Questions about ugrading XP 32bit to Win 7 64bit.

[balloonshark]

I have Windows XP Home 32bit on the computer you see at the bottom of my signature. I have a new copy of Window 7 upgrade. Can I upgrade to 64bit? I would rather do a clean install if there is a trick that works please advise.

My next issue is drivers. Do I use the drivers from my motherboards page? One is dated 2010.

http://us.msi.com/product/mb/P35-Neo2-FR---FIR.html#/?div=Driver&os=Win7%2064

Do I only need following drivers and is this the order I install them?

Intel INF Drivers for 3/4/5 Chipsets (from my motherboard site or ?)
Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver (from my motherboard site or ?)
AMD Catalyst from AMD's site http://support.amd.com/en-us/download
Realtek High Definition Audio Driver (NonWin8) (from my motherboard site or ?)
Realtek PCI-E Ethernet Drivers < I need to skip this one as it is damaged from lightning. >

If I need drivers from other sites could you please help me find them. I'm horrible with identifying parts and their corresponding driver names. For example I don't know what the 3/4/5 means for the Intel chipset. All I know is I have a P35 board.

 

[Matt1970]

No, you cannot upgrade from 32 to 64 bit. You really want to do a clean install anyways. It is always a good idea to do the drivers from the manufacturer like you linked to. It's a good idea to do the chipset first but after that it really doesn't matter.

 

[balloonshark]

Thanks for your reply Matt. Just to be clear I don't want to save anything from my XP install.

Has this method worked for anyone doing a clean install with an upgrade disc? http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html

How do I know if I have a "retail Upgrade Windows 7 installation disc"? I bought it from amazon when they offered a credit.

This is what I have. http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Wind...dp/B002DHLUWK/

And by manufacturer do you mean my MB or individual component manufacturer?

 

[Matt1970]

If I were you I would used the COA (CD Key) that came with that Win 7 purchase and try one of the Win7 installs from this post berryracer made:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=32979735&postcount=3

Those are 100% legal Microsoft certified downloads and since they already have SP1 it will save you some updating time. Every CD key I have ever tried has worked as long as the version like Home Premium, Professional, or Ultimate.

 

[balloonshark]

Thanks again Matt. That download will definitely save me a little time.

For future reference the Windows 7 Home Premium x64 SP1 X17-58997.iso SHA-1 is 6C9058389C1E2E5122B7C933275F963EDF1C07B9

I'm still confused on which drivers to use.

1. For the INF drivers do I get them from Intel or use the ones from my MB's site which is dated 2010-07-30 ?

2. For the Intel RST drivers do I get them from Intel or use the one from my MB's site dated 2011-11-21 ?

3. For the audio drivers do I get them from Realtek or use the one from my MB's site dated 2013-07-25 ?

If I need them from Intel and Realtek I need a little guidance. Are the following pages correct? Do I just enter my OS and use the most up to date drivers? I can't link directly as it needs cookies.

INF: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Se...on+Utility&ProdId=816&LineId=1090&FamilyId=42

RST .exe file: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/De...g&OSVersion=Windows 7 *&DownloadType=Drivers

Not sure about my audio driver but the one on my MB site is fairly up to date.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Use the ones from the motherboard site first. Try the intel generics if you have problems later.

Imho.

 

[Seba]

If you have more than one drive, disconnect the other hard disk drives/SSD during Windows 7 install (leave connected only the drive onto which you are installing Windows). The reason for this advice is that the Windows 7 installer is retarded and can decide to put it's boot files on another disc (if more than one is available), without asking if you want this or not.

Also, it is best to partition the drive before installing (with a Gparted Live CD/USB for example). In this way you can avoid the creation of the separate boot partition (called "System" by Windows 7) if you want to.

 

[balloonshark]

Use the ones from the motherboard site first. Try the intel generics if you have problems later. Imho.

Great! Thanks Dave! I've have them downloaded and transferred to a USB stick.

If you have more than one drive, disconnect the other hard disk drives/SSD during Windows 7 install (leave connected only the drive onto which you are installing Windows). The reason for this advice is that the Windows 7 installer is retarded and can decide to put it's boot files on another disc (if more than one is available), without asking if you want this or not.

Also, it is best to partition the drive before installing (with a Gparted Live CD/USB for example). In this way you can avoid the creation of the separate boot partition (called "System" by Windows 7) if you want to.

Thanks for the reminder to unplug the 2nd HDD. I'll do that when I install the wireless adapter.

This computer will be going to my mother. I don't need to worry about the "system" partition in that situation correct? Also, will the Win 7 disk give me the option to partition the drive during the install? Don't know if I need to. I'm just curious.

 

[Dahak]

This computer will be going to my mother. I don't need to worry about the "system" partition in that situation correct? Also, will the Win 7 disk give me the option to partition the drive during the install? Don't know if I need to. I'm just curious.

The system partition(the little 100mb one) gets created automatically when you install Win7 on a blank drive.

You can partition it with the install media, when you get to the option to select the drive click on advanced and it will allow you to make partitions

 

[balloonshark]

The system partition(the little 100mb one) gets created automatically when you install Win7 on a blank drive.

You can partition it with the install media, when you get to the option to select the drive click on advanced and it will allow you to make partitions

Thanks Dahak :thumbsup:

 

[Seba]

You can make the partitions during install, but you do not have full control (if using msdos partitions, you can not choose between primary or extended/logical; Windows 7 installer will choose for you). This is why I recommend a Gparted Live USB to partition the disc if you want a certain partitioning scheme.

 

[balloonshark]

Thanks for the clarification Seba.

 

[balloonshark]

Quick question. When I installed Windows 8 I installed both my INF drivers and Intel Management Engine. Do I need the Intel ME on this machine or is that something that came along later? The INF drivers from my motherboard site are from 2010.