Clean Install with Windows 8 Upgrade

How to Do a Clean Install with Windows 8 Upgrade

This tutorial will show you how to do a clean install with a Windows 8 upgrade copy on an empty drive (HDD/SSD).

Windows 8 System Requirements
Windows 8 works great on the same hardware that powers Windows 7.

Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster

RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)

Hard disk space: 16 GB (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)

Graphics card: MicrosoftDirectX 9 graphics device or higher

Additional requirements to use certain features:

  • To use touch, you need a tablet or a monitor that supports multitouch.
  • To access the Windows Store and to download and run apps, you need an active Internet connection and a screen resolution of at least 1024 x 768.
  • To snap apps, you need a screen resolution of at least 1366 x 768.

Here's How:

1. If you haven't already, you will need to either purchase a Windows 8 Upgrade from a retailer, or use the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant to purchase and download a Windows 8.1 ISO file online from Microsoft to create a bootable USB/DVD with.


2. Do a clean install or clean install with UEFI with your Windows 8 upgrade USB/DVD, and enter your Windows 8 product key number during installation.
NOTE: You can do the clean install using either a local account or Microsoft account. It doesn't matter.

warning   Warning
You will only be able to enter a Windows 8 or Windows 8 Pro product key.

You will not be able to enter a Window Media Center Pack or Windows 8 Pro Pack product key. These are considered to be an upgrade key and can't be used to install Windows 8. These can only be added after Windows 8 is installed, then use Add Features to upgrade to the Window Media Center Pack or Windows 8 Pro Pack.



Product_Key.jpg


3. When the clean install is finished, if you check in System, you will see that your Windows 8 upgrade may not be activated yet.

not_activated.jpg



4. Do step 5 or 6 below for how you would like to activate the Windows 8 upgrade.


5. Activate by Refreshing the Windows 8 Upgrade

A) Refresh Windows 8, and go to step 7 below. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: You would use OPTION TWO at this link. Be sure to keep your Windows 8 installation DVD in the drive or Windows 8 installation USB connected.


PC-settings_Refresh.jpg

6. Activate Windows 8 Upgrade using a BAT File Download

A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the .bat file below, and save it to your desktop.


Activate_Windows_Upgrade_after_Clean_Install.bat


download


B) Right click or press and hold on the downloaded .bat file, and click/tap on Run as administrator.

C) If prompted, click/tap on Run and Yes (UAC).
NOTE: If you like, you can stop getting the Run prompt by unblocking the downloaded .bat file.

D) You will now notice a command prompt quickly open and close while applying the changes to your registry.

E) Click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below)

OK.jpg


E) Restart the computer to apply, and go to step 7 below.


7. When finshed, if you check in System, you will see that your Windows 8 upgrade is now activated with the product key you entered in step 2 above.

Activated.jpg


8. You have just finished doing a clean install with an upgrade copy of Windows 8.


That's it,
Shawn


 

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Last edited by a moderator:
Perfect. :party:
 

My Computer

System One

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    64-bit Windows 10
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    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Hi Brink, newbie here.
So if I'm reading this correctly, I should be able to use the Upgrade assistant to purchase the Windows 8 upgrade on my 64 bit Windows 7 (laptop), create a bootable USB thumbdrive (4gb)....bring that over to my 64 bit Pentium Core 2 Duo with 32-bit XP computer and perform a clean install as you have outlined, and I will have effectively upgraded to a 64 bit Windows 8? If so, that would be great!!

Thanks for your efforts!
Geo
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8 Pro-64 bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 745
    CPU
    Pentium Core 2 Duo 2.67Ghz
    Memory
    8gb
Hello Geo, and welcome to Eight Forums.

Since you would technically be using the XP in this case as your qualifying OS that you are replacing with Windows 8, then yes so long as you do not have the XP product key activated as per the EULA while Windows 8 is activated. :)
 

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
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    Thermaltake Core P3
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    Corsair Hydro H115i
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    Logitech wireless K800
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    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
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    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 Brink. This was a company computer with an xp pro sp2 volume license...and I'm looking to FINALLY get rid a very buggy OS (issues with upgrading from the pre-installed IE 6..<so I use FF now>)....and issues when trying to install SP3. So I've had a 64 bit machine (Core 2 Duo) for many years with a slightly wounded (IMO) 32 bit OS....and this will become my 10 year old son's gaming computer! (And Daddy will get his own, new computer soon!!!! :) )
So I'm definitely looking forward to it. It also will give me the "push" to load her up with the max ram (8gb) as opposed to the 4gb she has now....So my son should have a better experience than now.

Thanks again.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8 Pro-64 bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 745
    CPU
    Pentium Core 2 Duo 2.67Ghz
    Memory
    8gb
You're most welcome Geo. :)
 

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
You're most welcome Geo. :)


One last question, would it be ok to run the Win8 Upgrade assistant ONLY (not purchase) on my "machine to be upgraded ie my XP machine" (Optiplex 745) just to have it check the hardware for compatibility before I use my bootable USB to clean install the Upgrade (obtained from my laptop)? The 745 only has driver support up to Vista....and I haven't read/seen any 745's that have Win8. Thoughts??
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8 Pro-64 bit
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    Dell Optiplex 745
    CPU
    Pentium Core 2 Duo 2.67Ghz
    Memory
    8gb

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
Just finished installing and found out my Windows 8 is already activated even if I did a clean install. It did ask me for my product key during installation.

