Windows 7 Windows 7 Full or Upgrade

Keith Weisshar · Aug 4, 2009

I have pre-ordered Windows 7 full version from Link Removed since I'm not sure if the upgrade version would require that the old version be already installed on the hard drive. My Windows Vista OEM DVD came with light scratches when the PC was shipped from www.digitalstormonline.com. The motherboard CD also has light scratches as well and it contains the network driver needed to get online for activation of the previous version of windows. Is there someone from the Microsoft Windows Client Team that can answer the question regarding the upgrade media if it will require the previous version to be installed on the hard drive or just ask for the disc and product key of the previous version?

john3347 · Aug 4, 2009

Keith, I have not performed this operation myself, but I have read reports by others. To use the upgrade, you need to have the original OS installed on your computer. It is not necessary to have The "old" OS activated to upgrade. If you can borrow an XP or Vista disc from a friend, you can install the "old" OS (without activation) then use your upgrade disc to install Windows 7. Of course, by using this method with XP or Vista, you would need to perform a "clean install".

john3347 · Aug 4, 2009

Keith, I have not performed this operation myself, but I have read reports by others. To use the upgrade, you need to have the original OS installed on your computer. It is not necessary to have The "old" OS activated to upgrade. If you can borrow an XP or Vista disc from a friend, you can install the "old" OS (without activation) then use your upgrade disc to install Windows 7. Of course, by using this method with XP or Vista, you would need to perform a "clean install".

Radenight · Aug 4, 2009

If you use the "Upgrade Media Trick" (that's posted in this forum) you don't actually need the previous OS on your machine..

That's the beauty of the trick..

It allows you to do a Clean Install without having anything previously installed..

john3347 · Aug 4, 2009

Drew said:
Keith,

If you have purchased Full version media, then there is no issue.

Upgrade needs previous OS in the machine. However, it is possible to do a 'Clean Install' w/ upgrade media.; still referrencing back to a prior OS (of yours) to that machine.

Cheers,
Drew
MS Partner
MS Beta Tester

Thanks for helping clear that up for Keith. I think I left him a bit confused still. I had failed to understand in his first post that he had ordered the full version of Windows 7. He can install that on a clean, new harddrive or over ANY previous OS without issue.

Mitchell_A · Aug 8, 2009

Upgrade A bad option anyways

The upgrade option when installing a new operating system is probably one of the worst things you could do. It often leaves incompatible software on your computer, leaves you with no drivers, gives you constant errors or just slows you down.

Cheers, :razz:

Mitchell

Radenight · Aug 8, 2009

Mitchell_A said:
The upgrade option when installing a new operating system is probably one of the worst things you could do. It often leaves incompatible software on your computer, leaves you with no drivers, gives you constant errors or just slows you down.

Cheers,
Mitchell

Indeed it is and does..

This fact has been stated time and time again on this forum and I'm sure many many others..

Upgrading just isn't the route to go.. And people can whine all they want that it's too much of a hassle to backup all their files. The fact is you shouldn't have alot of personal files that you care about on a system that is beta/rc testing an OS in the first place..

And really, if your going to a whole new Operating System who wouldn't want a nice fresh start instead of a bloated, possibly full of errors Upgrade..

sm0ke42o · Aug 8, 2009

Radenight said:
Indeed it is and does.. This fact has been stated time and time again on this forum and I'm sure many many others.. Upgrading just isn't the route to go.. And people can whine all they want that it's too much of a hassle to backup all their files. The fact is you shouldn't have alot of personal files that you care about on a system that is beta/rc testing an OS in the first place.. And really, if your going to a whole new Operating System who wouldn't want a nice fresh start instead of a bloated, possibly full of errors Upgrade..

I couldn't have put it better. I would never under any circumstances do an upgrade. I would rather buy a second HDD if I didn't have one and manually move files over before I would upgrade an OS. A fresh install is just too good to pass up. When I used XP I had a volume license and I reinstalled frequently, sometimes monthly, solely because I love the feel of a clean installation.

As far as which version to buy. This is how I solved that dilemma.

$99-$220 for upgrade but I have to pull a jack move if I want to do a clean install. Not a huge deal but a drag nevertheless. Not a good option for me.

$200-300 for full version. I want the two programs that Ultimate has over Pro so $320 for a brand new disk with no workarounds needed. Nice but expensive for just one license.

$260 (for about another week or two and then $360) For one year of TechNet. Unlimited downloads of all MS products. Can install on as many machines as needed and you get 10 license keys for each Desktop OS and 2 keys for each Server OS. The best part is that the software is good indefinitely even if you let your subscription lapse. Only drawback is you cant use it in a production environment. Bonus: You get to download the RTM as soon as you pay. No waiting for retail to hit in Oct.

