Can Win 7 64 bit home premium be installed on 64 bit capable CPU

[kaijai]

Have 4 computers with OEM Vista 32 bit installed ( Home Premium). Can Win 6 64 bit be installed over the 32 bit to upgrade to 64 bit OS?

 

[LePhuronn]

No - 32-bit and 64-bit systems are very different internally.

You have a valid upgrade but the actual installation will need to be a fresh one.

 

[gamerk316]

You would have to do a format of the system, losing all your data.

 

[sminlal]

You can buy an upgrade copy of Windows 7 (which contains both 32- and 64-bit versions) and install the 64-bit version. From a licensing perspective an "upgrade" from a 32-bit to 64-bit system is valid and you will be able to activate your 64-bit Windows 7 system.

BUT - you cannot do an "upgrade in place" - you'll have to reinstall the OS from scratch, migrate your accounts and reinstall the programs that you use.

 

[uh_no]

with the in place upgrade, you do not lose your data, as gamerk has implied

windows 7 has this fancy feature where all your old files (anything in the users or program files folders) gets stored in the new OS as windows.old

now this doesn't mean that you shouldn't back up your data before doing the upgrade

and how ever you choose to do it, you will need to reinstall your programs