Upgrade to Windows 7 from Windows Vista or Windows XP
Welcome to our Windows 7 Upgrade Center.
Here at the Upgrade Center, we are dedicated to helping you fully understand your options regarding the move from Windows XP and Windows Vista to Windows 7.
Microsoft have graciously released a detailed chart describing the various upgrade paths. We have covered that here.
Our preferred Windows 7 Upgrade Partner is Zinstall.
Zinstall
XP7 takes you from XP to Windows 7
with a single click. Your entire digital life
is transferred - files, applications, settings, your
desktop.
No spending days tediously reinstalling all applications, configuring them, copying data back and forth. Everything works just like it did before, and all your applications behave exactly the same as on the old system.
In general, there are five options available to you.
PC Vendor upgrade
You can get some kind of deal or discounted upgrade from a vendor like Dell, Sony, Lenovo etc. Visit our Windows 7 Vendor Center for more details.
Fresh Install
You can perform a fresh install of Windows 7. In this case, you are totally stating with a brand new PC or wiping out the old operating system and replacing it with Windows 7.
Dual Boot
In this scenario, you are installing Windows 7 alongside another operating system. Windows 7 will then create a new boot menu. This is the menu that appears when you start your PC and gives you an option to boot into either Windows 7 or your old operating system.
Upgrade
In this scenario, you are taking the current operating system (Vista only) and upgrading it to Windows 7.
VHD or Virtual Hard Disk
In this scenario, you are taking advantage of virtualization and installing to a virtual drive instead of a regular partition or hard drive.
Prepare for the Upgrade
I whole heartedly agree with the list put together by Ed Bott about some steps you should take before the upgrade.
To summarize:
- If you can, run setup from a flash drive or a USB hard drive (saves time).
- Move massive data collections off your system drive before you start
- Check for compatibility problems before you start
- Take advantage of this opportunity to ditch old software
- Upgrade your hard drive along with your OS
- Make sure you have needed drivers before you start
- Create a clean image backup when you’re done
Read the complete article here
Also, read the Ultimate Windows 7 Upgrade FAQ by Ed Bott. Good stuff.
Windows7update.com Upgrade Guides
OK, next we will walk you through the various scenarios for moving from Windows Vista or Windows XP to Windows 7.
External Guides
CNET
Microsoft
Windows7News.com
Maximumpcguides.com
Icrontic.com
