Windows 7 version question...

[dhakon]

Building my first rig, and will use Windows 7 64-bit. Everything I've had before this was Vista, or older, so this is my first Windows 7 rig. It's mainly going to be used for gaming, watching movies, and maybe some light picture/video editing.

First, should I go with Home or Professional edition?
Second, should I go with OEM, or full retail, etc. version?

I want to be able to un-install and re-install on my rig if I were to re-format, upgrade, etc. especially with the new Ivy Bridge cpu's coming out in a few months. Thanks in advance!

 

[scout_03]

the go with the retail one and use the pro if you want xp compatibility

 

[de5_Roy]

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/23305-63-windows-versions-explained

 

[dotaloc]

Agreed on retail, but I say home premium does plenty. Only additional benefit of pro is XP Mode (as mentioned) and the ability to add the PC to a domain.

As far as XP emulation, I've never found the need for the mode, myself. And there is always virtual box.

I actually migrated my old installation to a virtual machine, backed that up to an external, then formatted and installed w7 clean. Then I was able to use virtualBox and mount my "old setup" as a virtual install. Fun task, but proved unnecessary as I've not had the need to use it.

Good luck!

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

If you ever plan on upgrading the motherboard you must buy the retail copy.The OEM version is tied to that motherboard or an exact replacement.

[:briovaz:3]

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html

Buy the retail upgrade version and do a full install with this guide ^

[:briovaz:3]

 

[JDFan]

Building my first rig, and will use Windows 7 64-bit. Everything I've had before this was Vista, or older, so this is my first Windows 7 rig. It's mainly going to be used for gaming, watching movies, and maybe some light picture/video editing.

First, should I go with Home or Professional edition?
Second, should I go with OEM, or full retail, etc. version?

I want to be able to un-install and re-install on my rig if I were to re-format, upgrade, etc. especially with the new Ivy Bridge cpu's coming out in a few months. Thanks in advance!

Main difference between Home and Pro is Pro includes a few more things ( XP mode for running older XP programs in a virtual machine environment, Network capable Backup and restore, and better networking capabilities for joining Business domains.) so unless you plan to use it in a work environment and need those extra features Home version should be fine. Though if the price is close to the same getting Pro is not bad either just do not pay a lot extra for it if you do not need those features.

As for version --- do you have a copy of XP or Vista that you no longer need ? -- If so then go for the upgrade version -- it is cheaper and after upgrading the license becomes the same as a retail version so can be used for future systems also where OEM version is tied to the MOBO that it is initially installed on (unless the MOBO dies and is replaced with a comparable board in which case MS usually provides a new activation even on OEM versions) -- IF you do not have a copy of XP or Vista -- then OEM is good if you do not plan to swap MOBOs (any other upgrades can be done and it can be reinstalled\activated but once you retire the MOBO to upgrade then the OEM license technically expires also) -- If you plan to keep it through more than a single system usage (ie. if you upgrade fairly often and do so by swapping MOBOs and other components) then you will want a retail version (it costs more initially but can be reused on many systems as long as only 1 is actively in use.)

 

[shanky887614]

If you ever plan on upgrading the motherboard you must buy the retail copy.The OEM version is tied to that motherboard or an exact replacement.

[:briovaz:3]

do yourself a favor

if you have a copy of xp


buy the upgrade edition you already have a copy of xp/vista so its legal



its cheaper and you can upgrade in the future