Me too, just clean installed using Upgrade (x86 to x64 Migration) and it said in System Properties, "Windows is activated"
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
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    Lenovo Y520
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    Intel Core i5 7300HQ
    Motherboard
    OEM Lenovo
    Memory
    4GB DDR4-2400
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050
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    Realtek HD
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    1 (2)
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
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    100 Mbps
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    PC:

    AMD Athlon X4 760K
    8GB DDR3-1866
    AMD Radeon RX 460
    Seagate 500 GB 7200 RPM
Hello Jim,

Double check to make sure that you have an internet connection, and that you are entering the correct product key. It's not hard to make a mistake with similar characters like o 0, G 6, etc...

Hope this helps for now, :)
Shawn

I tried this several times. Don't know what I can do beyond buying another license.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY 15t-j100 Quad Edition CTO Notebook PC
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4700MQ CPU @2.40GHz
    Memory
    16 GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB Toshiba Hybrid Drive
Hello Jim,

Do you still have the email that Microsoft sent with your product key number to verify that you are using the correct one?
 

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
Hello Brink,
I think it is because the W8 upgrade is not able to access my internet. I am installing from a USB key onto a partition I created. The last time I did this successfully, I had to load the wifi network software post-install. I tried to install from desktop, and it accepted my key (connected to the internet through W7 presently on that partition) but it would not allow my to install to the empty partition from the desktop.

Thanks for any help with this.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY 15t-j100 Quad Edition CTO Notebook PC
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4700MQ CPU @2.40GHz
    Memory
    16 GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB Toshiba Hybrid Drive
I used the tutorial for dual booting. I was able to successfully input my product key which worked but then got an error that setup could not find the files.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY 15t-j100 Quad Edition CTO Notebook PC
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4700MQ CPU @2.40GHz
    Memory
    16 GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB Toshiba Hybrid Drive
Jim,

Did you use step 6 in the dual boot tutorial?

At what point and step did it tell you that setup could not find the files?
 

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
I did step 6. All I did was double click the thumb drive in "my computer" and navigate to "sources/setup".

It is after I accept the terms and click next that I get the error. I have attached a screen cap of it.install.PNG
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY 15t-j100 Quad Edition CTO Notebook PC
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4700MQ CPU @2.40GHz
    Memory
    16 GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB Toshiba Hybrid Drive
Is connecting the laptop via ethernet LAN to get an internet connection an available option for you to hopefully do the dual boot installation at boot?

If not, then you might see if using the extracted ISO option may work better.
 

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
wired LAN will most likely not be an option. I'm not sure it would matter anyway. I had to reinstall my LAN and wifi drivers when I upgraded the last that. That's the odd part. I was able to upgrade no problem the first time. I am going to try to redownload the iso and attempt it again.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY 15t-j100 Quad Edition CTO Notebook PC
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4700MQ CPU @2.40GHz
    Memory
    16 GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB Toshiba Hybrid Drive
Geo,

Sure it's fine, and also recommended to. You would just stop at step 6 instead of continuing in the tutorial below for it. :)

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/11885-windows-8-upgrade-assistant-download-run.html
Back from a mini vacation so haven't done anything yet, but was thinking, I only have SP2 on the computer I'm planning on clean installing. I know it won't matter what the OS is for that install (from bootable USB) but when running the Upgrade Assistant (through step 6 in order to check hardware compatibility) do I need to first upgrade to SP3? I would think the Assistant wouldn't even check the hardware once it saw the SP2 (which as I understand it, isn't a qualifying OS....am I wrong?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-8 Pro-64 bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 745
    CPU
    Pentium Core 2 Duo 2.67Ghz
    Memory
    8gb
Hello Geo,

I hope you had a good vacation. :)

The Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant will still run and check your XP SP2, but it may tell you to install SP3 first before letting you purchase or download Windows 8.
 

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
Just found this page from a Google. I registered to say thanks (and ask a question below) as I think you may have saved me a lot of hassle. I've had Windows 8 on my PC pretty much since release day of the pro version but my hard disk failed today meaning I'm going to have to get a new one and install Windows 8 all over again. Because my XP disk was only SP2 I was dreading having to install that and then Win 8 again.

Because I already upgraded from XP to Windows 8 I had a Windows 8 ISO DVD. (It's actually the 64-bit version, I ran the downloader on my laptop which had Windows 7 so I could get the 64-bit version.)

I've got one question though, will the Windows 8 ISO install when it presents me with the various options allow me to make sure the drive is formatted to NTFS? I'm intending to create a partition for just Windows and then one for all my other data and programs. Obviously I need NTFS for Steam games etc.

Any help would be great thanks.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
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