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Clean Install Windows 7 with Upgrade Media: The Answer

Oct. 23, 2009 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows

I was so hoping to have better news to share, but with all the conflicting reports and my own troubles testing this while on the road, it's been a messy 24 hours. However, after staying up late last night and working through a few different scenarios, I think I do have a (fairly) simple way to clean install Windows 7 with Upgrade media. That is, it should be easier than the old "install it twice" hack that I previously documented for Vista (though that should still work as well).

Put simply, the goal here is to clean install Windows 7 on a virgin, unused PC. You can boot and run Setup with the Upgrade media for Windows 7, but when you go to activate, it won't work.

Thanks to Kevin Fisher and a bit of testing, I have a simple workaround that does work.

After performing the clean install, ensure that there are no Windows Updates pending that would require a system reboot. (You'll see an orange shield icon next to Shutdown in the Start Menu if this is the case).

Then, open regedit.exe with Start Menu Search and navigate to:

HKLM/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Setup/OOBE/

Change MediaBootInstall from "1" to "0".

Open the Start Menu again and type cmd to display a shortcut to the Command Line utility. Right-click this shortcut and choose "Run as administrator." Handle the UAC prompt.

In the command line window, type: slmgr /rearm

Then tap ENTER, close the command line window and reboot. When Windows 7 reboots, run the Activate Windows utility, type in your product key and activate windows.

Voila!

A couple of notes here.

Others have reported that simply installing Windows 7 using Upgrade Media and then activating just works. It certainly doesn't hurt to try this, but my guess is that there was a version of Windows on the hard drive that Setup detected, thus making the install and activation work properly.

I have not tested this yet, but I assume if you launch Setup from within your previous version of Windows, choose Custom, reboot, and then wipe out the previous Windows version during Setup, that that will work as well.

And I'm just about positive that the old "install twice" hack from Vista will work too.

I will test all of this thoroughly when I get home. But for now I wanted to cut through the baloney and cut and paste jobs out there and give you something that really does work.

Again, thanks very much to Kevin for this information.

