Solved Windows 8 to Windows 8.1 Problem

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thnorris13

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I bought a new Dell laptop earlier in the year with Windows 8. I didn't like Windows 8 at that time and re-installed my copy of Windows 7 Pro I had. Now I am trying Windows 8.1 Preview and have decided that when the Update comes out in October that I may want to go to Windows 8.1. My question is: Will I be able to update the Windows 8.1 Preview to Windows 8.1 Pro without any trouble? I want to keep Windows 7 running on another partition but have Windows 8.1 on another in a dual boot situation. If I re-formatted and overwrote Win 8 with Win 7 will I have to buy a new product key to activate it since the product key was embedded in the BIOS of Win 8?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7/Win 8
Hello thnorris, and welcome to Eight Forums.

No. You will not need to purchase a new Windows 8 or 8.1 product key. Since your Dell laptop came preinstalled with Windows 8, it's product key is embedded in the UEFI/BIOS firmware chip, and was entered automatically when you installed Windows 8.1. You should be able to update to the 8.1 RTM (final) the same way but you will only be able to keep your personal files.

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/27188-windows-8-1-preview-download-install.html

warning   Warning
If upgrading from Windows 8.1 Preview/Windows RT 8.1 Preview to Windows 8.1 final/Windows 8.1 RT final (when released October 18th 2013), you will "Keep personal files only", but will lose your settings and have to reinstall all of your apps.



Hope this help,
Shawn
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Thanks, Shawn. That helps. I was afraid that by doing the clean install I lost the key. When I do go to the Dell support site and run the driver update utility it does list updates for Win 8 and Win 7 including BIOS updates for Win 8. Thanks again.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7/Win 8
You're most welcome. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
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