8 things you should know about moving from Windows XP to Windows 7
1:
Check your hardware
Windows 7 was
designed to be lean in terms of hardware, so
that it will be able to function satisfactorily on sub-powered netbooks. If you’re running Windows XP on a
computer manufactured within the last three or four years, chances are good
that Windows 7 will run fine on your system. However, you can make sure that
your hardware is compatible by running Microsoft’s Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. The
Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor will perform a detailed scan of your entire system,
checking hardware, programs, and peripheral devices. Once the scan is complete,
the Upgrade Advisor will display a report telling you whether your system meets
the hardware requirements and idenfying are any known compatibility issues with
your programs and devices. If it finds problems, the Upgrade Advisor will
provide suggestions you can use to better analyze your upgrade options to Windows
7. You can download the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor from the Microsoft Download
Center. At the time of this writing, this tool is listed as being a Beta
version. However, running it now will give you a good idea of what you will be
facing as you prepare for your upgrade. If you’re planning a much bigger Windows
XP to Windows 7 migration, you’ll want to investigate the Microsoft Assessment and
Planning Toolkit. This free toolkit, which runs across the network without
having to install software on client systems, will allow you to investigate
systems and compile reports on hardware and device compatibility.
2: Understand the Custom Install
If you’re running
Windows XP on your computer and you want to use Windows 7 on that same
computer, you’ll purchase an Upgrade license package of Windows 7. However, you
won’t be able to perform an in-place upgrade. In other words, you won’t be able
to upgrade to Windows 7 on top of XP and keep all your applications and
settings “in place.” Instead, you’ll have to perform a Custom Install, which
Microsoft describes as follows:
A custom (clean)
installation gives you the option to either completely replace your current
operating system or install Windows on a specific drive or partition that you
select. You can also perform a custom installation if your computer does not
have an operating system, or if you want to set up a multiboot system on your
computer. When you completely replace Windows XP, the installation procedure
will not totally obliterate it. In fact, the installation procedure will create
a folder on the hard disk called Windows.old and will place the Windows,
Documents And Settings, and Program Files folders from your Windows
XPinstallation in it. Your data files will be safe and accessible, but your
applications will not be viable. Regardless of whether you choose to completely
replace Windows XP or set up a multiboot system, you are going to have to back
up and transfer all of your data, reinstall all of your applications, and
reconfigure all of your settings.
3: Consider a setting up a multiboot configuration
When pondering a
Custom Install, you should consider setting up a multiboot configuration. That
will place both Windows XP and Windows 7 at your disposal, which will be a big
advantage as you begin migrating your settings, documents, and applications.
More specifically, you can boot into Windows XP to check out how something is
set up and then boot into Windows 7 to re-create the same configuration. Once
you have Ever ything in Windows 7 exactly the way you had it in Windows XP, you
can remove the multiboot configuration set Windows 7 as the primary OS and then
remove Windows XP.
4: Plan your backup and restore strategy
Before you move from
one operating system to another, you’ll want to back up all your data — at
least once and maybe twice, just in case. While it may sound like overkill,
having an extra backup will give you peace of mind. If you’re using a
third-party backup program, you will need to check the manufacturer’s Web site
to see whether the program will be upgraded to work in Windows 7. If you aren’t
using a third-party backup program, you’re probably using Windows XP’s native
Backup Utility. As you may have heard, the file format used for this tool isn’t
compatible with Windows Vista’s Backup And Restore Center. To provide for that,
Microsoft released a special version of the XP Backup Utility, called the Windows NT Backup -
Restore Utility. It’s designed specifically
for restoring backups made on Windows XP to computers running Windows
Vista. While I was unable to get official
confirmation, it is a safe bet that this special version will work in
Windows 7 or will be adapted to do so. If you aren’t willing to take that bet
or you are not sure whether your
third-party backup program will be upgraded to work in Windows 7, you can
simply make copies of all your data files on CD/DVD or on an external hard
disk.
To be able to perform
this type of switch, both XP and 7 must be
installed on the same hard disk but on separate partitions . (If you install
Windows 7 on a second hard disk, the boot partition will exist on the first
hard disk, so you won’t be able to remove that drive once you’re ready to get
rid of XP.) As a result, you’ll need to repartition your hard disk to make room
for Windows 7. To repartition your hard disk without destroying data, you can take advantage of
partition management software, such as
Norton PartitionMagic 8.0 , which retails for about $70, or Easeus Partition
Manager Home Edition 4.0.1, which is
available for free and earned a 4.5 star rating in a recent CNET editors’ review.
5: Plan your data transfer strategy
To move from one
operating system to another, you’ll probably want to use a transfer program
that will scan your XP system, pull out all your data and settings, and then
transfer them to Windows 7. Fortunately, the Windows 7 Easy Transfer utility
can provide this service for you. However, before you perform this transfer
operation, it will be in your best interestto have a separate back up copy of
your data .The new operating system will come with two copies of the Windows 7
Easy Transfer. One copy will be on the DVD and the other will be installed with
the operating system. Before you install Windows 7, you will run Windows 7 Easy
Transfer from the DVD and back up all your files and settings. Then, once you
have Windows 7 installed, you’ll use it to move all your files and settings to
the new operating system. You can learn more about the Windows 7 Easy Transfer
by reading the article Step-by-Step: Windows 7 Upgrade and Migration on the
Microsoft TechNet site.
6: Inventory your applications and gather your CDs
Since you won’t be
able to perform an in-place upgrade when you move from Windows XP to Windows 7,
you’ll have to reinstall all your applications that passed the Windows 7 Upgrade
Advisor compatibility tests (see #1). It will be helpful to have an inventory
of all the installed applications so that you can track down all your CDs or
compile a list of Web sites for those applications you downloaded. While the
report generated by the Upgrade Advisor will be
helpful as you create an inventory, it won’t be comprehensive. To create
a detailed inventory, you can use something like the Belarc Advisor. For more
details, see the article Gather detailed system information with Belarc
Advisor.
7: Become familiar with the new UI
The UI in Windows 7
is quite different from the UI in Windows XP, and it offers a lot of new
features. As a result, you may encounter what I call “UI Shock.” You’ll know
what you want to do, but you’ll experience a momentary lapse of composure as
you strive to adapt what you know about XP’s UI to what you’re seeing and
experiencing in Windows 7. To ease the level of UI shock, you’ll want to become
as familiar as possible with the features
of the new Windows 7 UI. One starting point is Microsoft’s Windows 7 page.
While a lot of the content here is essentially marketing related, it will give
you a good idea of what to look for when you actually move into the Windows 7
operating system. The Windows 7 features section, where you’ll find a host of short
videos and descriptions. The Windows 7 Help & How-to section, where you’ll
find a whole slew of step-by-step articles that show you how get around in
Windows 7. Be sure to check out the section on installing Windows.
8: Check for XP Mode support
If you discover that
some of the applications you’re currently running in Windows XP are not
compatible with Windows 7 (see #1) or
you just want to keep Windows XP accessible, don’t forget about Windows XP
Mode. This virtual environment includes a free, fully licensed, ready-to-run
copy of Windows XP with SP3 that runs under Windows Virtual PC in Windows
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