Ask Leo!: Windows Installation

Where can I download Windows 7?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:00:00 -08:00

I've lost my Windows 7 installation disk, but I possess the product key. What should I do if I want to reinstall Windows on my computer?

]]> Take a full system image backup as soon as possible and use that as a fallback. You can always restore to that image in lieu of a reinstall and you'll be back to where you were at the time that the backup was taken.

You should also get in touch with the vendor who sold you the computer - if they provided you with a copy once, perhaps they'll be willing to get you a replacement copy.

You could, I suppose, go buy a new copy. Most people aren't interested in doing that because they're stuck paying for something that they feel they already have.

That's when most people resort to downloading a copy. If you do it right, it might even be legal.

Let me explain...

How do I upgrade from 32-bit to 64-bit Windows?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 08:00:00 -08:00

I'm using Windows 7, 32-bit Home Premium on a computer with 64-bit hardware. Can I buy a copy of Windows 7 64-bit and install it on my system? I have 10 GB of RAM on a Gateway computer.

]]> Yes, you can. And in fact, you'll really want to in your case, for reasons which I'll explain shortly.

Unfortunately, the path to get there from here isn't nearly as easy as we might want.

What does a recovery CD recover?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 16:50:44 -08:00

If you make a Windows recovery CD after you've used your computer for a year, what will be the result? Will you get a CD that will bring you back to your original setup or a copy of your machine like it is now?

]]> Depending on what recovery CD you're really talking about, the reality is somewhere in between.

Manufacturer recovery CDs use various approaches to give you what you had when you first got your machine.

And Windows recovery CDs only concern themselves with Windows itself.

In this (mostly audio-only) video from an Ask Leo! webinar, I'll discuss some of the possibilities.

I don't have installation media for Windows - what if I need it?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 14:00:00 -08:00

I need to reinstall Windows, but I don't have an installation disc. I never got one. What do I do?

]]> There are circumstances where you may have a legal installation of Windows without installation media. This can cause some panic when you're later instructed to make sure that you have the CD or DVD before installing some other software or hardware, or if you have to reinstall your system from scratch.

I'll tell you how to prepare for this day and what straws you may have to grasp at should you arrive unprepared.

How do I repair Windows 7 with a re-install?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 17:28:22 -08:00

You told me that one of the ways to recover from my current situation may be to perform a "repair" reinstall of Windows. Great. How do I do that? Windows 7, by the way.

]]> Windows 7 made this interesting.

In previous versions of Windows, such as XP, "Repair your current installation" was one of the options at setup time.

Not so with Windows 7 setup. At least, not explicitly.

However, if you meet a few criteria, you can in fact perform a repair install that's very similar to the older Windows XP repair.