Discuss this Article 110

whiplash55
on Oct 23, 2009
Linus Torvalds loves Win 7 now we need to bust Jobs with his copy. http://bink.nu/news/linus-is-happy-with-windows-7.aspx
Dante
on Oct 23, 2009
Argggg! Well a true clean install did NOT work for me. Not really surprised so I'm not sure what Paul considers a true "virgin unused PC". My laptop had Vista - I ran my Windows 7 upgrade media, went to advanced settings and it did not give me an option to format the drive. I'm assuming that just allows you to select a partition to install Windows on should you have more than one. So this is really not a true "clean install" as far as I can tell. Instead of going that route I used killdisk to wipe my drive and then tried installing via the upgrade windows 7 disk. No dice. It will not accept my product key as I'm assuming it wants they key for a full version. What a pain in the arse. Should have just purchased the full license as I hate doing upgrades!!!!
rr0de74@live.com
on Oct 23, 2009
@Wae my point with posting that comment goes with this blog post. There is confusion or lack of clarification around this issue of the upgrade media and the method. That post showed further confusion like the wrong date, and taking you to a Vista page to help you determine if you wanted 32bit or 64bit. All of these things make the launch look half baked. Or that Microsoft is so big that they cant coordinate a launch of their flagship product. Follow that with practically ZERO news or ads around WinMO and Zune HD.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Oct 23, 2009
tayme The IBM Jargon dictionary is a fascinating document. IBM's legendary Mike Cowlishaw maintained it for years as a side project back when he was at IBM's Hursley lab. (He also developed the REXX programming language as a side project. He's one of the few computer science treasures that IBM managed to have sense enough to keep from their old days) There's a PDF of the 10th Edition (from 1990) available at http://www.comlay.net/ibmjarg.pdf (Feel free to contrast that with Eric Raymond who took the community created internet jargon dictionary, slapped his name on it and sold it as a commercial book with only an appendix to credit that he didn't actually write it.)
mikegalos@msn.com
on Oct 23, 2009
rr0de "Follow that with practically ZERO news or ads around WinMO and Zune HD." Well, it wouldn't exactly make a lot of sense to make a major announcement about other product lines during a news cycle that's going to be "All Windows 7, all the time", would it? There was some news about Windows Mobile and Zune that MJ Foley talks about on her blog at http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=4337 if you're desperate to change the subject away from the huge Windows 7 launch success (You know, like having more pre-orders of Windows 7 at Amazon UK than they had for the last Harry Potter book)
Waethorn
on Oct 23, 2009
" it wouldn't exactly make a lot of sense to make a major announcement about other product lines during a news cycle that's going to be "All Windows 7, all the time", would it?" When has Apple announced the release of a new OS X version in tandem with new computerss? Or the iPhone for that matter?
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
@Tayme: Are you thinking of Direct ATTACHED Storage Device? Because the way you use it seems to indicate that you are. But I could be wrong, whenever I see it is just DAS, referring to Direct Attached Storage
danieldecker
on Oct 23, 2009
@de Silentio "...knew what I was talking about, but wanted to spew some 'Apple is better than Microsoft because..'" So now Microsoft is an OEM? I suspect your true intent was that I wanted to spew some "Apple is better than Dell/HP/Acer/insert_actual_OEM_name_here because" propaganda. Words are all we have on a forum, choose yours more wisely, say what you mean, and don't run the fool's errand of inferences and assumptions.
tayme
on Oct 23, 2009
@de Silentio - I think that the terms have somewhat merged in the last 10 years. So yes...I am refering to it as you describe...and even back in the old days, the terms were interchanged where I was at the time. Seriously, the definition that mikegalos provided above, using it as a verb is new to me. So, my comment to mikegalos regarding him being wrong, may have been out of line...since we both understood the term differently. Neither being wrong. I am going to take a look at that pdf that was linked to. Sounds like an interesting read. --tayme
mikegalos@msn.com
on Oct 23, 2009
"I don't remember seeing DASD used as a verb before. It is generally used as a noun these days." Out of curiosity, any beemers on here who can say if DASD is still used as a verb inside IBM?
quackxp
on Oct 23, 2009
I took a system that had Vista on it and did an in place upgrade to 7 RC. I had my data backed up on a seperate drive and figured id give it a shot and worst case id have to do a clean install. It worked. So Oct 22 comes along and I have my copy of Pro to do a final install. I ran setup from 7 RTM. Did the custom and put a "clean" install on my prmiary partition. I had already backed up data to another disk. It did the upgrade and put all the old stuff in the Windows.old folder. So when the time comes along for one reason or another that I have to do a fresh install on a blank drive ill be happy I don't have to do any kind of dual install weather its Vista > 7 or 7 > 7. Most people are going to do an in-place or a migration upgrade.
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
@danieldecker: "No workarounds, no registry hacks, and no serials/activation headaches. Words are all we have on a forum, choose yours more wisely, say what you mean, and don't run the fool's errand of inferences and assumptions." Ultimately, whose problem is it that one has to go through the headaches that you mention, the PC OEM's or Microsoft's? I would say Microsoft's. I wouldn't have regarded your post as propagandic is you had not thrown in the last bit of the Microsoft upgrade procedure. All of what you mention are not PC OEM problems at all, rather they are Microsoft problems. And Microsoft problems are what we are talking about. Words may be all we have, but any word or combination thereof is heavily laden with assumptions and inferences, rather they be written or spoken. True, some assumptions and inferences are easier to catch on to or are even inherent in the word or statement, but they are there nonetheless. In my original statement, was it not clear that I was talking about PC's or can you honestly say that you thought I might be talking about OEM's in general?
