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Quick Windows 7 Question

E

eli

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Apr 30, 2003
Messages
1,648
Hey guys...quick question here...

Just got my dad a Dell laptop with Windows 7 Home Premium, and he has decided he wants Windows 7 Ultimate instead. Instead of opting for the Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade...I thought I would just get an actual oem copy of windows 7 Ultimate for a bit more so that I could have two legit copies of Windows 7 running.

Here is my question....Is installing Windows 7 Ultimate on a Windows 7 Home system as easy as just restarting the computer and booting from the cd?...Will it give me the option to reformat and all?...or do I need to manually reformat the drive first?

Am I better off just getting the Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade to save me the hassle?

Thanks in advance,

Eli
 
Not sure how buying an OEM copy to use as an upgrade would help. The Home Premium license on the laptop is likely OEM and technically tied to that system. If you buy an OEM Win7 Ultimate and use that to install, you're still not technically allowed to transfer the Home Premium license to another PC. I'd be worried about activation issues as that Dell OEM key might be tied to the Dell BIOS.

The anytime upgrade is actually pretty painless, though I'm not sure how they'd handle you having to reinstall at a later date as you'd only have whatever Dell media came with the system. I think all versions are generally available on MS install media, but no idea on the Dell OEM stuff.
 
The only problem with the anytime upgrade is that is is usually the most expensive option. Shop around for the best price before doing it.
 
If you haven't already purchased it, you should save your dad the cash and talk him out of Ultimate. Outside of having the GUI in any language you want and Bitlocker you're not gaining anything. Your just spending way to much for an OS.

Otherwise, when installing over an OEM computer, keep in mind if you delete the recovery partitions, you can never go back. If you absolutely must change the OS, make sure you only delete and reinstall over the existing data partition, and not the system tools or recovery partition. Also, consider making a DVD backup with the included Dell utilities. This will give you the option to go back to defaults.
 
I was thinking exactly the same, why waste extra money on ultimate when he already has home premium?
 
^ I agree. Plus with bitlocker, you have to have a TPM chip on the motherboard or else you need a USB thumb drive to store the key. The only other useful differences between home premium and ultimate that matter to most people are A. The ability to join a domain, B. XP mode for legacy stuff, and C. Languages.... most other functions it provides can be done with 3rd party software / freeware.
 
bigdogchris said:
If you haven't already purchased it, you should save your dad the cash and talk him out of Ultimate. Outside of having the GUI in any language you want and Bitlocker you're not gaining anything. Your just spending way to much for an OS.

Otherwise, when installing over an OEM computer, keep in mind if you delete the recovery partitions, you can never go back. If you absolutely must change the OS, make sure you only delete and reinstall over the existing data partition, and not the system tools or recovery partition.
Click to expand...

I have an xps 200 system with xp as an os and when i reformatted the entire drive with Dariks Boot and nuke I was still able to run the OEM CD. If he does have the oem cd it shouldnt matter right? I thought the BIOS saved the OEM Key info. am I wrong?


Also Home Premium is perfect for everyone except for bilingual people and people that want bit locker. Your dad should stick with Home premium.
 
Cataulin said:
I have an xps 200 system with xp as an os and when i reformatted the entire drive with Dariks Boot and nuke I was still able to run the OEM CD. If he does have the oem cd it shouldnt matter right? I thought the BIOS saved the OEM Key info. am I wrong?


Also Home Premium is perfect for everyone except for bilingual people and people that want bit locker. Your dad should stick with Home premium.
Click to expand...

Also, Home Premium doesn't support domains, if they are needed.

If he has the OEM CD, it doesn't matter if you format the recovery partition. It's just an image of the stock install. You can do better with less crap-ware by using the CD/DVD.
 
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