The World of Windows: August 2010

We highly recommend that you print this tutorial. Your computer will restart during the Windows 7 installation process, so having a printed copy will help you follow the steps if you can't return to this webpage.

Introduction.

Depending on your hardware and your current edition of Windows Vista, you can use the Upgrade option during Windows 7 installation to upgrade from Windows Vista to a corresponding or higher edition of Windows 7.

Upgrading is the most convenient way to get Windows 7 on your computer, because it keeps your files, settings, and programs from Windows Vista in place.

If your current edition of Windows Vista can't be upgraded to the edition of Windows 7 that you want to use, you can still install Windows 7 by using the Custom installation option instead. However, the Custom option doesn't preserve your files, programs, or settings. For a step-by-step tutorial on how to perform a custom installation, see Upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7 (custom installation).

Make sure that your programs and devices will work with Windows 7.

Since your computer is running Windows Vista, it meets the system requirements for Windows 7. We still recommend that you download and run the free Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor from the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor webpage on the Windows website. It helps find potential issues with your computer’s hardware, devices, or programs that might affect installing Windows 7, and gives recommendations on what to do.

Also, go to the Windows 7 Compatibility Center to see what works with Windows 7 and find direct links to drivers, updates, and downloads.

Step 1: Which version of Windows 7 can I upgrade to?

The table below describes which editions of Windows Vista can be upgraded to Windows 7. The Upgrade option works with either an upgrade copy or the full product copy of Windows 7. This is described on the front of the Windows 7 retail box or on an online sales receipt.

If you can't use the Upgrade option to upgrade to the edition of Windows 7 that you want to use, you can still use the Custom option, but the Custom option doesn't preserve your files, programs, or settings.

If you're running:	Upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium	Upgrade to Windows 7 Professional	Upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate
Windows Vista Home Basic
Windows Vista Home Premium
Windows Vista Business
Windows Vista Ultimate

What if I can't choose the Upgrade option?

Some versions of Windows can't be upgraded with the installation disc you're trying to use. For example, you can't upgrade a 32-bit version of Windows to a 64-bit version, or upgrade from a higher edition of Windows, such as Windows Vista Ultimate, to a lower edition, such as Windows 7 Home Premium. If this is the case, you'll need to use the Custom option during installation.

However, unlike Upgrade, the Custom option does not preserve your files, settings, or programs. You'll need to back up your files and settings before installing Windows 7, restore them after installation is complete—and you'll also need to reinstall your programs using the original installation discs or files. For a step-by-step tutorial on how to perform a custom installation, see Upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7 (custom installation).

Notes:

To upgrade an earlier operating system than Windows XP (for example, Windows 95 or Windows 2000), you'll need to purchase a full version of Windows 7 and perform a custom installation.
In the European Union (including Croatia and Switzerland) and Korea, Microsoft will release Windows 7 editions that don't include certain features such as Windows Media Player and Windows Media Center. Upgrading to these editions requires a custom installation.
Upgrading Windows Vista in one language to Windows 7 in a different language requires a custom installation.

32-bit or 64-bit: Which version of Windows 7 to install?

If you're running a 32-bit version of Windows Vista, you can only upgrade to a 32-bit version of Windows 7. Similarly, if you are running a 64-bit version of Windows Vista, you can only upgrade to a 64-bit version of Windows 7. Otherwise, you'll need to use the Custom option to install Windows 7.

Both 32-bit and 64-bit installation discs are included in the Windows 7 package. 64-bit operating systems can handle large amounts of memory—typically 4 gigabytes (GB) of random access memory (RAM) or more—more efficiently than 32-bit operating systems. However, not all computers are 64-bit capable. For more information, see 32-bit and 64-bit Windows: frequently asked questions.

To find out which Windows 7 installation disc you can use, do the following:

Open Performance Information and Tools by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Performance Information and Tools.
Click View and print details.
Under System, you can see what type of operating system you're currently running next to System type, and, next to 64-bit capable, whether you can run a 64-bit version of Windows.