mikegalos@msn.com
on Oct 23, 2009
tayme "Sounds like an interesting read." It is if you remember the days when an ABEND would trigger an APAR.
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
@Myself: "Words may be all we have, but any word or combination thereof is heavily laden with assumptions and inferences, rather they be written or spoken." Should read: Words may be all we have, but any word or combination thereof is heavily laden with assumptions and inferences, WHETHER the WORDS be written or spoken. Perhpas I should proof read before I send the post instead of after.
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
"when an ABEND would trigger an APAR." ABEND in the knees can trigger APAR, but ABEND in the club will most likely trigger ABOGEY
tayme
on Oct 23, 2009
"It is if you remember the days when an ABEND would trigger an APAR." That I do...I am married to a former JCL specialist. --tayme
danieldecker
on Oct 23, 2009
@de Silentio Fair enough my friend. Regardless of any propaganda you think I was trying to spew, the point was more to illustrate that the process is onerous because it is engineered to be, by Microsoft. That situation is exacerbated by OEMs that don't *automatically* include restore discs with new purchases. Presumably the end user has paid for the software on the new, let's say, computer (as to avoid the lame PC/Mac distinction) and has a right to original media. Microsoft seems fairly adept at making their OEMs do most anything, they should insist that the OEMs include the media for Windows, at least. And totally off topic, thanks for keeping it civil. I've enjoyed our little trip down semantics lane ;-) @mikegalos - When I worked for Dillard's, Inc. we referred to DASD in relation to the mainframe. Many of the old-timers still used it to refer to fixed disk (HDDs) in relation to the local machine. Most of us "kids" used the modern lingo.
danieldecker
on Oct 23, 2009
@tayme I know some rather young JCL specialists. @de Silentio I try to proof read at least twice and sometimes I still screw it up. Pobody's Nerfect.
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
@redunion1940: May be you should consider upgrading your grand mother to ubuntu rather than 7!!??
mikegalos@msn.com
on Oct 23, 2009
"I am married to a former JCL specialist" No. No. Please. No. // DD * Was that enough of the right incantation to keep the JCL away? Sorry. Old JCL PTSD kicking in.
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
lotsamystuff!!! Well well well... the idiot is comming back...
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
@danieldecker: I never get to throw around "lotsa" type terms such as "spew" and "propaganda" so I thought I would jump at the opportunity, rather I was out of line or not (which I think I was, honestly). I aggree with your final assessment of the situation. I also enjoyed the mental excercise, well played on your part. Have a nice weekend.
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
How many Apple engineers it takes to change a burned light bulb? At Apple it does not change the burned light bulbs because engineers are much too busy to try to understand how to implement the protected memory.
de Silentio
on Oct 23, 2009
"True, some assumptions and inferences are easier to catch on to or are even inherent in the word or statement, but they are there nonetheless." Just a thought: if an assumption is inherent in a word, is there anything to assume about that word? It would seem that inherency negates the possibility that there is anything to assume. So, is it not false that words can have inherent assumptions?
panache1023
on Oct 23, 2009
hey EricoF3, How many Microsoft engineers does it take to change a burnt out light bulb? Well, since no one showed them how to change a light bulb, Microsoft just makes darkness the new standard.
danieldecker
on Oct 23, 2009
@de Silentio What if we assume inferences and infer assumptions? An assumption inherent in a word would be its generally accepted definition, I think. Therefore, if you wish to change that assumption, you must infer otherwise :-p
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
panache1023 said: hey EricoF3, "How many Microsoft engineers does it take to change a burnt out light bulb? Well, since no one showed them how to change a light bulb, Microsoft just makes darkness the new standard." LOL - I must admit your joke is funny LOL
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
panache1023 said: "How many Microsoft engineers does it take to change a burnt out light bulb? Well, since no one showed them how to change a light bulb, Microsoft just makes darkness the new standard." It is funny how you attribuate things to Microsoft that is done by Apple all the time LOL!!!
Waethorn
on Oct 23, 2009
@tayme: Using nouns as verbs dates back a long time. I'm often caught using the term "software" as a verb, as in "Hey, can you software this new machine for Mrs. Jones' order?". Of course, using verbs as nouns is also equally accepted. Disposable cloths are often referred to as "wipes" even though it's also the term for the action that you use it with. In more grammatically correct terminology, they should really be called "wipers".
Dipsh t Admin
on Oct 23, 2009
Not mine, but: "Q: How many Apple programmers does it take to change a lightbulb? A: Only one, but why bother ? Your light socket will just be obsolete in six months anyway. Q: How many Apple and PC fanboys does it take to change a lightbulb? A: An infinite number: nothing useful gets done while they're arguing. Finally a disgusted generic computer user (who will use any type that is in front of him) gets up and changes the bulb, elbowing the participants aside. The size of the crowd arguing seems to be a function of time, although whether or not the function is exponential is not known. How many Mac owners does it take to screw in a light bulb? 1. Just one, but the new light bulbs aren't compatible with the old sockets, so he has to buy a complete upgrade or a new light. 4. Two: One to ask the socket to eject the old bulb, and one to insert the new one. 5. Three: One to change the bulb, one to copyright the method for changing the bulb, and one to call in the lawyers on anyone who infringes on the "look and feel" of the bulb changing method."
lotsamystuff
on Oct 23, 2009
