Simple Windows 7 Upgrade Guide

Windows 7 is sleek, stable, fast and is designed for the current computing era.

If you’re still running Windows XP or Vista, upgrading to Windows 7 will be a huge improvement.

I used Windows XP on my main PC until the end of 2009 because it was such a rock solid OS and Vista was such a big steamy turd. Windows 7 brings back the stability and speed of XP and the look of a well polished OS.

Follow this guide for a stress free upgrade.

Windows 7 System Requirements

•    1GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
•    1GB RAM (32-bit) / 2GB RAM (64-bit)
•    16GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20GB (64-bit)
•    DirectX 9 graphics processor with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

Check Hardware compatibility – If your computer is already running Windows Vista you should be able to run Windows 7. However, it’s always smart to double check.

Use Windows 7 Upgrade adviser to confirm compatibility before you find out the hard way.

Which Windows 7 version is right for you? – Use Home Premium. Unless you need to connect to a company network, run apps that will only work on Windows XP or work with highly sensitive data. Home Premium will have everything you need.

There are three Windows 7 retail versions available – Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate. Use Microsoft’s “Which One Is Right for You?” page to view at a glance all the features available with each one.

Home Premium – For most pc users Home Premium is the right choice. One of the major changes is now Home Premium includes the image backup feature which Windows Vista Home Premium did not include.

Professional – Use Pro if you need to connect to a business domain. Need support for Windows XP-compatible software that will not work on Windows 7. And, need the ability to backup to network shares. Windows 7 Professional includes every Home Premium feature.

Ultimate – Windows 7 Ultimate may not look like it’s worth the money, however Ultimate includes BitLocker. I use Ultimate because of the security Bitlocker provides. Why would you need Bitlocker?

Let’s say you have sensitive data you wouldn’t want showing up on TMZ. Without encryption, anyone with physical access to your computer can bypass any password security and gain access to everything on your PC. Being a security professional, I gravitate to these types of features.

64 Bit Edition and XP Mode virtualization – You will need to run 64 bit if you have or plan to use more then 4GB of RAM memory. All Windows 7 retail boxes include both the 32 & 64 bit DVD discs. If you do plan to use 64 bit edition and virtualization make sure your processor is capable with SecurAble. Just download and run the exe file, no installation required.

In place Upgrade vs. Fresh Install – For a hassle free upgrade I recommend just popping in the Windows 7 DVD while logged into Windows Vista and performing the upgrade. Don’t bother with a fresh install unless your still using Windows XP or have major issues with your Vista installation (i.e. blue screens). If your computer was upgraded from XP, then to Vista, and now 7, maybe it’s time for a fresh start.

OEM or Retail- Windows 7 OEM editions can only legally be installed on a PC you intend to sell and lack the same level of support retail copies include. You will have no one to call if you need tech support.

If you want to save some hard earned cash you can purchase a OEM version of Windows 7 from retailers like my favorite site newegg.com.

Backup – Before making any changes to your PC I highly recommend you backup all your personal data to an external USB drive. If your running Vista follow these steps – Click on the Start menu>Control Panel>>System and Maintenance>Backup and Restore Center. Now click Back up your computer>Select a drive to back up Windows. Follow the on screen instructions.

Still have questions? Leave a comment and I’ll be happy to help.