If your computer is already running a 64-bit version of Windows, you won't see the 64-bit capable listing.

Step 2: Installing Windows 7.

When you upgrade to Windows 7, you keep your files, settings, and programs from Windows Vista.

The options for Windows 7 installation

Before you begin.

Be sure your computer is running either Service Pack 1 or Service Pack 2 for Windows Vista. For more information, see the Windows Vista service packs webpage on the Microsoft website.
Connect your PC to the Internet so you can get installation updates during the installation process. (If you don’t have an Internet connection, you can still install Windows 7.)
Update your antivirus program, run it, and then turn it off. After you install Windows 7, remember to turn the antivirus program back on, or install new antivirus software that works with Windows 7.
If you have a Windows 7 installation package, choose either the 32-bit or 64-bit Windows 7 installation disc, depending on which version of Windows Vista you're currently running.
Find your 25-character Windows product key. You can find it on the installation disc holder inside the Windows package—or in a confirmation e‑mail if you purchased and downloaded Windows 7 online.
If you use a fingerprint reader or other biometric device to log on to your computer, make sure you write down your password before upgrading. You must log on by typing your user name and password the first time that you use Windows after upgrading.

Note:

Some programs such as Windows Mail and Outlook Express are no longer included in Windows 7. If you used Windows Mail or Outlook Express as your e‑mail program, after you've finished installing Windows 7, you’ll need to install a new e‑mail program to read your messages or to send and receive e‑mail. For more information about Windows Live Mail and instructions for importing your e‑mail, contacts, and calendar, see Importing your e‑mail, messages, contacts, and calendar into Windows Live Mail.

Perform an Upgrade installation of Windows 7.

Turn on your PC.
After Windows Vista has started, do one of the following:
- If you've downloaded Windows 7, browse to the installation file you downloaded, and then double-click it (often identified as an Application file under the Type column).
- If you have a Windows 7 installation disc, insert the disc into your computer. Setup should start automatically. If it doesn't, click the Start button, click Computer, double-click your DVD drive to open the Windows 7 installation disc, and then double-click setup.exe.
- If you've downloaded Windows 7 installation files onto a USB flash drive, insert the drive into your computer. Setup should start automatically. If it doesn't, click the Start button, click Computer, double-click the drive, and then double-click setup.exe.
On the Install Windows page, click Install now.
On the Get important updates for installation page, we recommend getting the latest updates to help ensure a successful installation, and to help protect your computer against security threats. Your computer will need to be connected to the Internet during Windows 7 installation to get these updates.
On the Please read the license terms page, if you accept the license terms, click I accept the license terms, and then click Next.
On the Which type of installation do you want? page, click Upgrade.

You might see a compatibility report.
Continue to follow the instructions to finish installing Windows 7.

Update drivers.

A driver is software that allows your computer to communicate with hardware or devices. Without drivers, the hardware you connect to your computer—for example, a video card or a printer—won't work properly.

In most cases, drivers come with Windows, or you can find them by using Windows Update and checking for updates. To do so, click the Start button, click All Programs, and then click Windows Update.

If Windows Update doesn't have the driver you need, check out the Windows 7 Compatibility Center, which has direct links to driver downloads and manufacturer support pages. For more information, see Update a driver for hardware that isn't working properly.

Share printers.

You'll need to re-share any Plug and Play printers that you'd shared in Windows Vista. To share a printer in Windows 7:

Click the Start button, and then, on the Start menu, click Devices and Printers.
Right-click the printer you want to share, and then click Printer properties.
On the Sharing tab, select the Share this printer check box, and then click OK.

If other computers on your network still can't access the printer, remove the printer from the other computers, and then add the printer again. For more information, see Share a printer.

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Just a day before Microsoft drops support for Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) , the company announced on Monday that people running some versions of Windows 7 can "downgrade" to the aged operating system for up to 10 years.

The move is highly unusual. In the past, Microsoft has terminated downgrade rights -- which let customers replace a newer version of Windows with an older edition without paying for two copies -- within months of introducing a new OS.

