Dual Boot Windows 7 and Windows 8 - Delete Windows 8

How to Delete "Windows 8" in your Dual Boot with Windows 7 or Vista

information   Information
This tutorial will show you how to delete Windows 8 in your dual boot with Windows 7 or Vista when Windows 7 or Vista was installed first and Windows 8 installed second. This will leave you with only having Windows 7 or Vista installed afterwards.



Part One

Here's How:


1. Start or restart your PC, and boot into Windows 7 or Vista. (see screenshot below)
Step1.jpg


2. In Disk Management, delete the partition that you installed Windows 8 on so that is is now unallocated space. (see screenshots below)
Delete%20Win%208-0001.PNG
Delete%20Win%208-0002.PNG


3. If you like, you could either create a new partition to use with the unallocated space, or extend the Windows 7 or Vista C: drive into the unallocated space to add it back to the C: partition. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: This will vary depending on how you have your hard drive setup though.
Delete%20Win%208-0003.PNG

4. When finished, restart your PC and only have Windows 7 or Vista installed and listed in the Windows Boot Manager screen.

Part Two

When you have your Dual boot on a PC with a uEFI setup.

Delete Win 8-0005.PNG

Delete Win 8-0006.PNG


Follow the steps in Part One.

All done.


 

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Last edited by a moderator:
Probably a dumb question but.. does the unallocated space join back with the main OS partition or do you have to manually do it somehow?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8 Pro.1 w/ media center (Both)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    BYOS (Dekstop)/XPS L502X (Laptop)
    CPU
    i7 3770k (Desktop)/3rd gen i5 (Laptop)
    Motherboard
    ASRock 7zz Extreme 6 (Desktop)/Dell (Laptop)
    Memory
    16 GB (Both)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 6970 (Desktop)/Nvidia GFource 640M (Laptop)
    Sound Card
    N/A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    3/1
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080/1920x1080
    Case
    Cooler Master Storm Enforcer (Desktop)
    Keyboard
    Logitech G110 (Desktop)
    Mouse
    Razer Naga (Desktop)
    Internet Speed
    30 down - 5 up (If TWC decides to give me what I pay for)
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes/MSE
You do it manually.

Rt click the win 7 partition and select Extend.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7/8/ubuntu/Linux Deepin
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4

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 Nonpasaran,

When you delete the Windows 8 VHD or partition from within Windows 7 and restart the computer, you do not need to do that since it is removed automatically when you restart. :)
 

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
OK.

I asked because 1 month ago I was use Window 7 HP and Ultimate as dual boot. Accidentally I deleted the Ultimate partition and after then unable to boot Home pre.
With 3 or 4 startup repair could fix it :)

Thank you Bring
 

My Computer

Thanks for the answer. I was wondering, What are the benefits of installing Windows 8 on a VHD instead of a normal partition? I just installed it on a normal partition.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
Thanks for the answer. I was wondering, What are the benefits of installing Windows 8 on a VHD instead of a normal partition? I just installed it on a normal partition.
Efreak,

Installing Windows 8 on a VHD at boot will run the same as if you installed it on a normal partition. The benefit comes in the fact that since it's a VHD file, you could use that VHD file like you would any other VHD file while still being able to boot from it. For example, mount it in Windows, or use it in a virtual machine. Basically it just becomes more usable, and a lot easier to uninstall from a multi-boot OS setup. :)
 
Last edited:

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. :)
 

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
OK.

I asked because 1 month ago I was use Window 7 HP and Ultimate as dual boot. Accidentally I deleted the Ultimate partition and after then unable to boot Home pre.

And that's why i prefer to delete the boot option from msconfig to finish it off before restarting.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    CP
Nice tutorial, theog. ;)

Though I picked up a small error in step 3. Rather than:

3. If you like you could either create a new partition to use with the unallocated space, or extend the C: drive into the unallocated space to add it back to the C: partition. (see last screenshot above)
NOTE: This will vary depending on how you have your hard drive setup though.

