repair install on computer upgrade

[DigitalWino]

I just bought myself a new computer (some assembly required, of course). The parts are going to show up next week. Everything will be new except for the hard drives. On my current computer I had Windows 7 (which I had purchased a retail copy of) which I upgraded to Windows 10. When I put the new computer together, I know that at the very least I will have to do a repair, possibly even a full install. I'm curious how that will work. If I have to go with a full install, will I even be able to reupgrade my copy of Windows 7 to 10 again?

 

[Lutfij]

As long as the product key has binding to you and your system/copy of windows then there will be no issue. If that wasn't possible then how do you suppose everyone with installation issues who have had to perform multiple clean re-installations been able to move along? Simple their product key assures them of ownership.

Oh and don't try a repair. It'll just make you want to shave your head for better circulation and thinking (pun intended). Minor settings changes tend to make Windows 10 finicky and its already finicky to begin with.

If you want a checklist:
1| Download all your drivers and perform a BIOS update prior to installing Windows 10. After booting into Windows 10 you can install the necessary drivers.
2| Make sure they are on a USB drive and speaking of which
3| Here's how you can go about a clean install
4| We will need your full systems specs(arriving parts for systembuild) to help you with further info.

Don't clone your OS drive either, it'll make things worse for you. Backup all important data on an external storage device.

 

[DigitalWino]

As long as the product key has binding to you and your system/copy of windows then there will be no issue. If that wasn't possible then how do you suppose everyone with installation issues who have had to perform multiple clean re-installations been able to move along? Simple their product key assures them of ownership.

Oh and don't try a repair. It'll just make you want to shave your head for better circulation and thinking (pun intended). Minor settings changes tend to make Windows 10 finicky and its already finicky to begin with.

Heh, funny you mention the head shaving, as that is something I do anyway.

After poking around online I learned something really important to this situation. If you do the free upgrade from Windows 7/8 to Windows 10, it is NOT considered a retail copy of Windows 10. This means that you are not allowed to transfer it from one computer to the next. Microsoft defines a new computer as being a new motherboard, by the way. However, as my copy of Windows 7 IS a retail copy, that can be transferred from one computer to the next. So what they tell you to do right now, as the free upgrade time hasn't ended, is to first install your old OS (in this case Windows 7 for me), and then upgrade to 10 again.

That being said, I actually didn't even have to do that. When I put the old hard drives into the new computer... Windows 10 took a few min to reconfigure itself, and then it worked just fine. I THOUGHT I was having an issue with the USB ports not working quite right (both the ones on the motherboard itself, and the ones hooked up to the case), so I did end up doing the reinstall. But when I was still having the same problem... I tried switching out the cable and that fixed my problem. I didn't think it was the cable as when I plugged my phone or PS4 controller in, it would start charging it, but the computer wouldn't recognize that something was plugged in. Apparently there is a difference between a USB 1.0 and 2.0 cord. *shrugs* Having a clean install isn't a bad idea anyway, clears out all the old programs that I don't use anymore.

From what I can tell though, moving the hard drive over the new computer worked just fine though. So that's nice.

 

[Lutfij]

Ah that's good to learn of your fortune 😉 and its always good to see people with their humor intact in spite of the nerve wracking ordeals with installations...most often its heart pounding.

The difference in v 1.0 and 2.0 is the throughput and ofc the ability to transfer more data and more power through the cable. Odd you mentioned it worked out for you since alot of people have been speaking of untold horror merely by taking off a panel/cover to work on thus the sigh of relief.

I'll just leave this here in case you want to do any repair installs on your current system(and not with new OS drives 😉 )