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Questions about Windows 8 Release Preview

Started by richierein , Jun 22 2012 05:02 PM

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14 replies to this topic

#1 richierein

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 05:02 PM

I started downloading Windows 8 Release Preview but killed it when I read some of the documentation which is quite ambiguous. This leaves me with a few questions.

1. Does the Windows 8 Release Preview installation completely replace Windows 7?

2. Can the Windows 8 Release Preview be installed and run from a flash drive without affecting the existing Windows 7?

3. Can Windows 8 Release Preview be installed on an existing Windows XP system or a blank drive?

4. How can I download the Windows 8 Release Preview .iso to a flash drive without touching my existing Windows 7 system?

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#2 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 07:55 PM

Hi richierein

To answer your questions:

1. Yes. It keeps your documents and settings, but upgrades Windows 7 to Windows 8.

2. I'm not sure on the Preview Release, but I think the final release has been reported that it will allow booting from flash drives.

3. Yes to all, but being installed on existing xp. You will have to erase xp completely to install Windows 8 as there is no upgrade possibility due to xp being several releases outdated.

I recommend installing VirtualBox to test it in a virtual machine. You can also download the iso directly here. The product key can be found at the officialMicrosoft FAQ or for convenience TK8TP-9JN6P-7X7WW-RFFTV-B7QPF.

If you have any problems installing it let me know.

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#3 richierein

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 08:29 PM

Hi DarkSnake-Kobra,

I plan to use one of my PCs for the Windows 8 Release Preview and will erase the C: drive first. It looks like the .iso is only 2.5gb. How is this possible?

If, however, I use Windows 8 Release Preview within a VirtualBox, will I be able to run Windows 8 as a window within Windows 7 from a flash drive without affecting my Windows 7 system?

Richie

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#4 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 09:39 PM

That's correct. Mine is also about that size. The reason is the 32 bit version is normally for older computers or computers running less then 4GB ram and a less powerful processor so it doesn't need as much requirements. 64 bit pc's can hold a lot more ram and have much more power so the coding in a 64 bit program/os will be much larger due to the increased complexity. Also the way Microsoft works when releasing new Windows they take an existing one and build upon it which means removing and adding code or removing somethings all together which can drastically reduce the file size or increase it.

You can run it within a VirtualBox window, but as far as I know no flash drive version is present. I did a quick google search and it seems the only thing you can do is install it from a flash drive. Meaning you can't have Windows installed on a flash drive as if it were a hard drive. As far as I know there is no way to do this.

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#5 richierein

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 10:51 PM

Hi DarkSnake-Kobra,

If I copy the .iso to my flash drive, how do I burn it to a blank drive? I don't think IMGBURN has a portable version.

Richie

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#6 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 22 June 2012 - 11:06 PM

Hi richierein

You can burn it to a dvd by right clicking the iso file and selecting "Burn disk image". Here's a good guide on zdnet on how to install from your flash drive.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/hardware/how-to-create-a-bootable-usb-flash-drive-containing-the-windows-8-consumer-preview/18666

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#7 richierein

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Posted 23 June 2012 - 10:34 AM

Hi DarkSnake-Kobra,

You said I could install the Windows 8 Release Preview om another PC as long as the C: drive was blank. I found this comment in one of your links.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CAN I USE MY NEWLY CREATED USB DRIVE TO INSTALL WINDOWS 7 ON SOMEONE ELSE'S COMPUTER?

No. The Windows 7 ISO file on the USB flash drive is only intended to be used to install Windows 7 on the licensed user’s own computer.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please clarify.

Richie

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#8 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 23 June 2012 - 11:17 AM

That's not correct. Here's the official Microsoft page that says you can use Windows XP Service Pack 2 and up.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Windows XP SP2, Windows Vista, or Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit)

Pentium 233-megahertz (MHz) processor or faster (300 MHz is recommended)

50MB of free space on your hard drive

DVD-R drive or 4GB removable USB flash drive

FOR WINDOWS XP USERS

The following applications must be installed prior to installing the tool:

Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 must be installed. It can be downloaded here.
Microsoft Image Mastering API v2 must be installed. It can be downloaded here.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/html/pbPage.Help_Win7_usbdvd_dwnTool

Edited by DarkSnake-Kobra, 23 June 2012 - 11:17 AM.