TechNet turned out to be the way to go for me and might be worth looking into if you don't intend to use Win 7 for development. Otherwise if you don't mind doing the workaround I say get the upgrade and save some $. Or if you don't want the hassle get the full version.

john3347 · Aug 8, 2009

Technet plus discount

smoke42o, I have known of the TechNet Plus discount price, but have not been able to find the offer on the Connect or TechNet site. Can you, either here, or in a private message, give me some more information as to how to upgrade my standard TechNet subscription to TechNet Plus to take advantage of some of the available software? Isn't there a code number to get the special price or something?

sm0ke42o · Aug 8, 2009

John,

Entering TMSAM10 will get you 25% off. I just tried to check out with it and it worked. Brings the total to $261.75 Hope this helps

[EDIT] I just tried with code TMSAM15 and it works also giving the same discount

john3347 · Aug 8, 2009

Think that was what I needed. Thanks Much!

John

john3347 · Aug 8, 2009

Smoke, you're my Hero. Code worked as you stated. Thanks much!

BishopLord · Aug 9, 2009

sm0ke42o said:
$260 (for about another week or two and then $360) For one year of TechNet. Unlimited downloads of all MS products. Can install on as many machines as needed and you get 10 license keys for each Desktop OS and 2 keys for each Server OS. The best part is that the software is good indefinitely even if you let your subscription lapse. Only drawback is you cant use it in a production environment. Bonus: You get to download the RTM as soon as you pay. No waiting for retail to hit in Oct.

TechNet turned out to be the way to go for me and might be worth looking into if you don't intend to use Win 7 for development. Otherwise if you don't mind doing the workaround I say get the upgrade and save some $. Or if you don't want the hassle get the full version.

Thanks for the TechNet tip. I did a little research and found a discount code good for the 1 year subscription rate. Unfortunately, it's still $261, but it's better than $349. There are 3 codes at the link below. One states $100 off, but it's more like $88 off. The 2nd is for 25% off, but the final 1 year cost is the same as the other code. I didn't test the code for the 3rd option, which was for a subscription renew. The renewal is normally $249, so I imagine the code below will knock off 25% from this price.

Discount code: Microsoft Technet Coupon Codes (3 available) - Tjoos

TechNet subscription (look on the lower left side to enter code): Buy, Renew or Upgrade Your TechNet Plus Subscription

sm0ke42o · Aug 9, 2009

Glad I was able to help. enjoy your new TechNet subscription.

Do you feel drunk with power yet??

BishopLord · Aug 9, 2009

sm0ke42o said:
Glad I was able to help. enjoy your new TechNet subscription.

Do you feel drunk with power yet??

A little. Naw, but when I woke up a couple hours ago, this was the first thing on my mind. Reason being, I should be receiving the rest of my components to put my HTPC together so having access to a non-expiring Windows 7 will be great. But not only that, I'll have access to all the other MS products like Office, server, IIS, etc. It'll be great to be able to throw this stuff on a test box and set up a real home network to mess around with. Who knows, maybe I may end up volunteering to do more admin/tech work at my job (I work in IT, but in computer operations, however, I'm more than just a button pusher or systems analyst).

It's funny, my job used to pay for these TechNet subscriptions for our admins but stopped long ago due to budgeting. I even forgot that I had a "free" TechNet subscription and put a Spam filter on the emails received long ago so I've been totally out of the loop for years. One of the best freebies I got from TechNet was when Office 98 launched, I was invited to the event (it was at Great America in Santa Clara, CA. Steve Balmer was the keynote speaker) and they gave away a bunch of free stuff and had an awesome all you can eat buffet. After about 4 or 5 hours, they then let us have "run of the park" for free, too.

For $260 a year (or even $360 a year) isn't a bad deal at all. Less than a $1 a day for using a product I use for several hours a day. I should have done this long ago.

By the way, how would they know if you're using it for production use? For example, I was telling my wife about TechNet about an hour ago, and I was saying that I can install W7 on my PC and her PC in the other room because you get 10 license keys. I then told her the only downside is that you wouldn't be able to use it for production purposes, like when she opens her wedding planning business, but then I told her because she's about to buy a new laptop, the laptop will come with it's own license so she'd be good to go in that respect. But the question still stands, how do they know how the license is being use? And why would they give you so many license keys? (to use for something like a training room?)

john3347 · Aug 9, 2009

Would be kinda like Office Home and Student edition being eligible for three users within the same household, but members of that household who are temporarily away at school are included. Reasonable restrictions, but difficult to strictly enforce. Same questions (circumstances) probably will arise with the Windows 7 "family pack" of 3 licenses. Shame that this has to be restricted to Home Premium. I believe that if this were expanded to include Professional and Ultimate that more SMB's would go ahead and move to Windows 7.

sm0ke42o · Aug 9, 2009

In short they would most likely never know. I think its more of an honor system gig. You agree to not do so and they expect you to police yourself. That is not to say they might not catch wind of it somehow if you do high profile work but I like to think the chances of MS kicking your door down, revoking your technet subscription, and making you wipe all your hard drives are slim unless you are doing something to get noticed.

Sort of like pirating stuff via torrent. If you download a copy of Reservoir Dogs burn it, watch it, then delete the data and toss the disk you will most likely not be sued, However if you burn 500 copies and go stand on a corner in Manhattan selling it with 25 other new release titles you might want to watch your arse.

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