Need to Know: Windows 7

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Clean install or upgrade?

If you’re on XP because your current computer is eight-years-old, you'll most likely need to buy a new machine. You can check if your hardware is robust enough for Windows 7 here.

If you’re on XP because your current computer is a year old and you just hate Vista so very, very much, you should probably still do a fresh install rather than an upgrade.

If you're on Vista, you can possibly just upgrade, rather than wiping your computer with a clean install.

That’s the basic answer. The reality is much more complicated. Microsoft has produced a handy chart to show exactly who should do what depending on their current OS.

Essentially, if you’re on XP or Vista Starter, you’ll need to do a clean install, rather than upgrade. The same holds true if you’re moving from 32-bit to 64-bit.

With Vista to Windows 7 moves, you can do a simple upgrade if you’re staying at the same level of OS. So if you’re moving from the Home edition up to Professional, you’ll need to do a clean install, while if you’re downgrading or staying at the same version, you can just upgrade.

Read on here for more Windows 7 coverage.

Want to read more background on the latest IT topics? Click here for all the tech cheatsheets in our Need to Know series.

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