Legal Download from DigitalRiver: Windows 7 SP1, 13 languages

A checksum is specific to a file, it is determined by the algorithm used and you don't have to cross check with a database. You have to know what the checksum for the file is, use a program that allows you to calculate the checksum and compare the two. Modifying the file in any way will result in a different checksum, but that doesn't mean that the file is broken, only that it is different from the original. The modifications you made means that the checksum is different, but not that the file is broken.

Looking at Josea's link, the program he suggested either comes with a database of checksums, or you have to create your own.

 

Hi tijo,

thanks for your response.

I have just taken the time to check on some of the programs in the link from josea as well as the online -SHA1 and MD5 calculators. However, the programs either didn't work at all, download links were down or the programs were limited in their use, forcing one to purchase licenses for bigger files etc.

I then proceeded to trying out the online tools. However the two first weren't working at all and just returned 404 errors. The third on the list returned the MD5 value very fast. The problem here is only that since I am not familiar with these values and how to use them this might as well have been returned in Chinese.

What do I do with the returned MD5 value ie.? How do I get a comparison against some original value of the file in question? I wouldn't even know how to build a database for the comparison as you suggested even if I wanted to since I got no clue as to how.

Could you or somebody give some hints here or a sort of manual on how to do all of the above?

Thanks in advance.

 

You have a list of the SAH1 checksums for some of the isos here: http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1755258.

I have the iso for home premium and pro english x64 that I know are working, so I could always check their checksums as well. If you don't mind using the command line, the sysinternals suite sigcheck utility can show you the checksums: Sysinternals Suite. You can also use this tool: http://download.cnet.com/MD5-SHA-Checksum-Utility/3000-2092_4-10911445.html.

 

The SHA1 values are found in the first link in the first post.

I prefer HashCheck.

 

Can't believe I missed that link, but I did.

 

Hi to both of you,

and thanks once again for helping.

I tried the tool that you recommended. It says - also with the altered file without ei.cfg - that it is a match in green color. This I assume is enough to make sure the file integrity is okay = no need for the MD5 comparison.

However I now have a 16 GB USB stick that I tried to use instead of the DVDs. I tried both the tool from Microsoft as well as unetbootin. They both failed to work as the USB stick won't boot the altered ISO file. However the techinician that tried to use the USB stick in the shop also had the same outcome and problem until he found a genuine Windows 7 DVD that did boot into the session and also was able to proceed with the install had he chosen to do so.

To make sure that it wasn't due to a "human error" I also found a small program called ISO to USB that equally failed to install the file onto the USB stick nor was it bootable.

I am now pretty convinced that what that techinician said about the lack of drivers in the Windows 7 file that can be downloaded must have been the core of the problem. I can't see why else the burned DVD wouldn't continue and report driver problems. If you keep in mind that it still can boot while the USB stick can't it seems pretty odd there should be another explanation although that can't be ruled out completely.

Anyhow I am left with the same problem. I can't even access the BIOS and Setup with F2 and F10 as I could before on this computer. Would it help if I would reset the CMOS by removing the battery for a while and putting it back in again? Could the BIOS be accessed then? Is it similar to the procedure on a desktop pc?

One other question..., the following link is for the download of the Danish version on the site that this thread links to.

MSDN Subscriber Downloads

I need Windows 7 Home Premium in that language but here on the site - in order to get the Home Premium version - one has to remove the ei.cfg file first which in turn means that the file is altered and thus can create problems with Microsoft's tool etc. However as can be seen from the list in the above link there is already a version called "Windows 7 Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (x64) - DVD (Danish)" which is exactly what is needed without having to alter this version at all.

Now my question is if I would download and burn this ISO file to the last DVD there should be a big possibility that it would work as long as this actually is a genuine Windows file without alterations and the website including downloads actually an official Microsoft website.

So does anyone know if website is and the files are?

 

If you're using a USB 2.0 connectior when trying to install and you get the message about missing drivers you have to change connector, it's all in post #1. I suggest you read it before you try it out.

You can remove the ei.cfg file and still use the MS tool.

I just used the ei removal tool and then copied an untouched ISO to my USB drive using the MS tool, no problems whatsoever.
The MS tool usually complains if you have altered install.wim for instance, but not ei.cfg.

Just go ahead and remove the ei.cfg from Danish W7 Professional and burn the DVD, unless you can get a hold av a working USB drive.

