Windows 7 Pre-installation considerations and recommendations for use

First, choose a good installation method

You have now downloaded the ISO image and burned it to a DVD. Next you have two options to run the installer. The difference in the performance of Windows Installer depends on which way you choose.

If your system is already installed with Windowsxp,vista, or earlier versions, you can start Setup from the Windows operating system. Alternatively, you can boot the system from the installation media. Either way, you'll see a dialog box.

What's the difference? If you run Setup in Windows.

1, you cannot run the 64-bit installer in x86 version of Windows.

2, install Windows7 and the existing Windows version of the same volume.

3, must use the existing partition, cannot change, the installation program also does not acknowledge unallocated space.

If you start from a Windows7 DVD:

1, you cannot upgrade the existing version of Windows, you can only customize the installation.

2. You can delete existing partitions, create new partitions, extend existing partitions, or designate an unallocated space as the installation location.

3, install Windows7 and the existing Windows version of the same volume.

In addition, if you start Setup in Windows, you can choose to run the compatibility check on an existing system.

Second, how to install the new

If you plan to do a clean installation, it is recommended that you back up and then start the installer from Windows7dvd to eliminate any existing partitions. Because it will save you time and reduce some of the trouble. Now, suppose you have made a backup. Because all of the data will disappear, so be sure to save it before you start.

There are four steps to a new installation:

1, start the program from the Windowsdvd, follow the prompts to choose a custom (Advanced) installation, and then click Next to enter the screen;

2, click the drive option (advanced) to display all available disk management tools;

3, select a section from the list, and then click Delete;

4. Repeat for any additional volume until there is nothing left but unallocated space.

You can now use all unallocated space on the drive to complete the installation.

Third, find the old driver don't be afraid

In my tests, so far, Windows7 has done a very thorough drive. But it is not perfect, some devices appear blank, or be replaced by the general driver.

If you have already installed an earlier version of WindowsVista or WINDOWS7, you do not need to use a special program backup driver from the old system. WindowsVista and Windows7 in a folder named Filerepository, which holds all the driver's local copies, which are in the subfolders of the Driverstore folder. The full path is c:windowssystem32driverstorefilerepository.

In a clean windows7x86 installation, the Filerepository folder contains more than 900 MB of files. If you add some new devices or updates, this number can easily be over 1GB.

After you complete the new installation of Windows7, you can use Device Manager to install or update any driver, or simply click on the old driver installation that you saved.

Four, no fear to overwrite the old folder

When you instruct Windows Installer to make a custom installation, it moves the old windows,programfiles, and the user folder (Documentsandsettings) to a folder named Windows.old. A new installation creates a new set of top-level folders on the current system drive: Windows,programfiles and users.

The advantage of this is that it makes it clear that a single disk on the system has only one partition and a lot of free disk space when it is completely clean and does not lose any data. A new, non-destructive installation gives you a fresh start, and the old data files are securely hidden in the Windows.old folder.

To perform a clean and non-destructive installation, you can start the WINDOWS7 Setup program in Windows or from Windows7dvd, click the steps to install, select the Customization (Advanced) option, and then, in the list of available disk partitions, select a partition that contains your current Windows installation. For most people, it's drive C.

When you click OK, you will see a warning dialog box.

When you have finished setting up, when you first start Windows7, you will see that all of your data and program files are in the Windows.old folder. If you have any old data files that need to be recovered, you can find them in Usersfolder (WindowsVista) or documentsandsettings.

Five, hard disk capacity requirements to be innocence

Under the current standard, you don't need a lot of disk space to install WINDOWS7. Microsoft released the RC minimum hardware recommended 16G of free disk space. But that's not mandatory, I still have 3.95G of available disk space after installing Windows7ultimate on a virtual machine in a 10G drive (9.9G format).

Later, the author noted that the full installation of windows7ultimatex86 need 6 to 9G of space. Obviously, this amount will increase when you install additional programs or create data files. But how big is the system partition? According to the author's experience, 15G is a minimum scale, but sooner or later it will become tense, so if you have enough spare disk space, it is recommended to reserve at least 30G.

Finally, the author also collected some information about the popularization of WINDOWS7RC, share:

RC is the latest test version of the Windows7 development process. Can be used in x86 and x64 formats. Is the last version before Microsoft officially released Windows7. The full installation WINDOWS7RC should be completed within 1.5 hours. As for a slower machine, it can definitely be done in two hours.

Although it is possible that Microsoft will add some new desktop backgrounds or screen saver programs. But the current WINDOWS7RC is already a fully functional version. Microsoft is working from now on to fix the final error, most of which will be related to the configuration and hardware support of the original device manufacturer.

The RC version is like a trial version and the public will be able to download and install it. Without paying any fees.

Windows7 cannot be installed on a Windows XP basis, WINDOWS7 must perform a net installation, or install on a Vista based setting, migrating data and personalization from XP.

Virtual machines have a special purpose, and virtualized hardware does not support aero graphics features, and therefore does not have a real desktop experience.

Most of the mainstream business and entertainment programs that run on Vista can run on Windows7 as well.

You will be prompted to enter the product key during the end of setup. If you leave this box blank, the installer continues, and your Windows7 has no restrictions. However, before activating, you must enter a valid product key. By default, automatically activates for 3 days after installation, or you can disable automatic activation during the installation process.