Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
My banking app is nagging me to do this, so suppose I must.
I'll do my Win7 Pro laptop first.
Have Googled it, but as usual as many questions as answers.
Ideally, the update would retain all my files data and apps. Obviously
some apps may need updating too - but assume they'd tell me if this is so,
if it doesn't happen by magic?
Ebay has plenty CDs etc for sale for a modest sum that promise to do just
this.
I do have the laptop backed up - using the Win7 facility - to an external
HD. Would I be able to retrieve my files from that if anything goes wrong
to the new Win10 while installing? Or should I do a second backup of the
files I know I might want later? JPGs and so on.
As usual, an idiots guide would be appreciated.
*Don't* go here, using a Windows XP or a Linux setup.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/soft...load/windows10
With a Vista+ machine and web browser, you will be offered
a version of the MediaCreationTool.
You can do the installation with no physical media at all.
Have the MediaCreationTool create an ISO9660 file (using
the "updating another computer" type option, instead of letting
it upgrade the PC directly).
https://www.osforensics.com/tools/mo...sk-images.html
https://i.postimg.cc/G2gwNm6V/OSFMOUNTer.gif
With the ISO9660 file mounted, look for a new (virtual)
DVD drive in My Computer. There will be a Setup.exe
file at the top level. Double-click to kick off your
Upgrade Install. When it asks for a license key,
click the "I don't have a license key" button, then
carry on. Since the free Upgrade is still working,
the OS should be activated later (use the Setup wheel
in the menu, type "activation" in it and see if you can
get the dialog for that to show).
If you want to make a DVD later (and you might want to do
that), the ISO9660 can be burned to a new DVD using
a program like the free Imgburn.
An Upgrade Install moves C:\Windows to C:\Windows.old,
then it creates a new C:\Windows with Windows 10 stuff in
it. The C:\Windows.old will be deleted after ten days,
using automation. Do *not* toss C:\Windows.old into the
trash. Use a tool to remove it! In the run box, you
can use "cleanmgr.exe" as the removal tool, using the
"system" button in that tool. You'll find the Windows.old
listed as a ~20GB folder to be deleted.
If you use MediaCreationTool to directly update the OS,
then you might not have any collateral materials for later.
Doing it the ISO9660 way, you get to keep an image around
for later. The image works best if burned to a DVD
(both legacy BIOS and UEFI BIOS supported). If you load
the ISO9660 with Rufus, only one of the two modes works
with Rufus. If you use the MicrosoftStore USB flash stick
loader, it has a similar limitation (legacy only???). To
be fully functional, like you're going to a friends
house to do a Geek Squad call, you want the physical DVD
because it supports any mode the job calls for.
But on the initial Upgrade Install, you don't *have* to do
it from a DVD. Making a DVD just makes you *more prepared*,
like a boy scout. Not making a DVD, saves time. It
doesn't install all that much faster using the virtual DVD
drive idea, so that's not the reason for doing it that way.
Having a backup image of C: before starting this, covers
your bases. You have nothing to worry about, if you can
just restore from backup. You store the backup image on
an external drive, one which is disconnected during the
install attempt.
Do *not* have multiple hard drives running in the desktop,
during the install. Best practice, is (with power off),
to be disconnecting the SATA power and SATA data from
your excess hard drives. Only the hard drive with
Windows 7 should be present, when installing from the
"virtual" DVD drive. You can leave your physical DVD
drive cabled up if you want. This level of caution
isn't strictly necessary, but is a means to assure
yourself that there is "no way that installer could
spew install materials onto my other disk drives".
That's why you do it that way. When the install is
finished, you can cable up the fleet again and carry on.
I've done a lot of multiboot setups, and this is the
voice of experience (not skill) talking. For example,
a couple times, I've had installers *erase* disks. Sure,
it doesn't happen all that often, but who wants to
discover the odds the hard way ??? For example, there's
a certain sequence you can do with a Windows 2000 installer
CD, that will erase a disk. One of my early lessons
in hygiene... I got to see TestDisk put the MBR back
and everything, so there was no data loss, but that
was a bit of a miracle and not a sure thing.
Paul