 

HI Mats,

and thanks for your input.

I did read the post and are well aware of the need to change the ports (I wasn't born yesterday ). However there are two USB ports on the laptop in question. I did this about 5-10 times without any success.

In regards to the issue with the Microsoft tool and using an altered ISO file it equally didn't work as also mentioned in my last post. In fact I couldn't even select the ISO file when using the tool as there was some sort of error message.

What's also to be stressed here is that I need a bootable USB stick (this one isn't an external USB drive it's just a 16 GB USB stick) and that wasn't possible since the boot process does not start from the USB stick. I am not aware of what install.wim is or what it's used for or how it's altered but I reckon it has something to do with the install process and starting it up. I didn't touch this file but yet the outcome was as explained above.

My questions in the last post about the link I posted and the other issues still remain. I also assume that the last line in your last post was a misunderstanding. If downloading a Windows 7 Home Premium x64 from the link added in my last post I would assume - if this is a genuine and non-altered file and the site a legit Microsoft download website - that there won't be no need for removal of the ei.cfg file since the Windows and language version are a match.

I just need an answer to this question.

Do you or anybody know this?

Also there is still the question if resetting the CMOS would help getting into the setup and BIOS that now cannot be accessed. Please keep in mind that the HDD in this laptop was broke and has been replaced with a complete brand new drive which does not hold any information or drive letter.

Thanks again for helping.

EDIT: Just tried to download from the link I was talking about but there is the need of a registration of some sort which I did. However there hasn't been any mail with a subscriber ID. Does anyone here know if this is free for all in or is there a need to be registered as a Microsoft user of some sort?

 

I don't follow you at all. I formatted my USB memory just to check that removing ei.cfg doesn't affect the copying process of the MS tool. Your issues have nothing to do with the ei file.

Besides, if you still don't believe me you can always use an untouched Prefessional ISO, copy it to the USB memory using the MS tool, and then remove ei.cfg in Explorer afterwards.

If you can't enter BIOS then you should try to reset.

Some questions:

What was the error message when you selected ISO?

Have you tried to remove ei.cfg and burn a DVD?

Why do you still want a Home Premium ISO? I have told you that removing ei.cfg doesn't affect using the MS tool. You need a subsription to download from MSDN, see here.

Have you ever booted from your USB memory successfully before? ( It's not a U3 drive for instance?).

 

Hi Mats,

and thanks for your reply.

I would like to apologize for the late response. I wasn't being rude rather than having a load of things in my life that needed a lot of attention, thus this late answer.

It's not a question of whether or not I believe you. It's just that all the "manual" that is to be found in the beginning of this thread didn't work for me in the way I hoped it would.

First of all I can tell you that I succeeded in making the laptop in question work again and that Windows 7 runs perfectly well.

Secondly I will try to explain how this happened and then answer your questions as good as I can.

Before I posted here and before I found out that the laptop's own hard drive was broke, I assumed that some recovery CD's would do the job. However since the owner of the laptop didn't have those CD's and never made some in the first three month of owning her Toshiba laptop when she still could, I ordered some from Toshiba's service center in Germany for the exact same model providing all the registration, serial no. of the laptop etc.

When those CD's didn't work on arrival I finally got the suspicion which lead me to the final conclusion that the drive was broken altogether.

After establishing this fact as well as buying and installing a new hard drive I ran into the problems with the installation from both the USB stick and the burned Windows 7 ISO file from this forum that I also described in earlier posts. After my latest post and while awaiting some answer I contacted the local Toshiba support, described the problem and was told that I could actually use the recovery CD's we had already ordered. To my surprise not only to recover but also to install Windows 7 onto the blank drive. Thus the laptop now works fine again running the relevant Windows 7 version I was after.


Now to your questions...

What was the error message when you selected ISO?

Honestly speaking I don't remember exactly. I only remember that there was an error of some kind and that the Microsoft tool for instance didn't accept the altered file after removal of ei.cfg which was also described in your "manual" as a possible issue. None of the tools I mentioned in my earlier posts were successful in creating the desired boot sequence from the USB stick.


Have you tried to remove ei.cfg and burn a DVD?

Yes. As mentioned earlier I burned your Windows 7 ISO to a DVD after removing the ei.cfg with the tool in your "manual". This DVD was the one that would initiate the Windows 7 install but failed with the pop-up complaining about the lack of drivers.


