 2 licenses if you have both the 32 and the 64 bit installed simultaneously.
My system came with Windows 8 can I install Windows 7 without purchasing a separate license? Downgrade rights are applicable only if Windows 8 Professional was installed on your system. In the case of a system which came with Windows 8 Professional, the user may downgrade to Windows 7 Professional but must do so using a Dell Reinstallation DVD step 3a. Retail media Step 3b cannot be used as the user won't have a Windows 8 Product Key to downgrade with.
Windows 8 and Windows 8 RT don't have any downgrade rights and the user must purchase a separate license in this case. Can I Transfer My License? The Retail Full product key can be transferred from one computer to another provided it is uninstalled, ideally completely formatted Step 7a. The Retail Upgrade Key can be transferred from one computer to another provided the new computer has a qualifying earlier version of Windows to Upgrade.
Again it should be completely uninstalled, ideally completely formatted Step 7a. The OEM product key is tied to the original computer. It cannot be transferred. If your computer came with Windows 7 preinstalled then ideally for activation purposes you should use the Dell Reinstallation DVD wherever possible. You can also use the retail media if you decide to switch from the 32 to the 64 bit version of Windows 7 or vice versa.
Is there any significant difference features missing from OEM Media? No they are identical. If you have a Dell Windows 7 Reinstallation DVD provided with your system then proceed to step 4 unless you are switching from 32 bit to 64 bit. The Reinstallation DVD should look like the following:. Dell unfortunately are currently shipping almost all of their systems without Reinstallation DVDs.
For US customers there is an online request form for Reinstallation Media. For those customers not in the US you will need to contact Dell technical support and ask for one. The customer numbers are available here. This is the most recommended route. To improve the experience for customers from the rest of the world.
Also see my poll here. Note: For netbooks or systems without an optical drive or a damaged optical drive you will have to convert the Reinstallation DVD into a Reinstallation USB as instructed here. Once you have the Upgrade product key use the Media in Step 3b. If you are a student be sure to look for a heavily discounted Student license of both Windows 7 Upgrade and Office Professional plus. Download the correct. Use the Microsoft.
I recommend installing Microsoft Security Essentials with the latest definition immediately after the Service Packs and Internet Explorer 9 to ensure your system is protected upon first connection to the internet. I have found significant performance boosts by installing the Service Packs before any additional drivers.
If using the Digital River. Ensure that only 32 bit files are used for 32 bit installation media and 64 bit files for 64 bit installation media.
Go to the Dell Support page and select Drivers and Downloads. Select your model and Operating system. Avoid inputting the Service Tag as its not working correctly for many systems and omitts critical drivers. Do not select Download Manager it is generally problematic. Instead select single-file download and press next. If you get the following error message:.
Change the last false to true. This time select Single-File download and it should now work. Once done press back several times to return here:. Ensure it looks the same as before number of categories and number of drivers under each category , if not change the OS to BIOS and back to Windows 7 64 bit. I find in several cases drivers disappear.
I recommend saving each driver in an appropriately labelled folder and adding a numeric prefix to the folder See Step 5c for more details about the recommended driver install order. This will ensure that you install the drivers in the recommended order. Dell Drivers and Downloads Page is currently under maintenance so post here if you experience some issues downloading the drivers.
If you have obtained all the drivers from Step 5a then proceed to Step 5c. The Drivers may also be found on the Dell ftp website. The Dell FTP website has direct links and tends to be less buggy than the drivers and downloads page but the downside is that it isn't updated as frequently.
Look here if you are having issues with the Drivers and Downloads page also note that sometimes the Dell FTP website has drivers for additional operating Systems e. Select your type and then model number. We will take the Inspiron desktop and install Windows 7 64 bit for example. On the Dell ftp website the user should generally ignore Legacy Drivers but its sometimes worth checking especially if the user is looking to install an unsupported Operating System. The user should download only the latest drivers for their system which correspond to their Operating System.
However ensure that the OS you wish to install is under the supported OS in this case we would want revision A00 for Windows 7 64 bit and not revision A04 for Windows Vista 64 bit. Finally one thing to note is that certain categories, in particular Network Wireless Card and Video Graphics Card were customisable and have several variants, you must select the correct ones for your system. Downloading from the ftp website is faster but designed for advanced users.
However due to the sorry state of the drivers and downloads page I recommend all users to use the ftp website. Pay attention to driver install order Step 5c. All the drivers should be downloaded and saved to a USB stick. The way this guide is intended Steps are preparation for installing Windows so the user has everything they need when installing Windows.
This is why Step 5 downloading drivers and Step 10 installing drivers are independent. If however the user has already attempted to install Windows likely they won't be able to access the internet to get the drivers and will need to use a working system to download them.
If you are planning to install Windows 7 and see that there are no listed Windows 7 drivers available for your system. Note that:. There are few exceptions to this rulein particular bluetooth which integrates with Windows Explorer. If you only have XP drivers listed then ask on the forums for assistance; however if Vista or 7 drivers are unavailable for your system it is likely you will get a low Windows Experience Index running these operating systems on your hardware, so I would not recommend switching in this case.
There are a couple of unofficial driver sets listed for selected laptops and desktops provided by me. These are likely to work but theres no g uarantee. When downloading drivers for a clean install I recommend using the same folder structure as me to prevent confusion and to ensure that you install all the drivers in the correct order.
S ee here for more information about Dell Desktop Software. Not all systems will have this. Note there are the drivers and the applications. Am I going to suffer this problem after the 12 months free deadline of windows 10 if i encounter a problem later on and need to reinstall again? Because im assuming the upgrade from windows 7 wont work after the 12 months is up?
This thread is locked. You can follow the question or vote as helpful, but you cannot reply to this thread. Threats include any threat of suicide, violence, or harm to another. Any content of an adult theme or inappropriate to a community web site. Any image, link, or discussion of nudity.
Any behavior that is insulting, rude, vulgar, desecrating, or showing disrespect. Any behavior that appears to violate End user license agreements, including providing product keys or links to pirated software. I know this is early, just wasn't sure about what protocol we need to use to upgrade hardware or just do a fresh installation with Windows I asked a similar question and I will tell you what I have heard to date.
You cannot Install Windows 10 from the boot media. To be more specific you can't boot the boot media and install it. You must upgrade it. Upgrade only. You have to have a legit Windows 7 or Windows 8 installation running and than put the media in and "upgrade". I think this is whack. I don't want to upgrade.
Microsoft Updates have never worked. I want to boot from the media, wipe out my hard drive and install from ground zero. I was told I would have to purchase a copy of Windows 10 with a Product Key to do this. That this is not "upgrading" in the true sense and thus I need to purchase. I hope Microsoft didn't do something that stupid but only time will tell I've sorted out Windows 10 on 2 other machines not Dells and they've been really straight forward.
The upgrading seems to be needed to link the old key with the new Windows 10 licence. Hi Robin, thanks. I guess Im going for the upgrade option maybe a "clean" intall via the custom installation Do you know if installing the latest drivers for Vista before the upgrade matters?
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