Is upgrading to windows 7 really that bad?

Question

Im doing some research and keep coming across websites that say that it's best to preform a clean install of windows 7, rather than upgrading.

Problem is...I really dont have any tools or extra hard drives for backing up all my files. I want to just upgrade and keep everything i have but...Does that really cause so many problems?

Answer 1

Upgrading is usually easy and straight forward, however I find that it is best to do a clean install of any version of Windows. It takes more time and effort (installing all updates/patches, drivers and software and software updates) but it is usually well worth it. Often times, your computer will run faster if you clean install.



However, if you don't have any access to any external hard drive, flash drive or blank DVDs, you can take the upgrade route.

Answer 2

You don't want to back-up the entire C: drive, just all your important files and data. If your finances are low, go and get a RW DVD to back-up your data. Depending on how much you have, you might be better to buy a 5-pack.



A clean install of W7 is preferable as official support for XP is no more, and as you don't regularly back-up your data, even using a torrent to get the XP updates is fraught with danger.

Answer 3

You seem to be asking the same question after doing some research on your own. Good, Then here is a possible solution. Buy a 1TB or greater external HD. Then using Windows explorer on your current computer, Highlight the C:\> drive . . then Left click on Copy. . . go to your external HDD, Right click on it, and then left on PASTE . . . Your entire contents of the old HDD will be copied to the external HD. You can then drop your full version of Win7 into the cd-rom drive, format the drive, erasing all old data, and install a full version of Win7 on a blank drive.

Answer 4

If you try to upgrade without backing up anything, something could go wrong and it could erase your whole hard drive.