Laying the Groundwork for an Upgrade to Windows 7
Finally, after so much toss and turns, you had reached the decision to upgrade. However, the buck doesn’t stop here; to ensure a smooth-sailing migration to Windows 7 it’s best to equip yourself on the basics.
Let us go into the details on what you need to prepare prior to the upgrade …
1. Go perform your housecleaning and a quick rundown utility maintenance first.
- Get an inventory list of all your existing data in your hard drive.
- Jot down all system related information and details.
- Test your backup and restore functions.
- Uninstall all Security related software.
- Clean all unnecessary files.
- Do a maintenance checkup of your hard drive.
2. Know the System Requirements
Since Windows 7 relatively has low minimum requirements, in fact an XP and Vista based system could run Windows 7 although minimum requirements do not mean a high end performance. By running the “Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor “, this can help you determine if your PC is apt to run Windows 7.
The following are the minimum system requirements:
Architecture 32-bit 64-bit
Processor 1 GHz 32-bit processor 1 GHz 64-bit processor
Memory (RAM) 1 GB of RAM 2 GB of RAM
Graphics Card DirectX 9 graphics processor with WDDM drivermodel 1.0 (For Aero)
HDD free space 16 GB of available disk space 20 GB of available disk space
Optical drive DVD drive (for installation from DVD/CD Media)
3. Select your upgrade option from the following:
Option #1 In-Place Upgrade from Vista – This is the easiest among all types of installations, however, the drawback is the long process which can be based on how compact and organized your files are.
Option #2 Upgrading from XP or Clean Slate Installation – This can be considered more of a fresh installation to a blank hard drive or at least a blank partition rather than an upgrade. Using the “User State Migration Tool” will help capture desktop and system settings, user accounts and files that need to be transferred to the Windows 7 system.
Option #3 Dual-Boot Installation – This involves letting Windows 7 co-exist with XP and Vista in your PC. Installing Windows 7 on the same hard disk needs the creation of a new partition to set up the OS, for XP this means using third party tools to create and manage partitions. For Vista, the use of a built-in disk management facility will achieve the same results. After achieving this, you may to proceed to the installation of Windows 7 already.
Option #4 Boot Camp on a Mac Installation – Apple’s new Boot Camp will allow the installation of Windows to the Mac unit in addition to Mac OS X already installed.
Option#5 Load to a Netbook Installation – Windows 7 unlike Vista can run exceedingly well in Netbooks. The only hitch here is the installation since Netbooks do no not have DVD drives which means installation can be done either through an external drive or boot from a USB stick for a clean install.
Microsoft through Windows 7 deserves a pat on the back for making available all these installation options to a user. The flexibility and user-friendliness of Windows 7 will surely pave the way towards greater acceptance and satisfaction from its users.
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Filed under: Windows 7 Reviews, Windows 7 Software