Why do you still want a Home Premium ISO? I have told you that removing ei.cfg doesn't affect using the MS tool. You need a subscription to download from MSDN, see here.

I edited my post shortly after I wrote it. I don't know if you noticed it but I am aware of the subscription issue on that site. I wasn't so before posting though. Although I tried the registry process on the site I never got the mail (but that's just Microsoft in a nutshell I guess). The reason that I wanted to download this particular file is that it was exactly what I needed and in the language requested. My hope was that if it would have been possible to download this file (which wasn't the case) it might have helped about the error message from the Microsoft ISO to USB tool since there would have been no need for alteration of the ISO with the ei.cfg removal tool.


Have you ever booted from your USB memory successfully before? (It's not a U3 drive for instance?)

As mentioned before I borrowed the USB stick from the owner of the laptop. It's a SanDisk 16GB USB stick and although I tried all tools and methods at my disposal I wasn't able to create a bootable USB stick with the ISO file. I got no idea if it was a U3 stick. I myself own a no name 1GB USB stick that I occasionally used for various purposes including once or twice as a bootable USB stick but not in connection with complex tasks such as this one. In regards to the SanDisk USB stick I am unsure as to whether or not the problem was the USB stick itself or the programs failing since I didn't check this on another computer. Also I don't believe that the failure of booting was due to the BIOS needing an update since the BIOS could be accessed just fine and worked without problems when the broken hard drive was still inside the laptop (only the hard drive that was broke showed up as blank back then). The BIOS issue first occurred after the replacement of the hard drive. I rather tend to believe that it was due to some "Toshiba gizmo" or some lousy design/software from the company. After the newly install of Windows 7 I can inform you that the BIOS still can't be accessed by means of F2, F10, backspace, escape or whatever options there are. No idea as to why other than the before mentioned reasons.

Anyhow the laptop and Windows 7 now work fine once again and without any issues.

I just wanted to get back to everybody and thank them for their time and help. Once again my apologies for the late response.

I shall keep that Windows 7 DVD close though. It might come in handy in the future. ;-)

Thanks for a great thread!

 

Here are three U3 drives from Sandisk, mine is in the middle.
I bought it years ago, and if I recall correctly, the U3 functionality won't go away even after formatting.
I couldn't boot mine until U3 was gone.
But then again, if you can't enter BIOS or a boot menu it doesn't matter...

 

Just to avoid any confusion for other readers: Removing ei.cfg will not stop you from using the Microsoft USB/DVD tool.

This is what ei.cfg looks like:

Code:

[EditionID]
Professional
[Channel]
Retail
[VL]
0

- All retail ISOs are capable of installing any edition, the only thing stopping you is the second line above, it causes the installation to pick Professional edition automatically.

- Replace the line with Ultimate or some other edition and you'll end up with that being installed instead.

- Remove the two first lines, or delete the file and you will be able to choose which edition you want when installation starts.


For instance, the English 32-bit versions of Home Premium and Ultimate are both 2564476928 byte, but since the second line in ei.cfg differs, the two aren't identical.

 

Yes that's true. If BIOS doesn't work/can't be accessed it seems not so important if you got a bootable USB stick.

Actually the one I borrowed was having the same "slider option" as the two on the right side on that website you linked to. I can see that both are listed as U3 which - if I remember correctly - are holding their own local software on the drive that auto-runs each time they are inserted. I assume that is what you meant and since the USB stick I borrowed probably had the same U3 functionality that could have been the issue here. I don't know though if the technician in the shop had the same type of USB stick but after all that's been said I assume it was a U3 stick, too.

Might be worth mentioning here for other readers that this too can make the whole process fail that is described in the start of the thread.

By the way..., as a little bonus info I can inform you that I mentioned these issues yesterday evening to an acquaintance who actually confirmed that Toshiba does have some sort of mechanism for their laptops in place that somehow prevents the acceptance of altered Windows installations etc. So if anybody considers buying a new laptop, stay away from Toshiba and Dell who he also singled out as having the same protection.

