Solved Is there such a thing as an "In Place Upgrade" from W7 to W8.1?

Brink,

I followed your suggestion and it worked.
Thank you again!
Windows 8 stopped doing whatever it was doing: "Restarting", and I was back at the Desktop.
Because I have the original Windows 7 hard drive that I cloned from I chose to cleanup the new drive.
I ran Cleanup and deleted whatever was offered by both screens to include the old Windows 7 files.
I then ran a Defrag / Organize and am now trying to find a thread to direct me to the 'free' Windows 8.1 Upgrade.
There are many threads that I have read but they are way too involved for my level of understanding.
At the Novice Level, I need a Thread that tells me to click on a Site which immediately begins the download.
I have also tried searching with Google for topics as such but again, way too much information to get lost in.
If you can direct me to an easy Download Site, I would be very grateful.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
I am trying to become familiar with the W8 desktop.
So far, mine appears to be spread over a very wide screen.
I need to scroll to the right a full screen length to read the entire Desktop.
The old W7 Start menu was great and a single screen Desktop easy to use.
I will keep you posted on my progress.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
Brink,
I am entering this Post from my Windows-8.1 PC!
Thank you for your help / encouragement.
Now I need to 'tweak" 8.1 to my preferences.
Best regards,
Mike Lynch
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
Good to see one more active Windows 8x user. I was worried when Brink was initially starting to point you in that Windows 10 direction. I'm glad you perservered and stayed with Windows 8.1
After you install "Classic Shell", you basically have a Windows 7-like experience.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
Where do I find Classic Shell?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
Brink,
I am entering this Post from my Windows-8.1 PC!
Thank you for your help / encouragement.
Now I need to 'tweak" 8.1 to my preferences.
Best regards,
Mike Lynch

Great news Miike. :party:
 

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

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64 Professional
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP xw8600 Workstation
    CPU
    Two Intel Xeon Core2 Quad 3.2 GHz Processors
    Motherboard
    Proprietary
    Memory
    16 GB DDR2 800 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia Quadro FX 3800 PCI-E
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" 4x3 Flat Screen
    Screen Resolution
    1600x1200
    Hard Drives
    Two Seagate Cheetah 300 GB SAS Disks
    PSU
    Proprietary
    Case
    HP xw8600 Workstation Case
    Cooling
    Two CPU Fans and a Larger Case Fan
    Keyboard
    PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    7 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox ESR 102
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Two LSI 3000 SAS Adapters
It's installed now, Thank you!
Any other 'tweaks' that you believe would help me?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
My two cents:
1) If you have a problem with automatic update, install manually KB3138615 from Microsoft (x86 or x64 version for your system).
2) Restore the Windows 7 - style boot menu (called by F8 button at start). Run command prompt as Administrator, then input:
Code:
BCDEdit /SET "{Current}" BootMenuPolicy Legacy
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro; Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i7-12700K (Alder Lake)
    Motherboard
    Asus PRIME Z690-M Plus D4
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus GeForce 1050 Ti, 4 GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Philips 235PQ
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 (FHD)
    Hard Drives
    Windows 8.1: Samsung SSD 980 PRO, 500 GB (M.2)
    Windows 11: Samsung SSD 870 EVO, 500 GB (SATA)
    PSU
    Platimax D.F. 1050 W (80 Plus Platinum)
    Browser
    Google Chrome
Thanks again to everyone for all the feedback / help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-7 64-Bit Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elite 8300 CMT
    CPU
    3.40 gigahertz Intel Core i7-3770
    Motherboard
    Whatever HP uses
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    On mother board
    Sound Card
    On mother board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    WD Black 6TB
    PSU
    Whatever HP uses
    Case
    Whatever HP uses
    Cooling
    Whatever HP uses
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Spectrum, varies up to 100MB
    Browser
    IE-11 and MS Edge
    Antivirus
    MSE + WebRoot
    Other Info
    Nothing exotic, essentially just generic HP PC
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