Upgrade from W8 to 8.1

eager2008

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Is upgrading from Win 8 to Win 8.1 working ?
I used the downloaded .iso (MSDN), but it only offered to keep personal files, all applications were gone after install.
Is this the expected behavior ?
If yes, this will be difficult cause MS has stated that all 8 users must upgrade to 8.1

Anyone knows if the same applies to Server 2012 R2 (upgrade from 2012 to 2012 R2) ?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
If you upgrade though the Windows store you keep everything. At least that's the way it was when I tried the preview. Microsoft would prefer that everyone upgraded though the Windows store. The average Joe isn't going to have an ISO. I've only done clean installs so I can't comment on what gets saved or lost if you do an upgrade from the ISO.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
Did you boot from the ISO? Or did you run the setup off the disk? If you do the later, it should do an upgrade..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    CPU
    Intel i7 3770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z77X-UD4 TH
    Memory
    16GB DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GTX 650
    Sound Card
    Onboard Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Auria 27" IPS + 2x Samsung 23"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440 + 2x 2048x1152
    Hard Drives
    Corsair m4 256GB, 2 WD 2TB drives
    Case
    Antec SOLO II
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
    Mouse
    Logitech MX
The ISO has to be started from the boot menu (i.e before drivers are loaded) - it then checks devices and if driver conflicts are found you will be prompted to uninstall those - if not, it will not allow you to keep apps..I presume the store version will have this detection built in and do this check from within windows ...as it will be specifically for upgrading.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    PC-DOS v1.0
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    IBM
    CPU
    Intel 8088, 4.77MHz
    Memory
    16K, 640K max
    Graphics Card(s)
    What's that?
    Sound Card
    Not quite
    Screen Resolution
    80 X 24 text
    Hard Drives
    dual 160KB 5.25-inch disk drives
I decided to try 8.1 Preview.
Downloaded the ISO from the Windows store and ran SETUP.EXE (double clicked ISO file as recommended on the MS site)

Installed with no problems and no warnings of any incompatibilities.

BUT
1. A number of applications disappeared, amongst them:- aVast Internet Security and 8Gadgets
2. Language settings were screwed up.
3. A number of pinned items were dropped from the taskbar.
4. All previous recovery points disappeared.

Restored system from True Image backup
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. GA-B75M-D2V
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3470 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 3601 Mhz, 4 Core(s)
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. GA-B75M-D2V
    Memory
    8 GB DDR3 1600MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    GE Force GT 610
    Sound Card
    Onboard Realtek High Def
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U2913WMP
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1080
    Hard Drives
    Western Digital WD10EZEX-00RKKA0 1TB
    Seagate ST2000DL003-9VT166 2TB
    Seagate ST31000528AS 1TB
Tried installing by booting from iso (all within Hyper-V though), got a window with title "Windows Setup", some header text "Compatibility report" and the following text in a textbox:

"The computer started using the Windows installation media. Remove the
installation media and restart your computer so that Windows starts normally.
Then, insert the installation media and restart the upgrade. (Do not select
|Custom (advanced)| to perform an upgrade. |Custom (advanced)| installs a
new copy of Windows and deletes your programs and settings.)"

Is this the detection that Superfly mentions ?
I do particularly not fully understand the meaning of "...and restart the upgrade."
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
Yes check the compatibility report, if there are no conflicts you can upgrade from within windows...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    PC-DOS v1.0
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    IBM
    CPU
    Intel 8088, 4.77MHz
    Memory
    16K, 640K max
    Graphics Card(s)
    What's that?
    Sound Card
    Not quite
    Screen Resolution
    80 X 24 text
    Hard Drives
    dual 160KB 5.25-inch disk drives
The compatibility report was the quoted text and said nothing about drivers, update with "Keep private files" (or similar) makes me loosing the applications.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
I used the downloaded .iso (MSDN), but it only offered to keep personal files, all applications were gone after install.
I have observed the same behavior.

