Reinstalling Windows 7 as a dual boot on an upgraded-to-Win 8.1 machine?

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TXNTHN

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May 31, 2014
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I excitedly upgraded to Windows 8 and then 8.1 on my Thinkpad W510 to take advantage of its touchscreen, and have suffered ever since. The install is buggy, with persistent file ownership and permissions issues. I'd like to get Win 7 back, but keep 8.1 as an option. I just purchased a 2nd drive, an SSD. What's the best way to go about the changes? I read at Microsoft that it's not a good idea to back-install, that is, install Win7 from Win8.1; if that's true, it seems to leave me in a sticky place.

Any and all suggestions appreciated!
 
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stillblue

stillblue

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Nov 30, 2012
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The preferred method is to install 7 then 8. If that's not an option then you could try disconnecting the win 8 drive while you install 7 and then install a third party boot manager to find both versions. Or you could install 7 inside 8 with vmware, depends on what you use it for.
 
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T

TXNTHN

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May 31, 2014
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4,510


Thanks for the info. So, after disconnecting the win8 drive, I would boot from a bootable win 7 installation disk (USB or DVD)?

I'm unfamiliar with running an OS via VM or VHD, but I'll look into it - I'm not knowledgeable about all the machinations inside of windows, and after fighting with 8/8.1 for a few months, I like the idea of being able to simply turn it off and work in trusty Win 7.
 
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