need upgrading help

[ranchmom5]

For some reason all the things I have read about upgrading to Windows 7 have just confused me more, so thought I would stop by here for some help.

I have a computer with Vista Home Basic. I saw today that it is not supported as an upgrade. Does this just mean that must do a clean install rather than an in system upgrade?

I also read that Vista Home Premium must be upgraded to 7Home Premium before it could be further upgraded to Professional.

So what do I purchase? If I would like to go from the existing Vista Home Basic to 7 Professional, do I just purchase the Pro upgrade and do a clean install?

Sorry if this doesn't make sense, but I am very confused!
Sharie

[ZaZ]

I saw today that it is not supported as an upgrade.

The upgrade has nothing to do with how Windows is installed, but notebooks/PCs sold after June 26th are eligible for a free upgrade to the comparable version of Widows 7 through the manufacturer of the computer. So, if you bought a PC with Vista Business, you'll get a free upgrade to Windows 7 Professional. It looks like Vista Basic however is not eligible for the upgrade. If you bought a notebook/PC after the 26th with Vista Basic, your stuck with Vista Basic cause you're not getting the free upgrade.

If your machine was purchased before the 26th of June you're not eligible either, but Microsoft is offering pretty cheap upgrades to Windows 7 Home Premium for $49 and Professional for $99 until the 11th of this month. It looks like a pretty good deal. If you buy one of these I would think you can do a upgrade if you want, but I haven't followed it too closely. I personally prefer a clean install as there's less complications, though it is a bit more work. I'm waiting for the rumored Windows 7 family pack because I've got three PCs, which it looks like what's going to be included in the family pack. I hope this helps.

[GomJabbar]

I found this information. I agree that parts of it leave you wondering. I take the following apply to the actual upgrade, not the purchase of the upgrade edition of Windows 7.

Upgrading from Windows 95, 98, ME, NT4, 2000, XP to Windows 7

Microsoft has said before that users won't be able to upgrade in-place from Windows XP to Windows 7. However, customers running XP have the possibility to buy upgraded media of Windows 7 and perform clean installs. One way to circumvent the limitations imposed by Microsoft is to actually upgrade from Windows XP to Windows Vista, a move which is supported, and subsequently upgrade from Vista to Windows 7. And, believe it or not, the double upgrade trick actually works. Users only need a copy of Vista to act as the intermediary step (this operating system doesn't require activation).
<snip>
According to the test matrix, however, there is no way to upgrade Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows NT4, Windows 2000 or Windows XP to Windows 7. In the graphic, this option features an “X” symbol, used to indicate that “Upgrade is not supported. An error message appears in the Compatibility Report or in a Setup dialog box,” according to Microsoft.

Upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7

According to the Windows 7 Upgrade Test Matrix, users of the RTM edition of Windows Vista (the one released at the end of January 2007) won't have the option of upgrading to Windows 7. Microsoft's documentation indicates that upgrades to Windows 7 are supported only for Vista Service Pack 1 and SP2 editions to corresponding SKUs of the latest Windows client.

When it comes down to Vista-to-Windows 7 upgrades, “Cross-architecture in-place upgrades (for example, x86 to x64) are not supported. Cross-language in-place upgrades (for example, en-us to de-de) are not supported. Cross-build type in-place upgrades (for example, fre to chk) are not supported. Cross-media type in-place upgrades (for example, Staged to Unstaged or Unstaged to Staged) are not supported,” Microsoft reveals.

Vista to Windows 7 upgrades:

- No upgrade options for Windows Vista Starter (SP1, SP2), not even to Windows 7 Starter;
- Windows Vista Home Basic (SP1, SP2) 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) can be upgraded to Windows 7 Home Basic, Home Premium and Ultimate 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64);
- Windows Vista Home Premium (SP1, SP2) 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) can be upgraded to Windows 7 Home Premium and Ultimate 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64);
- Windows Vista Business (SP1, SP2) 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) can be upgraded to Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64);
- Windows Vista Enterprise (SP1, SP2) 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) can be upgraded to Windows 7 Enterprise 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64);
- Windows Vista Ultimate (SP1, SP2) 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) can be upgraded to Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64);
- No upgrade options for Windows Vista Home Basic N (SP1, SP2), not even to Windows 7 N or E;
- No upgrade options for Windows Vista Business N (SP1, SP2), not even to Windows 7 N or E.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Windows- ... 5280.shtml

This link below is somewhat clearer in all this, although less detailed.

Cons: It probably won't affect most users, but the Vista-to-Windows-7 upgrade paths are actually limited by version in the following ways:

Windows Vista Home Premium to Windows 7 Home Premium
Windows Vista Business to Windows 7 Professional
Windows Vista Ultimate to Windows 7 Ultimate

If you don't follow one of those three upgrade paths, you'll have to perform a fresh install.

http://lifehacker.com/5152335/windows-7 ... ista-users