Windows 10 Upgrade Installation via DVD without booting into Windows 7

[Log420]

My Dad's laptop running Windows 7 crashed the other day, and after running Startup Repair, it found that compbatt.sys was corrupt. I tried copying over a good version from my pc & recovery partition but that only resulted in a blue screen.

Today, I attempted to do an upgrade installation of Windows 10 in order to preserve his files,etc.
We have a backup, but he's not 100% sure on it's content.

I was able to boot off of the Win 10 DVD and select Upgrade Installation, but then it stops, and a message pops up (paraphrasing here) that I need to boot into Windows 7 for it to proceed.

As I am unable to boot into Windows 7 due to the corrupt system file, I'm asking for a way to force Windows 10 to proceed with the Upgrade Installation WITHOUT having to boot into Windows 7.

I've prepared my Dad for the fact that we may need to do a clean install (7 or 10), and suggested we'd have to pull the HDD from his laptop and use my HDD cradle to scavenge for any files, but his laptop would take full disassembly (remove keyboard/etc) to get to the HDD.

Thanks for any help in allowing us to proceed with the Win 10 Upgrade Installation without having to boot into Win 7 which is corrupt. Googling hasn't given me any clue thus far.

Looking forward to people smarter than me helping me to a path forward without a loss of data and not having to take apart the laptop.

 

[Colif]

the upgrade shouldn't need to boot into 7, it should gather a little bit of information, and then restart pc to install the win 10 image. Upgrading a corrupted win 7 install may have ended badly at any rate.

You could use disk copy software to make a backup of the drive without removing it - such as: http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx

Do you know the serial number of Win 7? Since it didn't complete the win 10 install I assume its still the key we would have to use.

If you use that image software, the best approach is a fresh install of win 10 using that dvd you have
change boot order so DVD is first, hdd second
follow this guide: http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html
when asked for a serial number, put in the Win 7 key as it can be used to activate Win 10

ask if you have any problems

 

[Log420]

Thanks for your reply, but I am unable to boot into Win 7 due to the corrupt file. I am booting from the Win 10 install dvd.
I am unable to use disk copy software due to being unable to boot into Win7.
I've told Dad will we most likely need to clean install either 7 or 10, and to ensure we don't lose any data pull the hdd from the laptop and use my pc & hdd cradle to copy files. Then clean install an OS after reinstalling the hdd, and reinstall software/copy files.

I have tried to do an upgrade installation of Win10 from the bootable dvd and when I select Upgrade installation it wants to reboot into Win7, which I am unable to do due to the corrupt file, so the Win 10 upgrade does not proceed

If you have any other ideas, I'd appreciate it.

 

[Colif]

I've told Dad will we most likely need to clean install either 7 or 10, and to ensure we don't lose any data pull the hdd from the laptop and use my pc & hdd cradle to copy files.

this would be safest approach and file system is still intact enough that you can rescue most of it. If drive has multiple partitions, copy everything off all as if you clean install win 10 it will want you to delete all the partitions

Then clean install an OS after reinstalling the hdd, and reinstall software/copy files..

Should be able to put win 10 on using the Win 7 key, provided you know it. If you don't know it, would need a new key anyway. Win 10 has far less updates right now compared to the over 300 needed to get win 7 up to date, it will also go looking for drivers for the laptop without you needing to, though it helps to make sure it got the newest ones.


Fresh install tutorial: http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html

 

[Colif]

I don't know if this would work:

do you have a win 7 install DVD? you could try to fix the install by booting from it, and on 2nd screen of installer, select repair this pc, not install
Select command prompt
type sfc /scannow

 

[Log420]

SFC says it can't repair the error. Looking like a pull hdd/copy files/reinstall hdd/clean install/copy files is where we'll end up but thought booting from a Win10 dvd and doing an upgrade installation would work. The stumbling block is when the Win10 upgrade goes to start, it puts up a window saying to reboot into Windows 7 to upgrade which I can't do.

Thanks again for the input, and I know what I have to do ultimately, but just hoping somebody knows how to get it to upgrade to Win 10 without having to reboot into Win 7.

 

[Colif]

The upgrade process uses the win 7 key so i guess it has to be in win 7 to get that information. It would also copy your user info & library folders to a partition so that when it reinstalled win 10 it would just pull them off the location (I am guessing, not sure what it does with the folders). The win 10 install is just an image file, it would use the records from your old user to recreate the folder structure you had before. It can't do any of that without being logged in.

you can wait and see if anyone on tenforums or here can think of a better idea

 

[Log420]

Thanks again for your time and input. I'll give it 24 hrs or so to see if any geniuses come up with something 8)
We'll probably end up where I thought we would from the beginning. Personally, I'd have already used the cradle/clean install if it was me, but Dad doesn't want to have to reinstall/copy/etc all of his files.

Take care, and thanks again.

 

[USAFRet]

The Upgrade requires it to be started from within the prev OS.

A clean install can be done using the original Win 7 license, but of course that wipes out whatever is on the drive.
Do you know the Win 7 license key?

 

[Log420]

The Upgrade requires it to be started from within the prev OS.

A clean install can be done using the original Win 7 license, but of course that wipes out whatever is on the drive.
Do you know the Win 7 license key?

It's a Dell laptop so it has the sticker on the outside. I guess i don't get why it the upgrade has to be started within the previous OS. I just assumed (yeah I know) that since I booted off of the Win10 DVD and upgrade was a choice, I could work around the corrupt system file that won't let us boot into Win7.

Thanks for your response

 

[USAFRet]

The Upgrade requires it to be started from within the prev OS.

A clean install can be done using the original Win 7 license, but of course that wipes out whatever is on the drive.
Do you know the Win 7 license key?

It's a Dell laptop so it has the sticker on the outside. I guess i don't get why it the upgrade has to be started within the previous OS. I just assumed (yeah I know) that since I booted off of the Win10 DVD and upgrade was a choice, I could work around the corrupt system file that won't let us boot into Win7.

Thanks for your response

Well..it can't Upgrade a corrupt OS that won't run. The OS disk has no idea what is corrupt, AND it needs to verify the license status.