SOLVED Official Windows 7 SP1 ISO Image Downloads

[Alantin]

I'm having trouble with booting from my dvd.

I downloaded Windows 7 professional, unzipped the iso to delete the source/ei.cfg file (to install home premium), then used IsoCreator to make a new iso to burn with ImgBurn. (Am i correct that this should still be bootable?)
When opening the setup on my pc it gives me the option to install windows (all good so far)
When i try to boot from the disk however, it gets me straight to my installed windows (and does nothing on the pc i try to install it to: has empty hdd)

Any ideas what the problem might be?

 

[TrainableMan]

No it probably would not still be bootable. I've never used it to create the DVD version but I suggest you try using the Windows DVD/USB Download tool to create a bootable DVD from your ISO.

 

[Alantin]

You're right TrainableMan, seems like what I tried doesn't work.

I got it working with making a bootable USB-stick with Rufus.
I had looked over this method before but wrongly dismissed it as not being something I could use
(That way i could simply open the bootable usb-stick and delete the file without altering anything else)


ps. Also a belated thanks for the links to the ISO's. The pc is now downloading updates and looking good. This thread really saved me

 

[Clemence Ronald]

TrainableMan,

I downloaded both of the Win7 64bit Home Premium SP1 & Win7 64bit Home Premium SP1U. Extracted all the content to 8gb USB flashdrive and made several clean installs, every attempts were smooth until it asked for serial number...always rejected. I didn't want to waste time to install the SP-1 later that's why I tried these SP-1 setups. Any suggestions?
My laptop is ASUS G75VW I bought about a year ago. I upgraded to the original hybrid HDD to SSD, and lost the OEM recovery partition in the process.
Please help. Thx

 

[TrainableMan]

Where are you getting your W7 product key from? And are you sure it is for Home Premium and not Home Starter or Home Basic? If it is for Starter or Basic then you will need to delete the ei.cfg file from the flash drive to convert it to an "any version".

If your original HD still functions you might be able to put it back in and use a program to extract the key from the registry (note that this does not seem to work if it is a version that was upgraded via an anytime upgrade, such as W7 Home Prem that had been upgraded to W7 Professional)

 

[Dave Chattaway]

Hi,
I have Windows 7 professional OEM x86 original, can I use the same serial number if I download the x64 version from here.

 

[Ian]

Hi,
I have Windows 7 professional OEM x86 original, can I use the same serial number if I download the x64 version from here.

Yes, as long as you've got the same class of product (i.e. Professional) then you can use the serial with either x86 or x64.

 

[Dave Chattaway]

Yes, as long as you've got the same class of product (i.e. Professional) then you can use the serial with either x86 or x64.

ok thanks.

 

[KL.]

I always used [another website (moderator edit)] to download an official version of a Swedish Windows 7 Home Premium x64, but now there’s only Professional available. Is there another official place to get that version?

 

[TrainableMan]

KL, simply download the official Swedish professional x64 version and use the Microsoft DVD/USB Download tool to create a bootable USB flash drive. Once the bootable flash drive is created then simply delete the ei.cfg file from the root directory and it becomes an ANY version. Now install from the flash drive and choose Home Premium.

NOTE: flash drive must be 4GB or larger and it will be reformatted so remove any files you need first
NOTE2: I removed the URL from your post. No matter where you get it, if you have the official PRO version, this answer should provide a solution

 

[KL.]

KL, simply download the official Swedish professional x64 version and use the Microsoft DVD/USB Download tool to create a bootable USB flash drive. Once the bootable flash drive is created then simply delete the ei.cfg file from the root directory and it becomes an ANY version. Now install from the flash drive and choose Home Premium.

NOTE: flash drive must be 4GB or larger and it will be reformatted so remove any files you need first
NOTE2: I removed the URL from your post. No matter where you get it, if you have the official PRO version, this answer should provide a solution

Excellent. Thank you.

 

[Clemence Ronald]

Where are you getting your W7 product key from? And are you sure it is for Home Premium and not Home Starter or Home Basic? If it is for Starter or Basic then you will need to delete the ei.cfg file from the flash drive to convert it to an "any version".

If your original HD still functions you might be able to put it back in and use a program to extract the key from the registry (note that this does not seem to work if it is a version that was upgraded via an anytime upgrade, such as W7 Home Prem that had been upgraded to W7 Professional)

Thx TM,

I feel stupid now. I've downloaded three version of Win7 ISO's. With my superslow (1mbps max, 300-600mbps mostly) internet connection. And I still couldn't enter the key. And then later I compared again my piece of paper where I wrote down the serial number from my Win7 sticker........OMG!!! I wrote "W" upside down as "M"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And as you'd guess it worked beautifully afterwards.....


Thx for the support!

