clean install

ZDNet Resources

• sort by:
• Relevance
• Date
• Popularity

Clean install with Windows 7 upgrade media? Get the facts!

Unbelievable"Last week I complained about Microsoft?s shoddy documentation of how its upgrade procedures are supposed to work. I?m delighted to report that I got a tremendous and immediate response from within Microsoft, offering assistance in my testing and also promising to clean up and expand their documentation."So what exactly did...

Tags: Microsoft Windows, product key, acccount, clean install, Microsoft Windows 7

Discussion threads 2009-11-02

Clean install with Windows 7 upgrade media? Get the facts!

If you purchase a discounted upgrade edition of Windows 7, can you use it to perform a clean installation of the operating system on a PC that doesn't currently have Windows installed? The answer, it turns out, is really quite simple. I've broken down the license agreement and have specific...

Tags: Clean Install, Media, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Ed Bott

Blog posts 2009-11-02

Students find Win 7 upgrade a tough assignment

Well DUH!Students, retired folks, IT pros, dabblers, 'nix heads, etc. would ALL find trying to UPGRADE from a 32 bit to a 64 bit OS hard. Three words - "can't be done."There, was that hard? Why is this even news?This is newsbecause some people like to keep spreading...

Tags: Operating systems, clean install, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows, operating system, Migration Wizard

Discussion threads 2009-10-26

Microsoft exec: 'When Windows is executing well, Microsoft is in good shape'

upgrade pathdo you really think that people will rush to their next best buy to make a clean install on their old xp hardware? do you think corporations will want the hassle of clean installs on their xp hardware? never going to happen. windows 7 is a non event in...

Tags: Desktops, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Corp., hardware, clean install, new hardware

Discussion threads 2009-09-15

How long should a Windows 7 upgrade really take?

Even if it takes 20 hours, it's still faster than starting from scratchIf you have a massive PC that needs 20 hours for upgrading, you'll need a week to re-install and configure all your apps before you have a configuration that's even remotely comparable. So even if it takes 20...

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Windows, clean install, user data, Microsoft Windows 7

Discussion threads 2009-09-15

Review: Snow Leopard ramps up performance and business-readiness of Mac OS X

Graphic Artists on MacDo Graphic Artists really have a compelling reason to use Macs anymore? Adobe CS3 isn't supported on Snow Leopard. If you want to use 64bit versions of Adobe CS4, you have to use Windows. And even on the same hardware, programs like After Effects and Photoshop...

Tags: Desktops, Operating systems, ZBrush, performance, Upgrading Windows, Apple Mac OS, Apple Mac OS X, Apple Macintosh, clean install, CS4, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Corp.

Discussion threads 2009-09-08

Microsoft blunders with a confusing Windows 7 upgrade chart

Microsoft blunders with a confusing Windows 7 upgrade chartWell I definitely agree......your chart is INFINITELY better!That said, I'm the type of guy who would rather spend 4 hours doing a clean install than spend 4 minutes coping with the bloated remnants of a previous OS release and any unknown instabilities...

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating systems, Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 7 upgrade chart, Windows 7 Upgrade, Microsoft Corp., Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows, Vista Home

Discussion threads 2009-08-06

Microsoft preps PC makers for Windows 7 Upgrade launch

Microsoft preps PC makers for Windows 7 Upgrade launchGet Vista, Wipe Entire Machine, Put On Windows 7I've never had a good experience doing an upgrade, it's better to just wipe completely and install the new OS from scratch.I agree but....I upgraded my Vista Ultimate desktop to the Windows 7 Ultimate...

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Corp., Microsoft Windows 7, OEM, Microsoft Windows Vista, bloatware, Dell Computer Corp., clean install, Microsoft Windows, Hewlett-Packard Co.

Discussion threads 2009-06-22

Windows 7 beta testers - get ready for a wipe and reload

Windows 7 beta testers - get ready for a wipe and reloadAnother example of why data and programs shouldn't be on the same partitionOn Windows you have to go out of your way to do that, but it's well worth the effort.Great articleI really can't wait to see what they've...

Tags: Operating systems, OS disk, Windows 7 beta tester, wipe, reload, Windows 7 Beta, Microsoft Windows 7, operating system, Microsoft Windows, clean install

Discussion threads 2009-04-08

Don't upgrade to Windows 7 ... clean install instead!

Don't upgrade to Windows 7 ... clean install instead!Everyone Should Know ThisANY Microsoft OS you are gambling with your life to do an upgrade....98, ME, XP, Vista...all of them ground the system to a halt...Fresh install no problems!Why is there still a 32 bit version?If I am off-base, please correct...

