Installation help

Lumi · 22 Feb 2020 at 00:15

Hi guys,

Complete novice here, I'm about to build my own PC. My current PC is running windows 7.

I have a 16gb USB, i intend to build my new gaming rig and would rather not install a CD drive as they seem mostly redundant nowadays.

First question, Can I create a boot drive of windows 10 on my windows 7 machine to install on the new machine once it's up and running?

Second, once installed from the USB drive can I activate it directly through Microsoft on the new machine by giving my card details for payment etc or do I have to buy a physical box/DVD from a retailer just for the product key?

Many thanks

ChrisLX200 · 22 Feb 2020 at 04:12

Download the Win10 installation media from Microsoft and put it on a USB dongle. You run the install from inside Win7 if you wish to upgrade the system, or boot from it if you want a fresh install. As I understand it Win 10 is still a free upgrade if you have a genuine Win 7 product key. I read that recently but don't have the link to hand. Easy to Google for it though. I recently upgraded my old Win 7/64 Ultimate machine to Win 10 and the upgrade worked flawlessly, but I confess I did not realise it could be done for free. However, I only paid £6 for the Win10 Pro product key off Amazon so no big loss.

The_Arbiter · 22 Feb 2020 at 07:29

You Win 7 is all you need.

Make sure to backup first. Win10 partition setups are a bit funny on the install.

Lumi · 22 Feb 2020 at 19:23

The_Arbiter said:
You Win 7 is all you need.

Make sure to backup first. Win10 partition setups are a bit funny on the install.

I'm not quite sure what you mean. I'm trying to install windows 10 on a new machine without a CD drive

Quartz · 22 Feb 2020 at 19:48

You nered to be careful here. If you purchase from MS direct, the license key may default to being linked with your Microsoft account, which is not what you want if you're building the PC for someone else.

The_Arbiter · 22 Feb 2020 at 19:57

Lumi said:
I'm not quite sure what you mean. I'm trying to install windows 10 on a new machine without a CD drive

Apologies, i'm such a spazz.

Meant to say, Win7 key is all you need. I installed Win10 from a bootable USB dongle, then input my Win7 key.

If you don't want to make an MS account, boot the computer without the internet connected the whole time during install and verification.

Apart from Win10 being annoying with hard drive partitions, installation is a breeze, and quick.

Lumi · 22 Feb 2020 at 20:20

The_Arbiter said:
Apologies, i'm such a spazz.

Meant to say, Win7 key is all you need. I installed Win10 from a bootable USB dongle, then input my Win7 key.

If you don't want to make an MS account, boot the computer without the internet connected the whole time during install and verification.

Apart from Win10 being annoying with hard drive partitions, installation is a breeze, and quick.

Okay cool I think I still have my windows 7 disc case laying around somewhere, thank you

ChrisLX200 · 22 Feb 2020 at 22:21

Be aware if you have Win7 Home you'll get Win 10 Home, if you want Win10 Pro you'll need a new key. Win7 Pro and Ultimate keys will install Win10 Pro.