 

[clifford_cooley]

OMG!!! I wrote "W" upside down as "M"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And as you'd guess it worked beautifully afterwards.....

Hahaha, brings back memories. Good to see the issue is now resolved.

 

[Stardance]

If we don't want to buy PowerISO then can we use IMGBurn instead?

Regardless, it seems to me that, since the ei.cfg Removal Utility ( http://code.kliu.org/misc/winisoutils/ ) removes that file from the ISO, we do not need either PowerISO, UtraISO, or IMGBurn to do that -- although we might need to use one of those three, or another utility, to burn the ISO image to a CD/DVD.

Frankly, I paid more than enough for the "Full" 64-bit Win7 Pro license so that I could install it anytime on any Wintel computer (if I remove it from any other computer which I own and on which it is installed). Paying yet more for tools in the hope of obtaining what Microsoft is evidently unable to produce seems to be throwing good money after bad.

The Win7 Pro installer on the genuine MS DVD always makes the mistake of installing Windows Defender, and it can soon become evident that it has made others, too. It never gets it right the first time, which usually becomes evident during Windows Updates (300+ updates that take about 4 - 5 hours to install), or when I install the most recent drivers after updating is completed. So I must repeatedly wipe the drive and re-install until Win7 Pro is reasonably stable -- there is no "repair" option that I've ever been able to find, aside from whether it would be wise to use it.

Even then any Windows installation will become corrupt sooner or later, mostly because of bugs which result in various alerts and warnings logged and reported by the Admin Tools Event Viewer.

So, I do not know whether the installer in the 64-bit Win7 Pro SP1 ISO available from Digital River will be any more effective, but at least it appears to be worthwhile to see whether the outcome will be better.

For what it is worth, the MS Windows tech support Indians told me initially that, according to the license key, the package was an "upgrade" and the documentation that accompanied it certainly presumed that the user was installing an upgrade to replace Windows Vista or XP. This was and still is more than a bit alarming, especially since I paid much more than I would have paid for an "upgrade". What MS does is tantamount to fraud.

Eventually, though, they conceded that the installer in the package will install Win7 Pro "fresh" on a drive that does not contain an operating system.

Succinctly, the whole experience has been way too time-consuming, the outcomes less than robust and, overall, installing Windows 7 stinks -- even more so because it degrades over time to an extent that the computer running it can become unreliable and unusable.

Thank-you for your advice and the assistance that you have provided to everyone who has benefitted from it. I hope that I will be among them.

 

[TrainableMan]

If we don't want to buy PowerISO then can we use IMGBurn instead?

PowerISO allows you to open an ISO image and edit it, IMGBurn simply burns an image to DVD, so NO IMGBurn won't help if the goal is to delete ei.cfg.

The easiest solution is just to put the image on a flash drive as I explained above and then delete ei.cfg . But if you need a DVD then the ei.cfg Removal Utility might be worth a shot. Once ei.cfg is removed from the ISO you can use IMGBurn to burn it to a DVD.

NOTE: scan the removal tool for viruses before use, as you should with any downloads from the internet.

As for you buying an upgrade version but thinking it was the full version, that was your mistake, you should have read the agreement first. Even though you can use the double install method to put W7 upgrade on a fresh hard drive, that does not free you from the legal obligation to own an XP or Vista license to make your W7 upgrade version legitimate.

And FYI, W7 installing Windows Defender is not a mistake, it is installed by design.

 

[Stardance]

PowerISO allows you to open an ISO image and edit it, IMGBurn simply burns an image to DVD, so NO IMGBurn won't help if the goal is to delete ei.cfg.

The easiest solution is just to put the image on a flash drive as I explained above and then delete ei.cfg . But if you need a DVD then the ei.cfg Removal Utility might be worth a shot. Once ei.cfg is removed from the ISO you can use IMGBurn to burn it to a DVD.

FWIW, I have one "4GB" USB flash drive that has an capacity of 3.93 GB, which is not quite enough for the ISO and the files that are associated with using it. Aside from that, I need it to install an AHCI driver at the outset of the Win7 Pro installation.

As far as I can tell, there's no need to remove ei.cfg from the x64 Windows 7 Pro SP1 ISO because that is what I want to install, and I already have the license for it.

We only need to remove ei.cfg if we want to install the other "editions" from that ISO, assuming that we have the corresponding license key(s). Out of curiousity, I have used the ei.cfg Removal Tool on a copy of the ISO to see what would happen. The utility reported success, but the only way to know for sure is to use the ISO.

At this point, I haven't decided which of the two discs to which I've burned the ISO with ImgBurn that I will use.

As for you buying an upgrade version but thinking it was the full version, that was your mistake, you should have read the agreement first. Even though you can use the double install method to put W7 upgrade on a fresh hard drive, that does not free you from the legal obligation to own an XP or Vista license to make your W7 upgrade version legitimate.

