Are you installing Windows 7? You do not need to be a professional or refer to a confusing manual to do this. You can install Windows 7 from a disk or flash drive. You can also upgrade to Windows 7 from an earlier version of Windows. A clean install will kill all the data on your computer and install Windows 7 as if it were a new computer. By upgrading, all your data will be protected and the old version of Windows 7 will be replaced by Windows 7. You will need a Windows 7 Product Key within 30 days, or purchase a Windows 7.
Method 1. Using the Windows 7 Installation Disc
1. Back up your files. The installation program will delete all data on your hard drive (s). It is recommended that you back up all the files you want to keep before installing a new operating system. You can back up your files to another hard drive, an external hard drive, a flash drive, or cloud-based services such as Google Drive, or Dropbox.
2. Press the Power button on your computer, and then click Restart in the Power Options menu.
3. Press Dell, Esc, F2, F10 or F9 immediately upon restarting. Depending on the make and model of your computer, pressing one of these buttons immediately after powering your computer will enter the system BIOS.
Some computers tell you which button to press to enter the BIOS as soon as the computer starts up.
4. Look at the boot options menu of your BIOS. The boot option of your BIOS may differ in location or name from the menu illustration, but if you search around, you can eventually find it.
- If you can’t find the Boot Options menu, search for the name of your BIOS (most likely located in the BIOS menu) for help.
5. Select the optical disk drive as your computer’s first boot device. Although this method can vary between computers, the boot options menu is usually a menu of movable device names where you should set your CD, DVD or Blu-ray drive as your boot DVD. It can also be a list of devices that you can set the order of your boot. If you are stuck, consult a manual or the Internet for help.
9. Start your computer from disk. After placing the disk in the disk drive, start your computer. When the computer starts, press a key if you are asked if you would like to boot from the disk by pressing any key. You choose to start from disk. Windows setup will start loading.
- If you are not asked to boot from disk, you may have done something wrong. Try the previous steps again and make sure that you have selected the correct drive in the BIOS boot menu.
10. Choose your Windows setup option. Once the Windows setup is loaded, you will be presented with a window. Use the drop-down menu to select your preferred language, keyboard type, and time/currency format, then click Next in the lower-right corner.
11. Now click on the Install button. This is the blue button in the center of the screen.
12. Accept the license terms. Read the Microsoft Software License Terms. Then I click the checkbox next to accept the license terms and click Next in the lower-right corner.
13. Select Custom Installation. This option allows you to do a clean installation of Windows 7. This will erase all your files on the installation drive.
- If you do not want to erase all your files, choose Upgrade instead. This option requires an existing Windows installation. You can only upgrade from one Windows version to another. For example, if you have Windows Vista Home Edition, you can only upgrade to Windows 7 Home Edition. You will not be able to upgrade to Windows 7 Premium.
14. Select the hard drive and partition you want to install on Windows. The hard drive is a physical part of your computer that stores data, and partitions “partition” the hard drive into separate sections. Click on the hard drive or partition you want to install Windows 7 on.
- If there is data on the hard drive, then you must use the following steps to delete or format the drive. Be aware that it will permanently erase all data from the disk.
- Select the hard drive from the list of hard drives.
- Click Drive Options (Advanced).
- Click Delete or Format from the drive options.
- If your computer does not yet have a partition, create one to install Windows on it.
- Select the hard drive from the list of hard drives.
- Click Drive Options (Advanced).
- Choose New from Drive Options.
- Select the size, and click OK.
15. Install Windows on your favorite hard drive and partition. Once you have decided to install Windows, select it and click Next. Windows will start installing. Your computer may start and restart several times during the installation process. [1]