While few consumers may want to downgrade from Windows 7 to XP -- unlike when many mutinied against Vista three years ago -- businesses often want to standardize on a single operating system to simplify machine management.

Monday's announcement was the second Windows XP downgrade rights extension. Microsoft originally limited Windows 7-to-Windows XP downgrades to six months after Windows 7's release, but backtracked in June 2009 after an analyst with Gartner Research called the plan a "real mess."

Instead, Microsoft later said it would allow downgrades to Windows XP until 18 months after the October 2009 debut of Windows 7 , or until it released Windows 7 SP1.

In either scenario, XP downgrade rights would have expired sometime in 2011, perhaps as early as April.

On Monday, Microsoft again changed its mind. Users running Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate will now be able to downgrade to Windows XP Professional throughout the entire lifecycle of Windows 7.

"Our business customers have told us that the removing end-user downgrade rights to Windows XP Professional could be confusing," said Microsoft spokesman Brandon LeBlanc, in an entry on the a company blog .

Windows 7 Professional won't be fully retired until January 2020; the Ultimate edition will be put out to pasture five years earlier, in January 2015.

How to keep Windows XP SP2 safer after Microsoft stops patching

Maybe you didn't get the memo: Tomorrow marks the end of patches for Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2).

And you're still running the nearly-six-year-old edition.

But XP SP2 won't shudder to a stop. Although Tuesday marks the support retirement of the service pack -- a date that some have called a "red alert" for people running SP2 -- that doesn't mean your copy of Windows will suddenly refuse to run.

It does mean that, after tomorrow, Microsoft will not offer any security patches, no matter how severe the vulnerability, no matter what part of Windows or associated component is involved. No more Windows patches -- and no more patches for Internet Explorer (IE), no patches for Windows Media Player, no patches for Outlook Express.

You can, of course, sidestep the whole problem by upgrading to Windows XP SP3, which will be supported until April 2014: Microsoft has posted a page that explains how to do that here. (Note: Because there is no SP3 for the 64-bit version of Windows XP, you'll continue to receive security updates if you're running SP2 of that edition.)

Among your options: Download and install SP3 via Windows Update, download a disk image for upgrading multiple machines or order a SP3 CD for $3.99.

In fact, you actually have four weeks to upgrade to SP3 before Microsoft releases the next likely XP patch on Aug. 10. There's little chance that Microsoft will issue an "out-of-band" emergency update before then.

But if you're committed to SP2, for whatever reason, and have no intention of upgrading anytime soon, there are steps you can take to make your PC more secure and your time on the Internet safer.

Dump Internet Explorer. After Tuesday, Microsoft won't be providing IE patches of any kind, for any version -- IE6, IE7 or even 2009's IE8 -- to people running Windows XP SP2.

But other browser makers aren't halting updates for their wares. Mozilla, Google, Apple and Opera will be shipping fixes for Windows XP versions of their Firefox, Chrome, Safari and Opera browsers for the foreseeable future.

More than a year ago, Mozilla debated whether to drop support for older editions of Windows, including Windows 2000 and Windows XP SP2. But the company decided against the move.

According to the system requirements for Firefox 4 Beta 1, the preview Mozilla released last week, the browser runs not only on Windows XP, but also Windows 2000. (Mozilla's systems requirement link for Firefox 4 currently takes you to the page for version 3.6.6, leading us to believe that the requirements will remain the same for Firefox 4, which is slated to ship in November 2010.)

And because Mozilla's policy is to continue supporting a browser with security updates for at least six months after the launch of its successor, moving to Firefox 4 down the road means that if the company ships Firefox 5, or whatever the next edition is called, a year later -- in November 2011 -- patches for it will be produced through May 2012 or later.

It's important to keep a browser up-to-date on patches because hackers continue to exploit browser vulnerabilities, particularly those in IE. They focus on IE bugs for a simple reason: Every Windows machine has it, and Microsoft's browser continues to be used by more people than any other.

Ironically, you may actual improve the security of your Windows XP SP2 machine if you dump IE.