What is a "double install method"? I have no idea what you are trying to say, but clearly you do not understand what I wrote, so let me offer a detailed explanation.

In April 2011, I bought the Windows 7 Pro "full license" package from Amazon for $280 (the MS list price was $300). The terms of the "Full License" per se were published on the MS website. The Amazon invoice identifies the transaction as a purchase of Windows 7 Pro with a "Full License".

The package has the size and shape of a medium-sized book. It consists of a clear plastic wrapping that covers a cardboard sleeve which contains a plastic box. Text printed on the sleeve that is clearly visible through the wrapping implies that the content is MS Windows 7 Professional, but doesn't say anyting about the license.

However, a yellow sticker applied to the outside surface of the wrapping labeled the package as "Full License". Under the wrapping, across the top edge of the plastic box itself, a label has a UPC and various strings of digits, and the statement "Made in Puerto Rico / For Distribution in US only." Opening the box splits that label into two pieces. If memory serves, Amazon would not RMA the package if that label is broken. Regardless, there did not appear to be any evidence of tampering.

The translucent box opens into two halves, each attached to a "spine" between them, like pages of a book. Attached to a spindle in the riighthand half are two DVD discs labeled "Windows 7 Professional", one for 32-bit, the other for 64-bit. A booklet titled "Welcome to your PC, simplified." was secured with plastic clips to the inside of the lefthand half. Behind it is a piece of cardboard, held in place by tabs along the inside edge of the lefthand half. At the top of the cardboard an orange -?- label adheres, printed with the words "Product Key" and a string of characters that comprise the key below it. (On the side of the cardboard facing the outside of the box, you can dimly see the Windows 7 logo on an orange -?- background through the plastic, and nothing else.)

Clearly, the booklet was written with the assumption that the user would be installing Win7 Pro on a computer which already had either Vista or XP installed. But there is a footnote at the bottom of one page, in exceedingly tiny print: "*Note: If your PC doesn't have an operating system currently installed, insert the Windows 7 installation disc before turning on your computer. Setup should start automatically. If it doesn't, visit windows.microsoft.com and search for 'Start Windows from a CD or DVD'. If you install Windows 7 this way, you can only perform a custom (clean) installation."

So, it was rather surprising when the Windows tech support rep told me that, according to the database that he had searched, the license key was for an "upgrade" to Windows 7 Pro, not for a "Full License". So something went wrong somewhere.

Perhaps one should conclude that the package was mislabeled, but neither Microsoft nor Amazon would admit that it was. Someone told me that if they agreed that it was mislabeled, then they did not have any Win7 Pro package which they could be certain was not mislabeled -- that is, not without opening the package to obtain the license key, which would break the seal across the edge of the box. So, neither Microsoft nor Amazon would replace the package, and Amazon would not refund any of the money that I paid.

Eventually Microsoft conceded that I did buy and do have a "Full License", although I have no idea whether they changed the record for the license key in their database.

Then again, I have not had occasion to install it on another machine yet. I am considering whether to upgrade the motherboard, and that will, in Microsoft's current policy and practice, consitute a "new computer". If memory serves, the only distinction between the "upgrade" license and a "Full License" is that you can remove the instance of Windows for which you have a Full Licence from the computer on which it is installed, and install it on another one of your choosing, anytime, anywhere. Including, I might add, a virtual machine.

And FYI, W7 installing Windows Defender is not a mistake, it is installed by design.

F Y I: while I was in contact with MS tech support, they asked whether I had installed anti-virus software, and I told them that Windows Defender was currently installed, but I was looking for a 64-bit antimalware program to use also, or instead. They were very alarmed and told me that the installer should not have installed Windows Defender, that it was not meant to be executed in 32-bit mode on a 64-bit system. In fact, they gave instructions and advice for removing it, although those did not work. Someday, I will have to find out how to "get permission" from Trusted Installer.

However, when I installed MS Security Essentials, it disabled Windows Defender.

TTYL.

--- Stardance

nil carborundum illegitimi

 

[TrainableMan]

-The W7 ISO is only about 3.2GB so it should easily fit on a 4GB flash drive and even have plenty of room for drivers. The program to install the ISO to a flash drive and make it bootable would not actually go on the flash drive.

-ei.cfg only needs deleted if the specific version you need is not available.

-W7 upgrade product keys cause the installation to check for an existing windows on the hard drive, so in order to install it on a system with only an empty hard drive (such as after the original drive crashes) you install once and then install a second time i.e. the "double installation method". If the product key you have is for the full version you will not need to do that. And if the amazon shipment was legit then it's just as likely that MS support was mistaken about it being an upgrade product key but you probably won't know for certain until you install it on a computer w/ no Win OS (even a virtual one).

