Upgrading to 64 bit Windows 8.1 from 32 bit Windows 7

jbr003

New Member
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2
Okay so here's my question,
I have the product key and downloadable .iso file for Windows 7 (32 bit), however I want to have a 64 bit operating system to take advantage of new computers hardware and such. I'm going to be building the computer and obviously need an operating system.
Is my best bet to install my copy of Window 7 (32 bit), then purchase the 64 bit version of Windows 8.1 on a 64 bit computer I have access to?
Orrrr can I go ahead and buy the Windows 8.1 (64 bit) upgrade on a 64 bit computer and use THAT .iso to boot my computer once it's built? This would be nice as I could skip the step of having to install Windows 7 first.
If my wording is poor or you need more explanation please let me know, I'm pretty confused about the whole process.
Thanks for the help.

Also if you couldn't tell my computer won't have an optical drive.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Professional 32 bit
My question would be why in the world would you want to get to a 32-bit OS... even if it is Windows 7???

Not really quite sure what you want to do... but whichever way you go... either or both OS's should be 64-bit.

Bottom line is you'll have to choose either a 32 or 64-bit OS as you can't mix and match. If you install a 32-bit OS and later want to install a 64-bit OS, you'll need to do a clean install. The same goes if you went the other way.

Good luck in your decision
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom built by me
    CPU
    Haswell i7-4770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte G1 Sniper 5 (BIOS F9)
    Memory
    Corsair Dominator Platinum 32 gig (1866MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Sapphire R9-280 Vapor X
    Sound Card
    Soundblaster ZXR
    Monitor(s) Displays
    NEC PA242W - 24 inch
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1200
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 512gig 850 Pro SSD (OS), Samsung 256gig 840 Pro SSD (photo editing), Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB HD
    PSU
    EVGA Supernova 1000 G2
    Case
    Cooler Master HAF X
    Cooling
    Corsair H100i Closed Loop Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance MX
    Internet Speed
    High Speed
    Browser
    IE11
    Antivirus
    Norton Security
    Other Info
    RAM Speed: 1866MHZ @ 9-10-10-27-2T, 1.5v
The 32 bit version of windows is from my old laptop. I'm building a new desktop this week and am trying to figure out the best way to get a 64 bit version of Windows on it.

From my understanding the license that I have for Windows 7 is stuck as 32 bit...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Professional 32 bit
Or can I go ahead and buy the Windows 8.1 (64 bit) upgrade on a 64 bit computer and use THAT .iso to boot my computer once it's built?

Yes. edit: The computer must be Windows 7/8/8.1 64-bit.

If you buy a Windows 8.1 product key, you can perform a clean Windows 8.1 installation on your computer.

Windows 8.1 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

New retail installation media of Windows 8.1 were released alongside the online upgrade. Unlike their Windows 8 counterparts, they can install Windows on computers that do not have an operating system at all. Microsoft stated that the change was in response to customer feedback, and to allow more flexibility for users. Pricing for the retail copies of 8.1 remained the same.

Download the Windows 8.1 installer from Microsoft's web site and create a USB flash drive (Install by creating media > Next > USB flash drive).

Here is info about Legacy BIOS Boot Mode (installing using the MBR partition style) and UEFI Boot Mode (installing using the GPT partition style): LINK
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo G580
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-3230M
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, standard user account
    Other Info
    UEFI firmware (BIOS) embedded Windows 8 product key.
Welcome to Windows Eight Forums, jbr003.

Even if you upgrade 7 to 8 32bit, you can't download or get a 64bit ISO, so you may as well fork the money out for the latest 8.1 install discs that would also include Update 1.

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/18309-windows-8-windows-8-1-iso-download-create.html

You also might consider waiting for the Windows 9 preview coming out at the end of the month. There could possibly be a free final release going that route. One never knows.

Dual booting your 7 with 9 preview is another choice. Final release of 9 is forecasted for Spring 2015. It'd be a shame to pay for 8.1 now with 9 on the horizon.

Good luck with whatever you choose and again welcome. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer T690
    CPU
    Intel Pentium D Dual Core
    Motherboard
    Acer/Intel E946GZ
    Memory
    2GB (max upgrade)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3000 - PCI Express x16
    Sound Card
    Integrated RealTek ALC888 high-definition audio with 7.1 channel audio support
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer AL1917W A LCD
    Screen Resolution
    1440 X 900
    Hard Drives
    350 GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10
    Thumb drives
    PSU
    Standard 250 watt
    Case
    Desktop 7.2" (183mm) W x 17.5" (445mm) L x 14.5"
    Cooling
    Dual case fans + CPU fan
    Keyboard
    Acer Windows PS/2
    Mouse
    Wireless Microsoft Arc
    Internet Speed
    54mbp/s
    Browser
    IE11
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    Office Pro 2013 / Nokia Lumia 1520 Windows Phone 8.1DP GDR1
The 32 bit version of windows is from my old laptop. I'm building a new desktop this week and am trying to figure out the best way to get a 64 bit version of Windows on it.

From my understanding the license that I have for Windows 7 is stuck as 32 bit...

You should be able to download the 64-bit version of the ISO file and use the same activation code... provided you have a valid activation (PID) code, and use the same OS edition. For example - if you have say Windows 7 Home 32-bit, then your activation code will only be for Windows 7 Home edition, whether 32 or 64 bit.

Again, no matter which way you go, you'd be better off with a 64-bit OS, especially where RAM is concerned. Example - say you currently have 8 gig of RAM in your system, but moving to a 32-bit OS, you're effectively throwing away 4 gig of RAM since a 32-bit OS is restricted to just 4 gig of RAM.

So yeah, why would you want to go to a 32-bit OS, when a 64-bit OS is better and more efficient. That's my point.

Good luck.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom built by me
    CPU
    Haswell i7-4770K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte G1 Sniper 5 (BIOS F9)
    Memory
    Corsair Dominator Platinum 32 gig (1866MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Sapphire R9-280 Vapor X
    Sound Card
    Soundblaster ZXR
    Monitor(s) Displays
    NEC PA242W - 24 inch
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1200
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 512gig 850 Pro SSD (OS), Samsung 256gig 840 Pro SSD (photo editing), Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB HD
    PSU
    EVGA Supernova 1000 G2
    Case
    Cooler Master HAF X
    Cooling
    Corsair H100i Closed Loop Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance MX
    Internet Speed
    High Speed
    Browser
    IE11
    Antivirus
    Norton Security
    Other Info
    RAM Speed: 1866MHZ @ 9-10-10-27-2T, 1.5v
edit:

Create installation media for Windows 8.1

Take a look at this post: link
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo G580
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-3230M
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, standard user account
    Other Info
    UEFI firmware (BIOS) embedded Windows 8 product key.
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