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Can you update from Windows XP to Windows 7 withought any problems
Upgrade to Windows 7 from XP
- Thread starter Necrascope
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You can buy an upgrade version of Windows 7 if you have an XP license... however you aren't able to upgrade directly. You'll need to perform a clean Windows 7 install.
However, you can use the Windows Easy Transfer Wizard to help migrate your files over:
https://www.w7forums.com/windows-easy-transfer-t829.html
However, you can use the Windows Easy Transfer Wizard to help migrate your files over:
https://www.w7forums.com/windows-easy-transfer-t829.html
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Ian,
that what I was getting by looking at comments and windows releases, kind of makes this a harder problem than I thought as the company I work for are all XP and they dont want to fall behind anymore than they have to - I have heard that vist SP2 is about on the same level as windows 7
that what I was getting by looking at comments and windows releases, kind of makes this a harder problem than I thought as the company I work for are all XP and they dont want to fall behind anymore than they have to - I have heard that vist SP2 is about on the same level as windows 7
It's the only way unfortunately - although it really isn't as painful as it sounds.
XP SP2 and Windows 7 are worlds apart, they really are. Why not do a test upgrade on one PC and see how it goes
There's no shortcut way to do it, so it might be worth trying out.
XP SP2 and Windows 7 are worlds apart, they really are. Why not do a test upgrade on one PC and see how it goes
There's no shortcut way to do it, so it might be worth trying out.- Joined
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Thanks Ian will take your advice and try on one of our PC's - really we will have to llok at older models of our Laptops as well - to see were the cut off is hardware wise - anyway Ian thanks for the advice
xp to win 7 upgrade
I have some good news for those of you who are upgrading to win 7 from xp. I found a thread on another forum about this and learned that laplink has a program called PC Mover. Get it and use it! It does all the work for you in migrating all your old programs and settings over to win 7. It is a simple process and you will not have to reinstall your programs or redo your settings. It is almost as easy as an in place upgrade. A life saver, and it only costs about 20 bucks (no, I do not work for laplink).
I have some good news for those of you who are upgrading to win 7 from xp. I found a thread on another forum about this and learned that laplink has a program called PC Mover. Get it and use it! It does all the work for you in migrating all your old programs and settings over to win 7. It is a simple process and you will not have to reinstall your programs or redo your settings. It is almost as easy as an in place upgrade. A life saver, and it only costs about 20 bucks (no, I do not work for laplink).
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Necrascope,
You CAN in fact upgrade directly to Windows 7 using XP Easy Transfer to do exactly what you want in terms of leaving your existing programs and settings intact (though some settings will be new as Win 7 does have some new and revamped features). HOWEVER, there are pros and cons:
If you are running the x86 version of XP (which you probably are), performing Easy Transfer requires that you run the x86 version of the Windows 7 installation media from within XP (meaning you boot into XP, pop in the disc and run it, rather than booting to the media). If you boot to the media, you can still upgrade, but your old XP install will be moved to a Windows.old folder. you can get at the files that way, but you will have to reinstall applications and adjust settings.
Also, you cannot downgrade your edition (if you have XP Pro, the upgrade utility will not let you go to Windows 7 Home Edition), so you should at least buy the matching edition or a more feature-filled one. Finally, if you upgrade to the x86 version of Windows 7, you will not be able to take advantage of x64 benefits such as larger addressing space, which mainly means being able to use more RAM in your machine. However, you cannot in-place upgrade between x86 and x64 - the best you can do is upgrade such that your old install ends up in Windows.old.
With x64 Windows, you can run 99% of the x86 (32-bit) apps out there fine, the issues you will have are finding x64 drivers for your hardware (which for newer equipment is no problem) and legacy apps from the win 95/98 days. Windows 7 comes with XP mode also, basically the ability to run an XP Pro virtual machine within Win 7 that can help you run legacy apps that have compatibility issues with 7 or architecturally have issues with x64. ALSO, x86 Windows will run on any PC platform, but you have to have a processor capable of supporting the x64 architecture to run it. For example, the higher-end Prescott series of Pentium 4 processors and anything newer (Core duo, Core 2 duo, Core i7, etc) can run x64, mid-range Pentium 4's and earlier cannot. Make sure of this compatibility first before selecting which architecture you are going to use.
