Win10 instal new machine from usb, will Win 7 key work?

Sneeky

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Hi
I have a bunch of hardware here for a new machine.
My current machine runs Win 7 Home 64bit and I have resisted the free upgrade.

I downloaded the instal files to usb using the windows upgrade tool but my question is this.
If I build the new pc and instal Win 10 on a fresh formatted drive, will the win 7 key work?
Or do I have to have win 7 on there first?

I thought it would work but this has me worried.
MvpVxfS.jpg


I can understand that if 7 is present it wont ask you to 'enter' a key.
My worry is it says if it isn't I have to enter a 'win10 key'

As the key itself for 7 is eligible for an upgrade will or will it not be accepted.
Anyone tried this?
Thanks
 

Sinbad

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No it won't.
Do an upgrade.
Let it activate your key with 10
Then you should be able to do a fresh install with that key if I remember right.
 

Sneeky

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Ok, so if I understand you correctly Sinbad, I just do the upgrade on my current machine, like now.

Then ditch all that hardware and when I do the fresh instal on the new hdd/mobo/etc on the new machine it will accept the key?

edit: its a retail boxed version not oem, so no probs there.
 
Last edited:

CataclysmZA

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Ok, so if I understand you correctly Sinbad, I just do the upgrade on my current machine, like now.

Then ditch all that hardware and when I do the fresh instal on the new hdd/mobo/etc on the new machine it will accept the key?

Correct, if you do the upgrade now, Microsoft's servers will use your pre-installed Windows 7's genuine license to give you an activated copy of Windows 10 on that machine. You can transfer the Windows 10 license key that you now own to any other machine in the future, because you own the retail boxed version.
 

Sneeky

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Cool.

Well lord have mercy on me please, bye bye trusty win7 64bit, reluctantly moving to 10, i see dragons everywhere, the download is running :crying:

edit: at 50kb just btw,,,,, wtf
lol
 

sajunky

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No it won't.
Do an upgrade.
Let it activate your key with 10
Then you should be able to do a fresh install with that key if I remember right.
Do an upgrade.
Let it activate your motherboard with 10
Then you should be able to do a fresh install without entering any key - this is right.
 

Sneeky

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I'm crying like a bitch i know, 92%, then onto 10.

Was not the plan but new hardware and stuff lets see. Jesus I hated 8 so much.
Point me to the thread where I make 10 look like 7 please :D

This camel is leaving brakemarks to the 10 water.
 

Sneeky

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Click Start, and then type Drive:\setup.exe in the search box, where Drive is the letter of your computer's DVD drive (for example, D:\setup.exe).

i dont have a dvd (optical) drive installed?
 

Sneeky

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I know. the upgrade fails all the time, thats just the error message.

Had a pm from someone else, looks like some software is doing it stopping it.
Trying again.

Let me know who I can send my LTE bandwidth bill to at microsoft, bunch of bananas.
 

HavocXphere

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I know. the upgrade fails all the time, thats just the error message.

Had a pm from someone else, looks like some software is doing it stopping it.
Trying again.

Let me know who I can send my LTE bandwidth bill to at microsoft, bunch of bananas.
nee fock...don't do win 10 upgrades over mobile. Its 2.6 gigs.....but the upgrade is screwy...I burned about 10 gigs of data over a shaky ADSL line attempting to download said 2.6 gig. It does "save" progress but its kinda sketchy.
 

Sneeky

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Lol, its saving ****, this is my 3rd attempt, 95% now.
Praise god for 100gb night time lte data
 

Sneeky

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HZCVKRK.jpg


Painful, watching paint dry just worse.

If I had known I woulda just gone and bought a 10 key to save the bs.
 

Sneeky

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Well I got there in the end. Thanks

Trying not to be grumpy about it and lets give this 10 thing a go.
:)
 

qdada

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I have a different answer

I think it depends on which release.

10240 - you upgrade then start afresh as suggested.
10586 - you can use your windows 7 key
 

Chingha

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Eish, Win 10.
My weekend will involve rebuilding the FIL's laptop after an upgrade to 10.
The Start button stopped working, after 3 different "fixes" some involving the "terminal" it looks like only a rebuild will work.
Should have just put Ubuntu on there, would have been less hassle
 

Sneeky

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I have a mobo/ram/cpu/gpu lying in the boxes on the floor, now I need to get that setup and instal all over again. Is it to early for beer :D
 
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