How to upgrade Vista to Win 7 (then maybe Win 10?)
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I have a Vista computer that I wish to upgrade at least to Windows 7. I have a lot of email, apps and data on this computer. It is reasonable in power and I don't wish to change hardware. Yes, I want to upgrade, not clean install. All the info that Google wants to give me has outdated links, and info that now seems to be expired and useless. Microsoft is not helpful. I think I can see the upgrade path from Win 7 to 10 if/when I desire, but can't find how to go beyond Vista without a reinstall. All of the Windows 7 repair/installers that I can find seem to require that I have Win 7 installed already (catch 22). I think I need an installer and product key to go from Vista... can't find anything useful from Microsoft or even ebay. I don't currently have a Win 7 or Win 10 product key. I'm not looking for anything illegal and/or free. I have money to do it properly and legally... Does anyone have the secret code for this besides use of a time machine?
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
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I have a Vista computer that I wish to upgrade at least to Windows 7. I have a lot of email, apps and data on this computer. It is reasonable in power and I don't wish to change hardware. Yes, I want to upgrade, not clean install. All the info that Google wants to give me has outdated links, and info that now seems to be expired and useless. Microsoft is not helpful. I think I can see the upgrade path from Win 7 to 10 if/when I desire, but can't find how to go beyond Vista without a reinstall. All of the Windows 7 repair/installers that I can find seem to require that I have Win 7 installed already (catch 22). I think I need an installer and product key to go from Vista... can't find anything useful from Microsoft or even ebay. I don't currently have a Win 7 or Win 10 product key. I'm not looking for anything illegal and/or free. I have money to do it properly and legally... Does anyone have the secret code for this besides use of a time machine?
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
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I have a Vista computer that I wish to upgrade at least to Windows 7. I have a lot of email, apps and data on this computer. It is reasonable in power and I don't wish to change hardware. Yes, I want to upgrade, not clean install. All the info that Google wants to give me has outdated links, and info that now seems to be expired and useless. Microsoft is not helpful. I think I can see the upgrade path from Win 7 to 10 if/when I desire, but can't find how to go beyond Vista without a reinstall. All of the Windows 7 repair/installers that I can find seem to require that I have Win 7 installed already (catch 22). I think I need an installer and product key to go from Vista... can't find anything useful from Microsoft or even ebay. I don't currently have a Win 7 or Win 10 product key. I'm not looking for anything illegal and/or free. I have money to do it properly and legally... Does anyone have the secret code for this besides use of a time machine?
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
There are still a lot of resources in the net when searching for "upgrade vista to windows 7". Vista must have SP1 or SP2 installed and you need a Windows 7 DVD (full version) matching the Vista type (32 / 64 bit). Possible upgrade paths are Basic/Premium -> Home or Ultimate, Business -> Professional or Ultimate, and Ultimate -> Ultimate. When booting from the installation DVD, Vista should be detected and you should be offered an upgrade option. When installation is finished you have to enter the license key.
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I have a Vista computer that I wish to upgrade at least to Windows 7. I have a lot of email, apps and data on this computer. It is reasonable in power and I don't wish to change hardware. Yes, I want to upgrade, not clean install. All the info that Google wants to give me has outdated links, and info that now seems to be expired and useless. Microsoft is not helpful. I think I can see the upgrade path from Win 7 to 10 if/when I desire, but can't find how to go beyond Vista without a reinstall. All of the Windows 7 repair/installers that I can find seem to require that I have Win 7 installed already (catch 22). I think I need an installer and product key to go from Vista... can't find anything useful from Microsoft or even ebay. I don't currently have a Win 7 or Win 10 product key. I'm not looking for anything illegal and/or free. I have money to do it properly and legally... Does anyone have the secret code for this besides use of a time machine?
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
Your approach is flawed. Copy the things that you need to backup and do a clean install. Vista has a bloated registry out of the box, let alone how bad it must be after years of use. I get that you don't want to spend the time re-installing your needed software, but ultimately I think you'll spend more time trying to do an upgrade, which may well result in a corrupted OS that needs to be re-imaged anyway.
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." - Benjamin Disraeli