WaeWrong, if you're going to quote me, at least have the common sense* to quote me in context. You put my response to di Sillento underneath a completely unrelated paragraph. Nice try. So let's try again. di Silento said "Since OEM's don't ship restore media anymore, if the default restore partition gets deleted and there is no way to get the old version of Windows back on the computer and activated, a process like this is needed." I agree with that completely. You, WaeWrong, said "If your system doesn't come with discs for reinstalling the existing Windows installation, you should NOT delete the recovery partition whatsoever." So respond to the real issue, WaeWrong, what do you do in the case of a catastrophic hard drive failure when the old discs are not available? I agree with you that "it's a PITA to have to order them from the OEM, even if you still can." So what do you do if you can't? * Something I know you're short of.
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
@lotsamystuff: Nobody read you... so get out...
panache1023
on Oct 23, 2009
dipshtadmin, I bow down to your jokes...i know they arent yours, but they have mine and ericof3 topped.
yoshipod
on Oct 23, 2009
Apple engineers don't need to change lightbulbs..... They can download one of the hundred Flashlight apps on their iPhone. :)
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
panache1023 said: dipshtadmin, I bow down to your jokes...i know they arent yours, but they have mine and ericof3 topped. LOL Right!
tayme
on Oct 23, 2009
Lots of giddiness on this Friday evening! It's refreshing here! --tayme
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
yoshipod said: "Apple engineers don't need to change lightbulbs..... They can download one of the hundred Flashlight apps on their iPhone." Baaaa!! Nop, Apple engeneers don't use IPhone!! They use WinMo... They are engeneers ;) don't forget!!!
EricoF3
on Oct 23, 2009
Do you know why engeneers have a ring on their small finger?
Waethorn
on Oct 23, 2009
"what do you do in the case of a catastrophic hard drive failure when the old discs are not available? I agree with you that "it's a PITA to have to order them from the OEM, even if you still can." So what do you do if you can't?" Learn to read, a$$h0le: I already say that an HP PR rep had told a customer of mine to order them from http://www.restoredisks.com when they couldn't order install discs anymore after their computer was discontinued and out of support, and they complained to corporate. They also mentioned another site, but it didn't have nearly the same amount of supported machines. If an HP rep suggests the site, then I don't see anything bad there. Restore discs cost about ~$25 on average, and that includes shipping (even to Canada).
anonymous
on Oct 23, 2009
Paul Thurrott has the answer to the question of "Can I do a Clean Install Windows 7 with Upgrade Media?"...
Waethorn
on Oct 23, 2009
Just to be clear.... I said the following: a) I recommend that users NOT delete their original OEM recovery partition, ESPECIALLY if they didn't get install discs from their OEM. Even if they have install discs, it's faster to recover from the recovery partition should they need to reinstall the upgrade. b) If they didn't get recovery or install discs from their OEM, they should order them for the sake of having a backup copy, in case their hard drive has a physical failure wherein they can't access their recovery partition. Well kept optical discs will probably last longer than their hard drive. If they didn't get discs right away, they should order them ASAP because many OEM's discontinue the option of ordering recovery discs as they do with any replacement part after a set amount of time (Dell and HP are about 3 years only). Many OEM's will ship discs for free within the warranty period. Some don't, but most charge well less than $40 for a disc set. c) If the opportunity to order recovery discs from their OEM has come and gone, they should check on http://www.restoredisks.com and see if they carry their make and model. An HP corporate guy suggested it, and they work, and the cost is about the same as ordering them from the OEM. If the make and model of computer isn't listed, they have a contact email address for inquiring about additional models.
robertsjoe
on Oct 23, 2009
It looks like the reports of day long Windows 7 installs are rolling in. Windows 7 FAIL.
DRWAM
on Oct 23, 2009
My $399 ACER Vista laptop included 2 blank discs to create a restore disc. I was prompted to do so at the end of set up. I guess it's cheaper to make the buyer create his own, rather than providing one, but they did provide the blank discs.
Delmont
on Oct 23, 2009
Wae, and that 100MB partition needs to stay for Win7 to run?
Backup77
on Oct 23, 2009
@Waethorn Thanks for posting that link http://www.restoredisks.com I am sure that will come in handy when required. It is the case that computer sellers do not provide system recovery disks anymore due to the built-in hdd recovery partition and its true that if that gets blown away then you need a set of backup restore disks.
roteague
on Oct 23, 2009
I bought two HP machines this summer, and both came with a program installed that allowed the user to create restore disks. Check that before you blow everything away.
bdegrande
on Oct 23, 2009
Weethorn said "All the OEM's that were shipping Windows XP are now shipping at least Windows 7 Starter on the exact same models, and Starter is fine on the limited Intel 945 chipsets. Aero is barely usable on the GMA 950." Wndows 7 Starter is a patheticly limited OS on ANY hardware. Paul Thurrott can not hold his nose enough to recommend it. 7 Starter will really annoy users, who will be asked to spend half as much as they paid for their netbook to upgrade to an actual OS. Of course, you completely ignored my point, which is that Microsoft should be trying to get tens of millions of EXISTING netbook users to migrate to 7 rather than looking at alternatives. Even if it were true that Aero can't run on netbook hardware (it is quite arguable,VMWare Fusion has even gotten Aero working under virtualization, which is a much bigger peformance problem), whose fault is that? Similar systems run beautifully (Compiz Fusion in Linux, Mac OS X running Spaces with many apps open) on netbook hardware with the GMA950. There is simply NO excuse for delivering a crippled OS on netbooks.
robertsjoe
on Oct 23, 2009
Check this amusing video. People lining up to get Windows 7. All 6 of them! Microsoft, pathetic as ever. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RULP5N7eqMA
robertsjoe
on Oct 23, 2009
What?! No post about Microsoft's financials? A down quarter and nothing mentioned here? Told by Microsoft not to mention it?
NoNameAtAll
on Oct 23, 2009
No one cares, robertsjoe.

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