Maybe this is a silly question, but I don't want to go wrong. What is the difference between buying an upgrade version and a full version? Does an upgrade disk have less files in it? Or does it just assume that you have an existing Windows system installed? Also, does someone with XP have to buy a full version as opposed to an upgrade version because it overwrites your existing system disk? Thank you in advance for clarifying that.
Upgrade and full have same install files. Upgrade checks to see that an eligible operating system is installed (for Win 7 I believe you can upgrade from Vista, XP and Windows 2000) or that you have the install disk for a prior Windows version. The Full version does not require an installed OS or install disk. You must do a custom install (overwrites the OS, settings, etc.) from XP, but it qualifies for an upgrade.
Hi Everyone, The upgrade disc requires Vista or XP and won't install without them.While with the full version there no requires of the Vista or Xp while installing. Thanks
Upgrade or Full version Thank you all for taking the time and your replies. That answers my question.
Small Deployments For single or small deployments of the Windows 7 operating system, you may be able to use either the upgrade feature in Windows Setup or Windows Easy Transfer rather than USMT to migrate or maintain user settings and files. You can install Windows 7 as an upgrade to an existing installation of Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 or Service Pack 2 using the Upgrade option during installation. To maintain settings when installing Windows 7 on a computer running Windows XP, you must migrate files and settings using a tool such as Windows 7 Easy Transfer and then reinstall your software programs. Windows Easy Transfer (Migwiz.exe) is installed with Windows 7 and is available on the Windows 7 DVD in the Support\Migwiz directory. When running Windows Easy Transfer from the DVD, double click MigSetup.exe to run the application. Additionally, if you are installing Windows 7 on a new computer, you can transfer settings and files from any other computer running Windows Vista or Windows XP by using Windows Easy Transfer. Yes, but there’s a catch. Only Windows Vista users will be able to do an in-place upgrade. This means that Windows XP or 2000 users will be forced to do a clean install. Maximum PC readers are generally technical enough to know that this is a good idea anyway, but if your planning on upgrading PCs for friends and family, bring a USB hard drive and be prepared to stay awhile.