Can I use my Upgrade Disk?

[Guest]

Hello,

Three years ago, I got an HP computer with Vista. Last year, I purchased a Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade disk through my University for a low price (Academic License? I don't know if it is retail or OEM or different. All i got was a disk with a product key). I upgraded the OS to Windows 7 by clean install.

Now I am essentially building a new computer. I have all new parts, except optical drives. I plan on using the hard drive that windows is currently installed on in the build for storage (I will format this drive). However, I want to install Windows 7 on my brand new SSD.

Will this work since i am essentially "moving" windows to a new drive in a new computer? Or is there a way that it will work? I will not have Windows on two hard drives.

Would this be a candidate for the phone activation?

 

[geofelt]

Hello,

Three years ago, I got an HP computer with Vista. Last year, I purchased a Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade disk through my University for a low price (Academic License? I don't know if it is retail or OEM or different. All i got was a disk with a product key). I upgraded the OS to Windows 7 by clean install.

Now I am essentially building a new computer. I have all new parts, except optical drives. I plan on using the hard drive that windows is currently installed on in the build for storage (I will format this drive). However, I want to install Windows 7 on my brand new SSD.

Will this work since i am essentially "moving" windows to a new drive in a new computer? Or is there a way that it will work? I will not have Windows on two hard drives.

Would this be a candidate for the phone activation?

The drive is of no importance, the motherboard is.

Microsoft cares most that 1. your copy of w7 is legitimate, and 2. that it is installed on only one pc. A pc is defined as a motherboard. Upgrade is classified as retail, and unlike oem, can be moved freely. If you are abandoning your old pc and motherboard, you are good in their eyes.

As an upgrade product, the instal may require two passes. the first to install clean, with out activation. The second to upgrade that first install. At activation time you may be OK, or, you may need to do the phone activation. It is not particularly painful. The key question to answer is: will this copy of w7 be used on any other pc, and the answer must be no.