-And Windows Defender definitely has 32 & 64-bit versions so on a 64-bit machine, as they told you, you would not install/use the 32-bit version (unless it is within a 32bit virtual machine). It is also true that any other A/V you install on 32 or 64bit machines will disable Windows Defender, such as MSE that you mentioned.

 

[Stardance]

-And Windows Defender definitely has 32 & 64-bit versions so on a 64-bit machine, as they told you, you would not install/use the 32-bit version (unless it is within a 32bit virtual machine). It is also true that any other A/V you install on 32 or 64bit machines will disable Windows Defender, such as MSE that you mentioned.

"They" did not tell me to run the 64-bit version of Windows Defender. Why do you want to put words in their mouth that they never said? Let me set you straight:

MS tech support personnel were very emphatic about not running Windows Defender with 64-bit Win7 Pro. Period. Indeed, as I stated previously, they gave me instructions and advice for uninstalling Windows Defender entirely, although I never succeeded in my attempts to do that.

This evening I expect to wipe the new SSD and use the Digital River 64-bit Windows 7 Professional SP1 ISO. After the installation ends, I will check Task Manager to see whether Windows Defender is running, before I run the installer for MSE. If Windows Defender is running, then maybe that is the cause of some problems that I have encountered after installing and updating 64-bit Win7 Pro.

Fact: Just because a 64-bit version is installed does not mean that Windows will launch it instead of the 32-bit version which is also installed.

(1) Take a look at Program Files, then at Program Files (x86), and you will see the same MS applications are installed in each folder, such as Internet Explorer and Windows Defender.

(2) In fact, the Windows 7 installer adds the 32-bit Internet Explorer to the task bar, and the "Internet Explorer" entry on the Start Menu also launches the 32-bit executable. To use the 64-bit Internet Explorer 8 (for which MS ended support entirely this past April), you must find the executable, then launch it there and/or add it to the Start Menu, and/or create a desktop shortcut for it.

(3) After you launch 64-bit Internet Exporer, run Task Manager and you will see that the 64-bit process has launched a 32-bit I.E. "child" process (!). It would not surprise me in the least if the 64-bit Windows Defender executable also launches the 32-bit executable as a "chlid" process.

(4) If launching the 32-bit Windows Defender as a child process could lead to a problem(s), then it is understandable that the MS tech support people were so alarmed when I told them it had been installed. At least two of them declared that the installer was not supposed to install Windows Defender on any 64-bit system because, if memory serves, they said that there was a problem with running 32-bit Windows Defender in compatiblity mode. They, and I, even began to wonder whether I had a counterfeit Windows 7 Pro package.

Of course, if the only process running was the 64-bit Windows Defender executable perhaps there would not be a problem, but after it launches the 32-bit executable as a "child process" maybe a bug shows its presence.

Which leads to the question, one for which I will refrain from speculating as to the answer: why does Trusted Installer install 32-bit executables of each application on a 64-bit system for which it also installs the 64-bit executables of the same applications?

Enough said. I have other things to do.

--- Stardance

nil carborundum illegitimi

 

[TrainableMan]

This seems to be getting
>>>>OFF TOPIC<<<<

When W7 was released 64-bit versions of software were not the norm and even now, as you mentioned, the 32-bit IE is the default. Back then most IE add-ins would only run in the 32-bit version so if you viewed websites with flash, for example, you had to use the 32-bit version. So there actually are both versions of IE.

If you have 64-bit Windows then you should see that the only Defender executables are in the 64-bit /Program Files/ folder, there are only subprograms in the Defender /Program-Files (x86)/ folder. Regardless, very few people use either Defender because they install another A/V and Defender gets shut off.

I was not trying to put words in anyone's mouth but possibly you misunderstood or maybe you spoke to a person who was wrong. Since the person also could not tell you have the Full Version rather than the Upgrade maybe you got someone new. I doubt they will have a job long if they would disparage Microsoft's own product Defender.

If you wish to continue posts about Defender and 32 vs 64-bit software and MS Tech Support then please start a new thread. This thread is about the W7 ISO, of which Defender is definitely a part of, but is still not the subject of this thread.

Back
<<< On Topic >>>

And even though you don't need it yourself, thank you for posting the ei.cfg Removal Utility link because it may benefit someone else needing Home Basic, Home Starter, or needing Home Premium or Ultimate in a language where there are only Professional Links.

 

[Stardance]

This seems to be getting
>>>>OFF TOPIC<<<<

<<< On Topic >>>

And even though you don't need it yourself, thank you for posting the ei.cfg Removal Utility link because it may benefit someone else needing Home Basic, Home Starter, or needing Home Premium or Ultimate in a language where there are only Professional Links.

You are welcome. The cversion.ini Removal Utility on the same page can be useful, too ( http://code.kliu.org/misc/winisoutils/ ).

--- Stardance

nil carborundum illegitimi