32bit Vista upgrade to 64bit Windows 7 Question

oasisfeverish

Currently have a laptop running 32bit Vista Home Edition and looking at upgrading to 64bit Windows 7.

I know the current laptop is capable to run 64bit OS.

It has 3GB RAM and I want to increase the RAM, it can go up to 8GB (2 x 4GB). If I understand it right if you go over 4GB of RAM you need 64bit OS.

So my question is if I purchase 64bit Windows 7, is it a simple upgrade process from 32bit Vista straight to 64bit Windows 7?

spud17

Because you are swapping from 32bit to 64bit it has to be a new install.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-vista/32-bit-and-64-bit-Windows-frequently-asked-questions#

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/32-bit-and-64-bit-Windows-frequently-asked-questions

oasisfeverish

spud17 wrote: »

Because you are swapping from 32bit to 64bit it has to be a new install.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-vista/32-bit-and-64-bit-Windows-frequently-asked-questions#

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/32-bit-and-64-bit-Windows-frequently-asked-questions

So if I buy a Windows 7 upgrade software, can I still do a new install with this?

Also are there any associated risks with a new install rather than a upgrade?

spud17

oasisfeverish wrote: »

So if I buy a Windows 7 upgrade software, can I still do a new install with this?

Also are there any associated risks with a new install rather than a upgrade?

You need to back up all your data and have anything else, e.g. drivers and keys for software available.

It's generally better to do a clean install rather than an upgrade, for one thing, it's a chance to start again with a 'clean' system.

You can do a new install with upgrade software using the 'double install' method. Explanation in link below.

http://osgui.org/component/content/article/15-microsoft-corp/306-clean-install-windows-7-from-upgrade-disc-double-install-method.html