QUICK: Windows 7 Installation Disc Question

Lucky Cynic

Hey guys, quick question. My brother just bought a brand new PC and of course it is filled to the brim with crapware. Can I put my Windows 7 installation CD into this computer, do a clean install and then enter in their Windows 7 CD key sticker on the side of their computer box as their Windows 7 Liscense?

IIRC, the CD itself can be shared and used as you damn well please, but you still need unique keys to authenticate Windows. Right?...

AtomBomb

Some branded keys won't work with non-branded discs and vice-versa. For example, you can't install with a Dell CD and not use a Dell key. This is with XP and Vista, I'm not sure if things have changed with 7.

dobi

What version is the key for, and what version is the installation CD? (Home Premium, Professional, etc.) Because they need to be the same. There is a way to create your own pick-which-version-to-install disk, but it's more involved.

Edit: Ah, right, OEM keys need to be used with OEM disks most of the time.

Tofystedeth

Eh just uninstall the crapware.

corky842

Legal download links here. Or, just uninstall the crap. It will probably be faster than getting the drivers and everything else.

Rikushix

A clean install may take hours. Seriously man, if we're talking like HP levels of crapware, go into your control panel, go into Add or Remove Programs and start purging. It'll take you like ten minutes.

Mmmm... Cocks...

Rikushix wrote: »

A clean install may take hours. Seriously man, if we're talking like HP levels of crapware, go into your control panel, go into Add or Remove Programs and start purging. It'll take you like ten minutes.

Hours? 7 is pretty painless to install.
But I still agree. Start with anything that's running that you don't want so you can get your system resources back.

Rikushix

Mmmm... Cocks... wrote: »

Rikushix wrote: »

A clean install may take hours. Seriously man, if we're talking like HP levels of crapware, go into your control panel, go into Add or Remove Programs and start purging. It'll take you like ten minutes.

Hours? 7 is pretty painless to install.
But I still agree. Start with anything that's running that you don't want so you can get your system resources back.

I don't mean a painful installation, I mean the actual amount of time you need to go from no OS to a running, functional computer. I built a perfectly capable computer and between booting from the Windows 7 .iso to idling on my desktop the process was probably an hour and a half. At least.

DeI2anGeD

There are actually two methods of solving your problem that are far less invasive/time consuming.

First up: Just uninstall the crap. Norton Online Backup, Norton Internet Security Trial, Bing Bar, Adobe Super Speed Launcher, HP toolbar, Asus QuicktasklauncherthingiethatslidesouteverytimeIhittheleftofthescreen, Whateverthefuckthat constant dell datasafe reminder leads to, All of it. Will take like an hour to do, but I haven't seen a bloatware software lately that can't be removed with a simple visit to the add/remove panel.

Second Up: Every manufacturer includes software to make your own O/S Recovery disc nowadays (which is why they aren't included in the box anymore). Most will have a seperate applications/driver disc (so just don't use that one). Hit the Win7 start menu and type "recover" and and you'll usually find it. The only one that won't be listed is Dell, which is under "Datasafe". HP's will take damn near an entire evening to burn but at least you won't have to fret over will an iso of a win7 disc work or not with a legal key.

I do this crap -every- day at work.