...it says:

3. If you like you, you could either create a new partition to use with the unallocated space, or extend the C: drive into the unallocated space to add it back to the C: partition. (see last screenshot above)
NOTE: This will vary depending on how you have your hard drive setup though.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Windows 8 Consumer Preview x64/Ubuntu 11.04
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Pentium Dual Core E6700 3.2GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS P5G41T-M LX
    Memory
    Strontium 8192MB DDR3 1333Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    msi GeForce N560GTX-M2D1GD5 1GB
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    CHIMEI CMV 221D 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    Seagate 3.5'' 2TB HDD/WD Elements External 1TB HDD
    PSU
    SHAW Viper-1500w Gaming PSU
    Case
    Black eMaxx ATX Mini Tower Case
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 1000
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse 2000
    Internet Speed
    100GB @ 4.76Mbps
OK.

I asked because 1 month ago I was use Window 7 HP and Ultimate as dual boot. Accidentally I deleted the Ultimate partition and after then unable to boot Home pre.

And that's why i prefer to delete the boot option from msconfig to finish it off before restarting.

Hello Nonpasaran,

When you delete the Windows 8 VHD or partition from within Windows 7 and restart the computer, you do not need to do that since it is removed automatically when you restart. :)

Not need, when using Windows 8 Reboot bootloader.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
Shawn,
What procedure do you recommend that one follow to remove Win 8 when the disk doesn't have the 100M recovery partition?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS 1002HA/XP Netbook
    CPU
    ntel Atom N270 @ 1.60GHz Diamondville 45nm Technology
    Motherboard
    ASUSTeK Computer INC. 1002HA (PBGA 437)
    Memory
    2.00 GB Single-Channel DDR2 @ 266MHz (4-4-4-12)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Digital Flat Panel (1024x768 60Hz) (1024x600@60Hz) Mobile Intel(R) 945 Express Chipset Family Mobile
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Digital Flat Panel (1024x768 60Hz) on Mobile Intel 945 Express Chipset Family
    Screen Resolution
    1024x600 pixels
    Hard Drives
    156GB Seagate ST9160310AS ATA Device (SATA)
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    ELAN PS/2 Port Input Device; PixArt Imaging usb HID-compliant mouse
    Internet Speed
    wireless: whatever is there where I am
    Other Info
    Adapters List
    Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
    Atheros AR928X Wireless Network Adapter
    Atheros AR8121/AR8113/AR8114 PCI-E Ethernet Controller
Hello Karl,

If Windows 7 was installed first, then using the method in the tutorial to delete Windows 8 from within Windows 7 works just fine to remove it. The 100MB System Reserved partition is not relevant for this. :)
 

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
Shawn,
Try it without the 100 mb partition.
karl
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS 1002HA/XP Netbook
    CPU
    ntel Atom N270 @ 1.60GHz Diamondville 45nm Technology
    Motherboard
    ASUSTeK Computer INC. 1002HA (PBGA 437)
    Memory
    2.00 GB Single-Channel DDR2 @ 266MHz (4-4-4-12)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Digital Flat Panel (1024x768 60Hz) (1024x600@60Hz) Mobile Intel(R) 945 Express Chipset Family Mobile
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Digital Flat Panel (1024x768 60Hz) on Mobile Intel 945 Express Chipset Family
    Screen Resolution
    1024x600 pixels
    Hard Drives
    156GB Seagate ST9160310AS ATA Device (SATA)
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    ELAN PS/2 Port Input Device; PixArt Imaging usb HID-compliant mouse
    Internet Speed
    wireless: whatever is there where I am
    Other Info
    Adapters List
    Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
    Atheros AR928X Wireless Network Adapter
    Atheros AR8121/AR8113/AR8114 PCI-E Ethernet Controller
Karl,

What results do you get with it? I do not have one that I can quickly setup for this right now to test it with.
 

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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