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating systems, Microsoft Windows 7, clean install, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Corp., operating system

Discussion threads 2008-11-04

Don't upgrade to Windows 7 ... clean install instead!

I've just been having a flick through Microsoft's Windows 7 Application Quality Cookbook via All About Microsoft and I'm already certain that those deciding to upgrade to the OS from XP or Vista are going to be in for a world of hurt unless everything that's installed is bang up...

Tags: Microsoft Windows 7, Clean Install, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Windows XP, Software, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, Operating System, Microsoft Windows Vista, Portable Device

Blog posts 2008-11-04

Fixing Windows Vista, one machine at a time

If the "Vista sucks" movement has a public face, it's the Sony Vaio. No one knows that better than my new friend Jeremy Toeman. In May 2007, this 15-year Windows veteran replaced his old, beloved, XP-powered Vaio with a newer Vaio that came with Windows Vista Business installed. Practically overnight,...

Tags: Sony Corp., Sony Vaio, Clean Install, Installation, Driver, Microsoft Windows Vista, Machine, Recovery Partition, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating Systems, Software, Ed Bott

Blog posts 2008-04-21

The Vista license "loophole" that isn't

Software licensing is often hard to understand. But that's no excuse for so-called Windows experts to deliberately publish sensational stories that turn the facts upside-down. I'm talking about the fuss that Scott Dunn and Brian Livingston kicked up in yesterday's version of the Windows Secrets newsletter, in...

Tags: License Agreement, Clean Install, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Corp., Edition, Scott Dunn, Nothing, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating Systems, Software, Ed Bott

Blog posts 2008-04-04

I got bitten by the Apple Leopard blue screen problem

I got bitten by the Apple Leopard blue screen problemWhere are all the Mac fanbois lambasting Apple for this?No surprise...they'll somehow spin this into a non-issue and somehow different because it's Apple.Clean install is the only way to upgradeI hate to say it, but that is the only thing that...

Tags: Desktops, Operating systems, Apple Macintosh, Apple Inc., clean install

Discussion threads 2007-10-27

Latest OpenSUSE a mixed bag for educators

Latest OpenSUSE a mixed bag for educatorsOld wisdom...Upgrading is always a bad idea, for any operating system under the sun. At worst you encounter strange problems, at best you always have some debris left on your system. A clean install is therefore always preferable.I always say: if you want a...

Tags: BIOS, RAID, OPEN SOURCE, clean install, Upgrading, educator, Novell OpenSuse, mixed bag

Discussion threads 2007-10-08

Vista Hands On #4: Clean install with an upgrade key

Vista Hands On #4: Clean install with an upgrade keyIs it pirating if...So Technically you can build a PC from scratch with no OS then buy the Vista upgrade to install the evaluation version then upgrade said version? Technically isn't that still pirating as you don't have a license for...

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), security, OEM, Microsoft Windows Vista, Vista Hands-On, Microsoft Windows, clean install

Discussion threads 2007-02-15

Vista Hands On #4: Clean install with an upgrade key

Ive been reading the breathless reports from other websites this week about the "Vista upgrade loophole." Most of it is typical echo-chamber stuff, and most of the reports Ive read so far have gotten the basic facts wrong. The Setup feature theyre describing isnt a loophole at all. Its a...

Tags: Tips, Windows Vista

Blog posts 2007-02-15

Vista Hands On #2: A no-fuss, nondestructive clean install

Vista Hands On #2: A no-fuss, nondestructive clean installWelcome to Mac OS 9I can't believe Windows users have never been able to do this. We Mac users have been taking this feature for granted for decades.I'll stick with reformatting thank youOne of the things installing a new OS gives...

Tags: Operating systems, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Windows 2000, Desktops, Microsoft Windows, operating system, Microsoft Windows Vista, hard drive, clean install

Discussion threads 2007-02-14

News to know: Microsoft security; Sun's rapid patch; Vista clean install

Notable headlines:Hacker, Microsoft duke it out over Vista design flaw. What the UAC hole is really about. Sun rushes out patch for Solaris Telnet exploit.Patch Day coverage:Microsoft’s Patch Day: Is there a better way?MS Patch Tuesday: 12 bulletins, 6 critical, 20 vulnerabilities. No Vista fixes in Microsofts dirty dozen. Vista...

Tags: General

Blog posts 2007-02-14

Vista Hands On #2: A no-fuss, nondestructive clean install

Thanks to the radically revised Setup program in Windows Vista, Windows users can safely discard one of the basic tenets that have governed installation decisions since the beginning of the Windows era. Thats right - you can now safely point Windows Setup to a partition on which Windows is already...

Tags: Uncategorized

Blog posts 2007-02-13