 

great thread, thanx for the links Mats! but i have a small problem, forgive me if this was covered earlier:

it burned to a DVD and installed quick without a problem. this Fujitsu Tablet PC i bought used and it had Win7 Pro 32bit. i Dban'ed the HD and installed the Pro 64bit from your link. the only problem is my product key on the bottom of my Fujitsu isn't working. any ideas what i might do? i checked it and re-typed it many times. could it be because the key isn't for SP1?? if so, how do i proceed? i am kind of a noob at all of this.

i could just buy a working disc from Fujitsu for $15 but i don't want to if i don't have to

tx for any assistance!

 

You could try to authenticate with MS via telephone.

 

tx Bronsky!!!


great info, i will call MS tomorrow...just gotta find the right #.


tx again!! --- art.

 

Phonenumber should be shown on the activation window where it says online activation fails, or there was a list to choose your location and then it was shown. It has been a while since I've had to use it

 

I'm in the process of retrograding a new HP Envy 15 (AMD) from Win8 to Win7 (clean install), and I've run into a few issues.

1. Is there any version of ABR (or similary) that will create a certificate file of my Win8 key? (I assume I can't use this key for Win7--please correct me if I'm wrong--but I want to save it with my Win8 recovery disks for backup purposes.)

2. I successfully created a bootable Win7 installation on 4Gb USB thumb drive and removed the ei.cfg file (manually) from the /sources directory. I am able to boot to the Win7 install without difficulty, but I keep getting an error when I start the install:

"A required CD/DVD device driver is missing." blah-blah-blah.

I can't get past that error message in any way that I've found. I'm not even using a CD/DVD device, nor is one installed. (This laptop has only an external USB CD/DVD burner, which isn't currently connected.) I've tried moving the USB thumb drive to every other port, to no avail. Apparently NONE of the four USB ports on this machine are USB 2.0.

What else can I try? Would disabling CD/DVD boot completely in the BIOS help? (Boot order is currently set at USB, then CD/DVD, then internal hard drive.) Can I copy the SWSetup folder from another Win7 machine (HP Pavilion, but somewhat older model) to make this thing happy? Would it work to direct it to the copy of the Win8 SWSetup folder (on USB thumb drive)? (I have all of the needed Win7 drivers for this machine, but they are in .exe format, and the install doesn't see them.)

3. If I can't (as I presume) use my Win8 key for the retrograde (this is not Win8 Pro, which is apparently required for downgrade rights), I have a key for a now-dead laptop that came with WinVista and a Win7 upgrade. (I have the original install disks for both WinVista and Win7 Upgrade, but they're for 32bit.) Is there any reason I can't use that key? I'm assuming that I will have to do the "call M$" thing to activate, correct?

4. I also have two WinXP desktops that I would like to move to Win7. Where is the best place to get Win7 upgrade licenses for a decent price? Any places to stay away from (besides eBay)?

 

This is the rub. M$ is getting a double dip on non pro windows 8 machines downgrading. You have to purchase win 7 again. There is no financial incentive to fix win 8 for desktop usage to better than win 7 standards..........

 

Anyone????? This error comes up when I try to install from DVD or USB.

 

Two things to try,
move your OS drive to the top of the boot order list.
and/or create another installer for your language of choice and see if messing with the windows bootable media files went awry.

 

Did both. No joy.

I'm wondering whether anyone else here has retrograded from Win8 and run into this issue. All the solutions I've found so far are from people either upgrading from XP or doing a clean re-install of Win7 (on a machine that already had Win7), and none of those solutions have worked for me.

 

WRONG. OEM would not stop it from moving to another computer if u have a plain install disc for vista and enter that key it works as long as the versions match.....u just cannot use the vistas recovery disc you'd need a plain install disc...I know this cause my optiplex had a vista business key and now it has 7 and I needed a 32 bit OS for compatibility on my alien so installed business and used its key I had a vista ultimate disc and in the install it allows a different install for another version so it put business on...I lost that ultimate key so it's just a generic vista install disc now (installs any version) I have do e this with home premium and business

ALL OEM MEANS IS ITS SHIPPED WITH THE COMPUTER NOTHING ELSE IT'S NOT TETHERED TO THAT PC IN ANY OTHER WAY THEN PHYSICALLY ON IT

 

You should be able to get it to install; may not be able to activate afterwards as Indrek mentioned licensing.

By CLEAN install, then you did use the CLEAN command to completely clear the MBR table before installing?

