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Hi everyone,
I wanted to upgrade my pc which is currently on windows xp, but one of my friend told me that it may not work if I would do an upgrade to windows 7? Is that true? I'd appreciate if you could tell me what would be the possibilities to upgrade to windows 7 if I'm currently in XP. Thanks in advance`!
And by the way, Is Vista more compatible to upgrade for windows 7?
The new operating system will replace the old operating system. So there is not a general rule about whether a computer with XP can use Windows 7. In other words, the current operating system won't affect the new operating system, so the pairing of OS's won't matter*.
The reason that your computer may not be compatible is because of the hardware (memory, hard drive space, processor, and maybe drivers for other devices like your keyboard or sound card). It's very likely that you CAN upgrade, but it is likely that on a computer that is designed for Windows XP, Windows 7 will run slowly.
Vista is in general not a good operating system and there's a strong recommendation to update to 7 if you have Vista. So I wouldn't recommend doing that. On the other hand it is slightly more likely to work on an older computer, but that's not certain.
In order to give specific information you'd need to post the model of your computer here, and basic specs like processor, RAM, etc. Information about installing Windows 7 will also have recommended and/or required specs that you can compare to.
In short, there are three things to consider:
1) Is it possible to install Windows 7 on the computer at all? Probably yes, although this won't be true for a very old computer (I'd guess more than 10 years old, but I don't know.) This is relevant for the very basic requirements. Also, you'll need a big enough hard drive to fit the operating system and have some space left over to use the computer. If you're running low on space you might want to replace the hard drive. That's pretty easy to do and they're very cheap now (about $50 should get you everything you need, easily).
2) Will Windows 7 run more slowly than Windows XP? Probably. But will that be a problem? It really depends on the computer. If the computer originally had XP then this is a reasonable option, after looking into the details. If it originally had 98, 2000, etc., and you upgraded to XP, then it might be too old.
3) Drivers: drivers are bits of software that allow your computer to communicate with the various devices attached to it. You must have a driver for each device that is compatible with the new operating system. This is less and less of a problem these days because operating systems tend to have a lot of drivers preinstalled, but if you are unlucky this could mean your speakers won't work (for example). It's usually more peripheral things, and it's more likely for any modified components. Finally, if there is a question of compatibility, you can often find drivers on the internet (usually from the manufacturer's website).
Honestly, it's probably simpler than this: if it's a relatively new and powerful computer you can probably upgrade. If it's an older computer or struggling with XP, you should buy a new computer or keep XP.
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*There is a secondary issue with all of that, and that is actually "upgrading" the operating system in the sense that you want to move all of your files and settings to the new computer. Of course you will need to back up your files (make sure you get everything-- you're going to erase your hard drive when you install Windows 7!!). But I'd recommend against trying to move your settings. It's fairly easy to set everything up again on the new computer and moving them might be difficult if it's even possible.
Of course there may or may not be some sort of "migration wizard" for moving between Windows OS's, but I would just ignore it personally.
The most common way to do this is to format the hard drive (completely erase it) then install a new operating system.
There's an upgrade advisor:
http://windows.microsoft.com/upgradeadvisor
It should be able to scan your system to see if it can handle Win 7.
Haha, that's the easy answer John. Thanks for posting.
I have to agree with the advice given by djr33. I would stay away from Vista, they stopped developing it while it was still full of bugs. They are projecting to end XP support in 2014, I would expect Vista to be fairly close behind. Use the upgrade advisor and check, but seriously if the machine is over 3 years old, just spend the money to upgrade the machine. I think you'll be happier with the end result.