Upgrading from W7 advice

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PC Guy

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Jan 21, 2024
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On my 8 year-old Dell desktop running W7, I have many critical documents and folders and an e-mail system called OE Classic that contains tons of critical e-mails and attachments.

The desktop works fine but I understand the need to get data into newer hard drive.

I cloned and installed a new bootable SSD into a laptop running W10 with no problems and thought I could do that on this W7 desktop

But not sure I can do this without risking failure.

For the W7 desktop, I began by backing up the OS C: onto a new external SSD. But not all would not copy because in use. BCD-pagefile.sys and another. Scared me off.

Would it be safest to upgrade to W10 on the existing HDD rather than try to clone/image the W7 onto a new SSD and then install that?

Also, what is safest way to upgrade to W10? There are approaches for sale various places, costing around $39 and up. Some say you don't need a new key or whatever. I have a legit copy of W7 that came installed on the desktop and don't want to risk any problems. I missed the free upgrade deadline.

Best advice? Thanks. Guy
 
What program was you using to backup with? I was just dragging and dropping the C: OS folder onto the new SSD hard drive to back up this folder, including W7.
Then why not clone W7? This was my intention, but I am concerned it may not complete properly and I could lose my e-mail and/or other data.
 
This is my primary computer. What you clone is partitions, correct? So I would be cloning the partition that contains W7 with all the system folders and files, the e-mail system and folders (inbox, sent, saved, attachments, etc.), document folders, program folders, registry, drivers, .exe files, etc..

The e-mail system that concerns me is an e-mail "client" that downloads messages from my e-mail addresses and pulls them into a dashboard, deleting the e-mails and attachments from the servers where they were received. So it is critical that this program and data be preserved.

When I cloned the W10 hard drive on my laptop, it did not contain the e-mail system so I did not have that concern. I followed the instructions contained with the SSD and on the Samsung Site and other online postings, and everything went fine. I used the Samsung Data Migration (SDM) software and Samsung Magician. Increasingly, I am seeing that those of us still using W7 encounter issues when undertaking pretty routine updates. The Samsung Magician software says it does not work with W7.
 
I don't tik you can upgrade win 7 to win 10 anymore because the time limit as expired.
You could still try and see if the win 7 key works.
Because of your concern of lost data.
I would.
1) Attach new ssd.
2) Detach win 7 ssd - A MUST DO
3) Install Win 10 and see if the win 7 key will activate.
4) Move emails to new win10
Easily move messages and data to new machineYes
www.oeclassic.com

OE Classic - Easy to use Outlook Express replacement

Easy to use email and newsgroups software. Perfect replacement for Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Windows Live Mail or Mozilla Thunderbird.
www.oeclassic.com www.oeclassic.com

Dell may have a win 10 you can use.
What is the 7 digit service tag of your Dell computer.

If Dell do not have an upgrade to win 10.
Reinstall Win 10 Fresh Install

Make sure you only have the one (1) drive you want to install windows on connected.

Download the win 10 tool run it to recreate the flash drive – Must be minimum 8GB

https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/software-download/windows10


Watch this video
How To Install Windows 10 From USB - YouTube

In the video at 2:35 Where to install Windows. Highlight each partition and delete.

Then install on the unallocated space.


In the video at 2:54 you will notice it restarts the computer.
When you are doing this and you get to that point Remove the usb stick whilst it is restarting.
Also if you want to setup a local account instead of logging in with a Microsoft account
Turn off your wireless network and or remove the network cable.
This point is 3.32 in the video - Choose I don't have internet.
If you want to log in with a Microsoft account then leave the network as is.



Before doing any install, it is a good idea to go to the support page for your system. Download the drivers you are going to need i.e. chipset, sound, video, wireless, etc. Whilst Win10 has a lot of native drivers, Microsoft drivers are designed for ease of use and are NOT designed for any type of performance. Store these drivers on another usb or you can even just make a folder on your install usb when you are finished making the install usb. Copy the drivers into that folder.

When you are finished with the Windows install, then install your drivers.

  • Chipset or Motherboard
  • Sata or hard drive
  • Video adapter
  • Network interface card (NIC)
  • Audio
  • Touchpad
  • Any other hardware drivers needed for your particular model.
Reboot after installing the drivers
 
Windows 10 is EoL next year and the computer having a 4th gen Intel CPU means that Windows 11 is not supported, this means that whatever you will have to pay for Windows 10 will only be short term.
 
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