Win7 Home Premium to Win7 Professional. Best way?

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pcarey

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Jan 14, 2014
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I want to upgrade my Windows 7 Home Premium installation on my laptop to Windows 7 Professional before the upgrade to Windows 10 so I will qualify for the Professional Version of Windows 10. As I understand it, the Win7 Anytime Upgrade route is no longer available.

My question is, what is the best way to upgrade a Windows 7 Home Premium installation to Windows 7 Professional without losing anything. Is it as simple as using Control Panel/System and entering a new Windows 7 Professional Product Key, assuming the needed files are already on the HDD and only have to be unlocked and/or installed? I have a legitimate unused Windows 7 Professional generic OEM Product Key I will be using for the upgrade and a Windows 7 Professional x64 DVD from a Digital River .iso, if needed. I know that I will probably have to use the Automated Phone Activation system in any case, but that shouldn't be a problem.
 
Solution
USAFRet


Seeing as the Anytime Upgrade for WIn 7 is no longer available, you might be out of luck.
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weberdarren97

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Aug 10, 2015
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If you fresh install Windows 7, you will be to the point where the update that disables the Anytime Upgrade feature hasn't been installed yet...

It could be seen as gaming the system, but simply install Ethernet drivers and then upgrade to Pro using the Anytime Upgrade feature. Once it upgrades to Pro, then go ahead and install graphics and audio drivers and all that good stuff.

Then upgrade to Win 10.

Of course, you could just not install any drivers except for Ethernet and let 10 pull them through Windows Update. Your choice.
 
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pcarey

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Jan 14, 2014
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The whole point is to not do a fresh (clean) install of Win7 Pro. That would wipe out everything. If I had to go that route to upgrade to Win7 Pro, I'll just settle for Win10 Home Premium on my laptop. Not much difference anyway, except I'd like to have my desktop and laptop systems on the same version. Don't ask me why. :)

The Anytime Upgrade feature wouldn't do me any good anyway because as I understand it, the Anytime Upgrade Key is different from a regular Product Key.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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Mar 16, 2013
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Seeing as the Anytime Upgrade for WIn 7 is no longer available, you might be out of luck.
 
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pcarey

Honorable
Jan 14, 2014
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10,510


If you're talking about using the "Anytime Upgrade", that wouldn't do me any good anyway. All I have is an OEM Win7 Pro COA and according to Microsoft "Please note that Anytime Upgrade does not support OEM, MSDN-Academic, Volume License (student faculty licenses). If you are in possession of any of these media, you will have to back up and do a custom clean install."

As USAFRet said "you (I) might be out of luck".

 
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pcarey

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Jan 14, 2014
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10,510


Please read my original post again. It's an OEM license, not a Student license and I did "provide that sort of information from the start".

 
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pcarey

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Jan 14, 2014
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Thanks to everyone who offered advice. Maybe someone who knows a trick we haven't thought of will respond, but unless that happens, it looks like I'll have to be satisfied with the Win10 Home Premium upgrade.
 
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