Windows 7 back up

Wig

I hope to be getting Win 7 for my machines

& Will want to create a back up copy of the DVD onto blank DVDs that I can use and refer back to whenever I need to.
Any tips on what I need to do or what (preferably free) software I should use to do this. I have almost zero experience of burning cd/dvds.

Will a back up work? i.e. will I be able to use my back up for its intended purpose? If the computer crashes and I have to re format the hard drive will I be able to use the back up version? Or is there some kind of copy protection that will stop me from being able to do this?

I also think my system is lacking anyway and will need upgrading.
Windows 7 System Requirements
If you want to run Windows 7 on your PC, here's what it takes:

• 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor.
• 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit).
• 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit).
• DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver.

Additional requirements to use certain features:

• Internet access (fees may apply).
• Depending on resolution, video playback may require additional memory and advanced graphics hardware.
• Some games and programs might require a graphics card compatible with DirectX 10 or higher for optimal performance.
• For some Windows Media Center functionality a TV tuner and additional hardware may be required.
• Windows Touch and Tablet PCs require specific hardware.
• HomeGroup requires a network and PCs running Windows 7.
• DVD/CD authoring requires a compatible optical drive.
• BitLocker requires Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 1.2.
• BitLocker To Go requires a USB flash drive.
• Windows XP Mode requires an additional 1 GB of RAM and an additional 15 GB of available hard disk space.
• Music and sound require audio output.

Does Windows 7 actually take up 16GB? That's ridiculous!
Windows XP mode "requires and adittional 15GB & additional 1GB ram" Why when normal Win XP only requires 1.5GB hardrive space.
Does this mean that the install size will be more than 30GB? or is the space merely required for swapfiles?

I have the following systems:
System 1
AMD Athlon XP 2400
speed 2000MHz = 2GHz
cache1 - 128Kb
cache2 - 256Kb
Slot 1 Memory 256MB / 166Mhz DDR333
Slot 2 Free
73GB harddrive - 6GB free - only 500MB free on C:\
Win 98 SE

I have a spare computer,
System 2
AMD Sempron 2400
speed 1.67 GHz
cache 1 128kb
cache 2 256kb
slot 1 512 MB / 133MHz DDR266
slot 2 Free
115GB Hardrive - 98GB Free
Win XP 2002 SP2 - with some problems and no product key or discs

How do I find out if they are 32bit or 64bit?

EDIT: OK so system 1 & 2 should both be fine with Win 7 but sytem 1 will need 1 to 2 GB of RAM
System 2 will require 512MB or 1GB or 2GB of extra RAM

System 1 has a maximum RAM of 3 x 1GB £25 ea

jayme1

are you installing it to the computer or just copying the DVD to another DVD?

if you only have one DVD drive then you will need at least the size of the disc you are copying free. for one dual layer DVD that is 9GB.

12GB hard drive?! really? or do you mean 12GB space left?

free4440273

http://cdburnerxp.se/en/home

Lum

It will be on DVD. There is no CD edition of Windows 7 as the installer is over 3GB in size.

I am not sure exactly what you are trying to do. If you are just trying to make a copy of that DVD then free programs like ImgBurn or CDBurnerXP will do that. ImgBurn is probably the easier of the two for this purpose.

The rest of the question reads like you are intending to install Windows 7 onto an old computer. I don't know the specs of your computer but if it really came with just a 12GB hard drive then I would guess it's from the late 90s or early 00s, so a Pentium III at best. To check, right click on My Computer and choose properties, the window that opens will tell you what processor you have, the speed and how much RAM. If your computer really is as old as I suspect then I'll be blunt here, forget putting Windows 7 on it.

Ignore the stuff about "Windows XP Mode" that is an optional feature of Windows 7 Professional (it is not available in Home Premium, if that is what you have) that actually runs a copy of Windows XP in a "virtual machine". It takes up a fair chunk of CPU power and memory as you are effectively running two copies of Windows at once. The only reason you'd want to do this is if you have an ancient piece of software that will not run under Windows 7. Personally I love XP mode but most normal people will never use it, which is why it's not in the home edition.

jayme1

you only need the 'win7 specs' of you are installing the OS just to copy the disc you only need a computer that can has a DVD burner and has enough free space on the hard drive to store a temporary copy.