Workaround:
  • Mount ISO
  • Copy ISO files to a folder on harddisk; e.g. "c:\update\"
  • Delete file "c:\update\sources\cversion.ini"
  • Start "c:\update\setup.exe"
Now you can keep also programs, personal settings and personal files.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
I used the downloaded .iso (MSDN), but it only offered to keep personal files, all applications were gone after install.
I have observed the same behavior.

Workaround:
  • Mount ISO
  • Copy ISO files to a folder on harddisk; e.g. "c:\update\"
  • Delete file "c:\update\sources\cversion.ini"
  • Start "c:\update\setup.exe"
Now you can keep also programs, personal settings and personal files.

Didn't work for me, i.e. it worked just like starting setup.exe directly from mounted iso which also offered to keep personal files etc., but applications were not kept in either case.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
Is upgrading from Win 8 to Win 8.1 working ?
I used the downloaded .iso (MSDN), but it only offered to keep personal files, all applications were gone after install.
Is this the expected behavior ?
If yes, this will be difficult cause MS has stated that all 8 users must upgrade to 8.1

Anyone knows if the same applies to Server 2012 R2 (upgrade from 2012 to 2012 R2) ?

No it is not expected behaviour, I mounted the ISO (MSDN) from the downloads folder and there were three options in setup available. The first option will keep everything.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64 (6.3.9600)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion Ultrabook 14-b083eg
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i3-3217U
    Memory
    8 GB DDR3 (2 x 4 GB modules)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel® HD Graphics 4000
    Sound Card
    IDT High-Definition (HD) Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    35.5 cm (14") HD BrightView LED-backlit (1366 x 768)
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    Kingston SSDNow V300 120 - SV300S37A120G (Firmware 505ABBF1)
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 1000
    Internet Speed
    Broadband
    Browser
    Microsoft Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    avast! Free Antivirus 2014
    Other Info
    System BIOS Version F.1B (Aug 23, 2013)
No it is not expected behaviour said:
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
No it is not expected behaviour said:
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...

en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso is still listed on TechNet for me? Windows 8.1 (multiple editions) (x64) - DVD (English)
They have added some VL editions and N editions to the list. You might want to double check that you are downloading the correct file.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
No it is not expected behaviour said:
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...

en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso is still listed on TechNet for me? Windows 8.1 (multiple editions) (x64) - DVD (English)
They have added some VL editions and N editions to the list. You might want to double check that you are downloading the correct file.

Sorry, visible for me as well, but anyway the problem I have described above.
However, downloaded one of the newer files (en_windows_8_1_enterprise_x64_dvd_2791088.iso), starting setup.exe from iso from within old w8 shows 3 choices, installing now, seems ok.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
No it is not expected behaviour said:
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...

Ummm, I just got through downloading that file from Technet. (For whatever reason, my subscription was extended 90 days from September 1 [before Technet is no longer available]) Nothing newer on Technet.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 500-056
    CPU
    AMD Elite Quad-Core A8-6500
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon HD 8570D
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 23"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    1 TB
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wave K350
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
    Internet Speed
    Fast
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...

en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso is still listed on TechNet for me? Windows 8.1 (multiple editions) (x64) - DVD (English)
They have added some VL editions and N editions to the list. You might want to double check that you are downloading the correct file.

Sorry, visible for me as well, but anyway the problem I have described above.
However, downloaded one of the newer files (en_windows_8_1_enterprise_x64_dvd_2791088.iso), starting setup.exe from iso from within old w8 shows 3 choices, installing now, seems ok.

That ISO is Windows 8.1 Enterprise (x64) - DVD English. Just so you know.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
No it is not expected behaviour said:
Perhaps not so strange, the file I downloaded was stamped Sep 09, downloaded Sep 14, named en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso
Seems like this file was withdrawn after my download.
Downloading newer now and look forward to try later today, will report...

