Install any version of Windows using any Windows disc you can find. Reader Chris needs to reinstall Windows 7 Home Basic on his laptop. Just one problem: he lost his recovery discs. A more common problem is when you need to reinstall Windows and you never had recovery discs to begin with. Few manufacturers provide them anymore, and many new PCs don't have optical drives even if they did. Thankfully, there's a way around this. All you need is a Windows ISO file (basically the entire Windows operating system in a single container) and the free Ei. Removal Utility. The latter deletes a key file inside the former, thus allowing you to install any version of Windows. Let me explain that a bit further. Windows 7 and 8 installation discs are version- specific; they're designed to match up with your product key. That's why you can't use, say, a Windows 7 Home Premium product key to install Windows 7 Professional, even if you have a disc for the latter. How to install Windows 10 from USB drive guide might also interest you. Requirements: USB Flash Drive (Minimum 4GB) Windows 7 or Windows 8 installation files. Google’s confectionery legacy of Android operating systems has enough digital sugar to make you nauseous. It all started in 2009 with Android 1.5 Cupcake and now. When you install a hardware or plug in a new device Windows 7 / Vista automatically selects the best driver. But sometimes you get a CD with your device that includes. See more like this Windows 8 8.1 32 Bit 64 Bit System Restore Install Recovery Repair Reinstall DVD. Likewise, even if Chris somehow laid hands on a Windows 7 Home Premium disc, his Home Basic license key wouldn't work. That's where Ei. cfg Removal Utility comes in: It effectively creates a . When it's done doing its thing, use the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool to put that tweaked ISO on a flash drive. Now, just boot from that flash drive and choose the version of Windows you want to install. Enter your license key and you're good to go. In Chris' case, that's Windows 7 Home Basic.)Can't find an install disc or don't have an optical drive? Visit Microsoft's Software Recovery Center for official Windows 7 ISO downloads, or Microsoft's installation media page for Windows 8. Contributing Editor Rick Broida writes about business and consumer technology. Ask for help with your PC hassles at hasslefree@pcworld.
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