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Moving Windows 7

T

tivoguy2

Member
OK, so I bought an upgrade copy of windows 7 when they were having that great pre purchease deal. I installed it on my laptop (dell)- fast forward a bit and I ended up with 2 upgrade kits (long story) from dell for another laptop I bought soon after windows 7 came out (dell upgrade program). I am only using 1 of them
I need a 64 bit version of windows for a new build and the unused upgrade dvd is 32 bit only. Can I use the key that came with that dvd with the 64 bit dvd I have from the regular upgrade I bought retail? If not, how can i "release" the key that came with the retail upgrade set- I will just reinstall windows 7 from the 2nd dell upgrade dvd I have

Thanks
 
Yes, you can install the 64-bit version using key that came with the 32-bit copy. The keys are interchangeable between 32-bit and 64-bit.
 
There is no issue with the upgrade copy from dell with the unused key being an OEM version and the 64 bit dvd being a retail upgrade version
 
That could be a problem. I don't believe you can use differing media/keys (Upgrade, OEM, Full Retail) interchangeably. Back in the XP days, the difference between the different versions was just the volume label on the CD's, but I don't know if that has changed for Vista/7.

I know that you can use 32/64 keys interchangeably, and media for differing editions (HP, Pro, Ult.) with a little hacking.
 
How many activations are included on a windows 7 retail upgrade dvd key. What I plan to do is reinstall windows on my laptop using the dell upgrade kit (32 bit, OEM upgrade) and then install windows 7 64, using the key I had been using with the laptop on my new build- will I be able to activate the 64 bit install?
 
You can use a retail key a decent number of times. You can do a clean install with upgrade media (search around), but it is against the EULA to use an upgrade installation on a computer that is not previously licensed for a version of Windows. I'll leave the ethical dilemma to you though.

You can try the change key feature, if it fails I don't think it will leave you with an unactivated copy of Windows.
 
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