Make sure you have the right edition and architecture of Win 7 that u want before installing - likely your company will be making this shift w/i a year or two, so the more experience you have now, the better off you'll be at work when the time comes. The following article may help you during your upgrade or transfer:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd446674(WS.10).aspx#BKMK_UpgradeFromXP
You CAN in fact upgrade directly to Windows 7 using XP Easy Transfer to do exactly what you want in terms of leaving your existing programs and settings intact (though some settings will be new as Win 7 does have some new and revamped features). HOWEVER, there are pros and cons:
If you are running the x86 version of XP (which you probably are), performing Easy Transfer requires that you run the x86 version of the Windows 7 installation media from within XP (meaning you boot into XP, pop in the disc and run it, rather than booting to the media). If you boot to the media, you can still upgrade, but your old XP install will be moved to a Windows.old folder. you can get at the files that way, but you will have to reinstall applications and adjust settings.
Also, you cannot downgrade your edition (if you have XP Pro, the upgrade utility will not let you go to Windows 7 Home Edition), so you should at least buy the matching edition or a more feature-filled one. Finally, if you upgrade to the x86 version of Windows 7, you will not be able to take advantage of x64 benefits such as larger addressing space, which mainly means being able to use more RAM in your machine. However, you cannot in-place upgrade between x86 and x64 - the best you can do is upgrade such that your old install ends up in Windows.old.
With x64 Windows, you can run 99% of the x86 (32-bit) apps out there fine, the issues you will have are finding x64 drivers for your hardware (which for newer equipment is no problem) and legacy apps from the win 95/98 days. Windows 7 comes with XP mode also, basically the ability to run an XP Pro virtual machine within Win 7 that can help you run legacy apps that have compatibility issues with 7 or architecturally have issues with x64. ALSO, x86 Windows will run on any PC platform, but you have to have a processor capable of supporting the x64 architecture to run it. For example, the higher-end Prescott series of Pentium 4 processors and anything newer (Core duo, Core 2 duo, Core i7, etc) can run x64, mid-range Pentium 4's and earlier cannot. Make sure of this compatibility first before selecting which architecture you are going to use.
Make sure you have the right edition and architecture of Win 7 that u want before installing - likely your company will be making this shift w/i a year or two, so the more experience you have now, the better off you'll be at work when the time comes. The following article may help you during your upgrade or transfer:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd446674(WS.10).aspx#BKMK_UpgradeFromXP
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xp upgrade to win 7
Eric,
Before I upgraded, I did run the easy transfer program, just in case, and as a backup.( In an abundance of caution, I also created a disk image of the xp installation, for a catastrophic situation.) However, noting that I would still have to reinstall all my (many) programs, I elected to simply purchase the pcmover program from Laplink and use it instead. And, It worked like a champ! Here I am some days later and I have not discovered one flaw in its operation. It is just like doing an in place upgrade from vista. All I did was boot to the media and do a clean install. Then, I ran the pcmover program ( it had been run before the upgrade, to generate the "moving van") and after it was finished, I was immediately up and running with all my old programs , just as before, but with the new win 7 os! Apparently, what this program does is to use the program files that windows stores in the windows.old folder to reinstall them for 7. (I might note that there were a couple of old drivers (soundblaster) that would not load for win 7, but the os helped me find the newer drivers. Not a big deal.) Life is good!
Eric,
Before I upgraded, I did run the easy transfer program, just in case, and as a backup.( In an abundance of caution, I also created a disk image of the xp installation, for a catastrophic situation.) However, noting that I would still have to reinstall all my (many) programs, I elected to simply purchase the pcmover program from Laplink and use it instead. And, It worked like a champ! Here I am some days later and I have not discovered one flaw in its operation. It is just like doing an in place upgrade from vista. All I did was boot to the media and do a clean install. Then, I ran the pcmover program ( it had been run before the upgrade, to generate the "moving van") and after it was finished, I was immediately up and running with all my old programs , just as before, but with the new win 7 os! Apparently, what this program does is to use the program files that windows stores in the windows.old folder to reinstall them for 7. (I might note that there were a couple of old drivers (soundblaster) that would not load for win 7, but the os helped me find the newer drivers. Not a big deal.) Life is good!
Last edited:
Nibiru2012
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Sailor,
Is that right? huh - admittedly I have not attempted an easy transfer myself yet, but it would appear that it's not quote all its cracked up to be if the registry still blows out and u have to reinstall programs...I will look into laplink as we will likely have some candidates for upgrading in such a way here soon...
I take it you'd still have to upgradeunder the same architecture (x86 to x86 or x64 to x64) with the laplink method?
Is that right? huh - admittedly I have not attempted an easy transfer myself yet, but it would appear that it's not quote all its cracked up to be if the registry still blows out and u have to reinstall programs...I will look into laplink as we will likely have some candidates for upgrading in such a way here soon...
I take it you'd still have to upgradeunder the same architecture (x86 to x86 or x64 to x64) with the laplink method?