Windows Vista support ends in a month:11 April 2017

grumpycrab

Mee wrote: »

Wondering the same for my Dell Inspiron 1525...

Talk to Nifty
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=72264188&postcount=11

EdGasket

grumpycrab wrote: »

Talk to Nifty
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=72264188&postcount=11

How? By PM or what?

donnajunkie

Haven't had an update since last July. Who bothers buying and installing a new os? It's a con to make you buy a new computer even if your current one is working fine.

NiftyDigits

EdGasket wrote: »

I have a Dell Optiflex 360 with Vista business on it (4GB ram); runs very well. Is there a free upgrade path to Windows 7? All I've seen are loads of chargeable options on ebay from say £4.99 to over £100 ! No idea what they are all about or which one I'd need to get, if any, to a) work, b) be free of viruses, and c) be legal.

I bought the machine secondhand with Vista Business already installed; I don't have any disks or paperwork and the Windows licence sticker is barely readable but I could have a guess at the numbers if that matters.

I'm on holiday at the mo.
Simply run this BIOS update for now, by choosing to Download through Browser and saving to the Vista desktop and then right clicking on the newly downloaded file and choosing 'Run As Administrator'.
Leave it to do it's thing and on reboot, you should be ready to install Windows 7.
Installation disc in your inbox.

EdGasket

OK thanks but I'm sure you appreciate that I can't just run a bios upgrade file posted on the internet without understanding a bit more what I'm doing. If it goes wrong I don't have a computer.

Why do I even need to change the bios to install Windows 7?

NiftyDigits

EdGasket wrote: »

OK thanks but I'm sure you appreciate that I can't just run a bios upgrade file posted on the internet without understanding a bit more what I'm doing. If it goes wrong I don't have a computer.

Why do I even need to change the bios to install Windows 7?

You don't. You can just buy a licence for Windows 7.

Horse to water and all that....

Later Optiplex 360 machines came with the Windows 7 licences pre-installed. That update will bring your machine in line.

NiftyDigits

Mee wrote: »

Wondering the same for my Dell Inspiron 1525...

Simply run this BIOS update, by choosing to Download through Browser and saving to the Vista desktop and then right clicking on the newly downloaded file and choosing 'Run As Administrator'.
Leave it to do it's thing and on reboot, you should be ready to install Windows 7.
Installation disc in your inbox.

EdGasket

Where would I find the Windows 7 product key that needs typing in?

NiftyDigits

EdGasket wrote: »

Where would I find the Windows 7 product key that needs typing in?

It won't be requested. Not necessary with DELL re-installation media.

EdGasket

I checked my BIOS and it is at level AO7 which is the latest available from Dell so presumably I don't want to be running that A02 BIOS file in your link?

Also Firefox won't download the Windows image; says its too big?