DatabaseError

The "which software" question has been answered well, so I won't comment
However, Installing 7 on that machine is not a great idea, I have no idea what's already on it (windows 98?) but you're well below the minimum RAM spec.

If the PC performs ok for you as it is, don't change anything, if it doesn't I'm afraid it's probably time for a new machine, upgrading the RAM is possible but kinda pointless.
12Gb HDD?...I really don't remember ever having one that size, though many smaller and larger, if it really is that size a new one would be required..old IDE drives are pretty easy to source on ebay etc.. for very little money as they are considered "junk" by most people nowadays.

Did you actually buy win 7 full retail for that machine? If a salesman suggested it to you he needs taking outside an *cough* educating with a piece of 2x2

Wig

Hi guys,

I have updated the OP to make a lot more sense. Yes I did think about having a new OS (Win 7) installed on my existing Win 98 machine, but I also had an 'unknown' spare computer which was a gift not that long ago. I had a suspicion that the Win 98 one would not be good enough, and hoped the new one would be good enough. I just looked at them both today and discovered that i think both are good enough theoretically (for Win 7), both need some serious RAM. The XP on the second m/c is not installed properly and you get some error messages, and can't do anything (about those error messages) without the discs and the product key. So it needs a re-format.

In truth, I don't have the discs yet for Win 7, but intend to buy it. As I think it's time I upgraded from Win 98 which now has it's limitations in modern internet surfing. I suppose I could buy a second hand copy of "Win XP full install" and use that...... leaving the RAM as it is. Are people allowed to sell their original versions of XP and will they work for me to install?

Wig

jayme1 wrote: »

are you installing it to the computer or just copying the DVD to another DVD?

From DVD to a blank DVD

if you only have one DVD drive then you will need at least the size of the disc you are copying free. for one dual layer DVD that is 9GB.

Yes I only have 1 DVD drive and it is a RW

12GB hard drive?! really? or do you mean 12GB space left?

I got that bit wrong. The old machine actually has a Harddrive of 73GB ish with about 6GB free. What confused me was it is partitioned into 12GB sections

Lum

Ok, there is almost no chance that that Win98 machine will run Win7. They stopped shipping PCs with Win98 back in 2002, so unless for some bizarre reason you bought a modern PC and decided to put Win98 on it. That PC is too old and wont even be worth upgrading.

Regarding your other PC, what are the specs. There is a difference between meeting the minimum requirements for it to run, and it actually being fast enough to be enjoyable to use, so you may want to stick with XP anyway.

Assuming the XP install on it is legitimate, you can use the Magical Jellybean Key Finger to retrieve the product key, and then it's just a case of beg/borrow/steal an XP CD from somewhere and make a copy. Unlike other software Microsoft don't care about whether your physical CD is a legit one with the hologram, all they care about is that your product key is legitimate. Note: If the product key it finds begins with "FCKGW" it's probably a pirate copy

GunJack

tbh, by the time you've gone and bought more RAM AND the OS itself, you'll be pretty close to a cheapie brand new machine with W7 installed anyway, and will perform better than upgrading either of the two you have already, and have a year's (at least) guarantee.

The other thing to consider is drivers for all that old hardware, you may well struggle to find W7 drivers for all the other components that make up your current systems...another reason that a cheap new pc would be a better bet for you.

Richie-from-the-Boro

Wig,

Borrow a legal Win7 disk & product key & 2x1GB bars of DDR400, unplug the net and do an install on either / both machines before you spend a penny on extra hardware.

Putting Win7 on either of those machines even with a lot of extra spend is only ever going to let it crawl my friend. Both are only two slot memory MOBO's so you will have to throw away your existing memory to get in 2x1GB bars at £20 a bar second hand and Win7 will still slither around, using 2x2GB bars would be a work around but its unlikely the memory controller on MOBO's that old will run 4 sides at once.

Sorry M8 !

And then there is Video card / HDD costs etc