Ummm, I just got through downloading that file from Technet. (For whatever reason, my subscription was extended 90 days from September 1 [before Technet is no longer available]) Nothing newer on Technet.

That is the latest Windows 8.1 x64 ISO. The others are Enterprise and Volume license. When they added them it bumped the regular Windows 8.1 off of the first page. Everybody that had a valid TechNet subscription got a 90 day extension as a result of complaints about terminating TechNet.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
The ISO has to be started from the boot menu (i.e before drivers are loaded) - it then checks devices and if driver conflicts are found you will be prompted to uninstall those - if not, it will not allow you to keep apps..I presume the store version will have this detection built in and do this check from within windows ...as it will be specifically for upgrading.

Hi there

WRONG .... WRONG ... WRONG. If you get the iso from TechNet / iso :

You can run the SETUP from within windows 8 (mount the iso either as a physical DVD or as a Virtual ISO with windows 8 built in virtual mounter)

You will get a prompt to delete everything or keep some user data (either way it's effectively a new install) -- a Windows.OLD file is created -- this is actually quite useful where some drivers aren't detected by Windows 8.1 -- especially for newer hardware -- simply update the driver from the control panel device manager and point to the windows.old file for the "search location" for the relevant drivers.


No issues at all with the 8.1 TechNet PRO version apart from one or two drivers (for very new hardware but fixed by using the computer's pre-installed Windows 8 drivers stored in the Windows.old file) -- I am waiting for the enterprise version though for my final testing.

Cheers
jimbo
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Linux Centos 7, W8.1, W7, W2K3 Server W10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Monitor(s) Displays
    1 X LG 40 inch TV
    Hard Drives
    SSD's * 3 (Samsung 840 series) 250 GB
    2 X 3 TB sata
    5 X 1 TB sata
    Internet Speed
    0.12 GB/s (120Mb/s)
@eager2008 Glad it worked for you.

To unravel the confusion a bit here:

  • The TechNet ISO will update and keep everything
  • Check the hash to make sure it is the right ISO and it has not been tampered with
    SHA1: BC2F7FF5C91C9F0F8676E39E703085C65072139B
  • The file name (en_windows_8_1_x64_dvd_2707217.iso) doesn't actually matter if the hash is verified
  • The setup.exe started in Windows 8 brings the options as follows
    • Keep Windows settings, personal files, and apps
    • Keep personal files only
    • Nothing
  • As per description "This file contains both Windows 8.1 and Windows 8.1 Pro" this should work for Core and Pro (I can confirm Pro)

Windows 8.1 installation options update - 4.PNG
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64 (6.3.9600)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion Ultrabook 14-b083eg
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i3-3217U
    Memory
    8 GB DDR3 (2 x 4 GB modules)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel® HD Graphics 4000
    Sound Card
    IDT High-Definition (HD) Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    35.5 cm (14") HD BrightView LED-backlit (1366 x 768)
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    Kingston SSDNow V300 120 - SV300S37A120G (Firmware 505ABBF1)
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 1000
    Internet Speed
    Broadband
    Browser
    Microsoft Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    avast! Free Antivirus 2014
    Other Info
    System BIOS Version F.1B (Aug 23, 2013)
I used BurnCDCC from Terabyte to burn 8.1 to DVD.

With Windows 8.0 running, I slipped the DVD into the drive and was promptly asked for a product key. Since this is a new HP computer and came with Windows 8.0 installed, I backed out. I don't want to waste my key on what should be a free upgrade.

I normally build all my computers, but this time I decided to just go the cheaper way out and get an HP 500-056 with 8 gigs of RAM and a 1 TB HDD, etc. 23" monitor and everything else is from the old build(s).

I may look at things again tomorrow, but maybe not. Looks like I still have some studying to do.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 500-056
    CPU
    AMD Elite Quad-Core A8-6500
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon HD 8570D
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 23"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    1 TB
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wave K350
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
    Internet Speed
    Fast
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
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