Upgrade from 7 to 8.1 Pro and all programs are gone

[greatg]

New 8.1 user. Just updated from 7 Pro. I have noticed that most of all my applications have disappeared? Do I need to re-install or can I recover from the Windows.old folder?

 

[Mark Phelps]

Evidently, MS does not support upgrading from Win7 to Win8.1 and retaining the applications. I found this out when I was considering upgrading my Win7 laptop to Win8.1. There is a table you can find that shows what carries over from one OS version to another, and MS is considering the Win7 --> Win8.1 as the same situation as XP --> Win7.

You will either have to reinstall all the apps, or if you're willing to experiment, LapLink makes a product that allows you to "migrate" from Win7 to Win8.1 -- but you would have to buy their app, reinstall Win7 (hopefully, you have a backup) and do the upgrade all over again.

 

[theog]

all my applications have disappeared? Do I need to re-install

You need to install the Windows 8.1 versions of the applications.