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#9 richierein

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Posted 23 June 2012 - 12:10 PM

Hi DarkSnake-Kobra,

Now I'm really confused.

Questions:

1. Does the .iso file have to be the only file on the flash drive?

2. First I will format the C: drive so that it is blank. Right?

3. What do I do with the Microsoft .NET Framework file and the Microsoft Image Mastering API file? Do I copy them to the blank drive before executing the Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool?

This doesn't seem to be a procedure for a novice user.

Richie

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#10 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 23 June 2012 - 12:30 PM

Hi richierein,

1. You can't have anything on the flash drive. Make sure to back anything on it that you want first before proceeding as the tool will wipe it and make it so you can boot from it.

2. No. The usb tool will do that for you.

3. That is only if you are going to be doing the preparation on the XP computer. You will need to install both those on the xp systems if you are using that to prepare the flash drive.

Yes, but it's pretty simple once you get the hang on of it.

I'm not familiar with that tool, but you can download the Universal USB Installer.

Once you do that run it and select the Windows 8 Installer at the bottom of the drop down list.

Select your Windows 8 iso file and mark down the drive letter of the flash drive you are using. Make sure to back up everything first!

Select your flash drive from the list and click to format it. It will warn you that you are going to format it so make sure to back it up if you have not by then as it's your last chance!

Then click create and you should be able to boot from it and install Windows 8 on your computer.

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#11 Alvas Rawuther

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Posted 27 June 2012 - 01:55 PM

I don't know if I'm interfering here. But think that I may have some really useful information which DarkSnake-Kobra may have missed.

I started downloading Windows 8 Release Preview but killed it when I read some of the documentation which is quite ambiguous. This leaves me with a few questions.

1. Does the Windows 8 Release Preview installation completely replace Windows 7?

2. Can the Windows 8 Release Preview be installed and run from a flash drive without affecting the existing Windows 7?

3. Can Windows 8 Release Preview be installed on an existing Windows XP system or a blank drive?

4. How can I download the Windows 8 Release Preview .iso to a flash drive without touching my existing Windows 7 system?

I'll try to answer all of your questions nicely.

Ans.1] No, it doesn't need to. You can install it alongside Windows 7 and hence dual-boot both together. That way your Windows 7 installation stays intact. There's an awesome guide at HTG to do just that.

Ans.2] Yes but you'll need a USB Drive with a capacity of at least 16 GB, if you are smart enough(or know enough) you can just follow the above guide and switch the VHD with the USB Drive. If you don't understand what I meant, just follow this guide, it's for the consumer preview version but it'll work, since it makes no difference in the steps at all. Also formatting the USB as NTFS would be better.

Ans.3] It can be installed over a Windows XP installation and thus overwriting it, or you can install it alongside Windows XP(dual-boot) on a blank drive.

Ans.4] Just download the ISO from here. Then download Universal USB Installer and then using it you can install Windows 8 from your USB Disk. It'll handle all the work that is required for making the USB bootable and will give you a ready-to-use USB Installation Disk.

I hope that I helped and answered all of your questions in a simple and concise manner. If there's anything else you need to know or are confused about, just ask mate. Good luck.

Edited by Alvas Rawuther, 27 June 2012 - 02:07 PM.

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#12 DarkSnake-Kobra

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Posted 27 June 2012 - 04:44 PM

Thanks for the corrections Alvas.

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#13 Alvas Rawuther

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Posted 28 June 2012 - 12:18 AM

Thanks for the corrections Alvas.

You are welcome. Thought that I had something helpful to add and hence I did.

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#14 richierein

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Posted 28 June 2012 - 07:18 AM

Thank you. I think my first attempt will be to backup one of my Windows XP systems and overwrite it. I appreciate your efforts in answering my questions.

Richard Rein

Edited by richierein, 28 June 2012 - 07:19 AM.