 

Why would they do that ._. U own the key as long as only 1 of is using it at a time it won't matter you'll go undetected so idk why it would be relevant to even try to disallow that it's not effective

 

I haven't even gotten that far. I will have to completely repartition the drive because Win8 uses a different scheme from previous versions of Windows (Win8 doesn't use a standard MBR). I won't be using any facility of Windows to do it, though. I will be using DFSee ( DFSee disk, partition and filesystem tool --no vested interest, merely a very satisfied user).

NONE of the solutions I've found so far to the "required cd/dvd device driver is missing" issue have come from someone who was retrograding from Win8 to Win7, and none of those solutions has worked for me. I'm wondering whether the cause of the error (or at least the solution) is completely different for someone retrograding from Win8.

 

It's usually for newer W8 machines a UEFI/GPT boot. Nevertheless, cleaning out the GPT and protective MBR layer will cover it. Backup thoroughly as it renders data inaccessible across the whole drive.
Windows provides a simple set of commands in Diskpart to accomplish this.... use whatever you want. Just check you're not trying to make something work that has no chance of success.

Good luck with it.

 

The problem is simple, your installation media does not have USB3 drivers in it. Unless providing them on another usb stick doesn't work, they need to be incorporated into the install media. Just like integrating ACHI drivers into XP media years ago.

 

I thought that SP1 was supposed to take care of that? I've installed XP a bunch of times, but I don't recall ever having to deal with integrating any drivers, AHCI or otherwise. Where do I get these USB 3.0 drivers, and how do I integrate them? And why would this be a factor for installing from CD/DVD?

 

The install media doesn't know you are using USB media instead of CD/DVD It's just a string of text probably written for Vista back in 2006 and then copied over to 7.

SP1 was released two years ago, it obviously does not contain any drivers newer than that. I'd guess a laptop with Win8 has newer than 2011 hardware.

You get usb3 drivers from the manufacturer's website. www.laptopmaker.com/support/drivers/model/download - cannot know better that that. If you know what the chipset is then you can get them directly from chipsetmaker's website, probably much more recent drivers there than laptop maker has.

Integrating them into the install media, that's totally another story and worth a thread of its own

 

I still don't understand. What does USB 3.0 drivers have to do with installing from CD/DVD?

 

The installation program just tries to tell you it does not have necessary drivers installed to access install files.

Installation program does not understand that there is a flash drive connected to usb3 port instead of a portable dvd connected to usb2 port. It just says that it cannot access the files and the only sentence programmed into it is "a required cd/dvd device driver is missing".

If the error would say "a required mass media controller chipset driver is missing" would that make more sense?

 

Here are most USB 3.0 drivers available (second row): Station-Drivers

KLF: I'm trying to load the drivers in the installer, I've used both Intel drivers and stock Windows 8.1 drivers, but it just won't work.
Do I have to integrate the drivers into boot.wim using DISM?

How to install Windows 7 from a USB 3.0 Drive.

 

As far as I know, something like that.


How To Integrate Drivers Into Windows 7 Installation Disc
Welcome to RT Se7en Lite - Slipstream Service Pack,Integrate Updates,Integrate Drivers,Integrate LP,Remove Components,Enable or Disable features,Unattended Setup,Apply Tweaks,Add Icons,Wallpapers,Themes,Bootable USB or DVD
How to add drivers to Windows 7 installation DVD? - Super User

I haven't tried any of those yet. So far I've been lucky with the computers I need install windows into.

That stuff looks complicated enough to warrant a thread of its own I think.

 

I don't understand why loading drivers won't work. It would make it so much easier.

Using DISM as described in my link isn't that difficult, but it's just a bit too much work for the average user.

 

You can't load the drivers through USB3.0 even when outfitted to windows installer because the hardware is separate and not accessible at boot time. They would have to be loaded separately through USB2.0 or DVD or possibly a partition on an internal disk.

 

Yeah, I noticed that, so I had the drivers copied to HDD before booting the installer but that didn't make any difference.

 

I think that is going to be true when trying to install windows because of the transitions between restarts. Installing Windows 7 from USB 2.0 to an SSD takes ~8 minutes.

Where I've found USB3.0 drivers most useful is restoring a backup image from an external backup drive.

 

Well it couldn't even finish loading the driver even though it found the correct driver, let alone start the installation. The restarts wasn't the issue here.

The issue we're talking about here is using USB 3.0 ports on computers without USB 2.0 ports. A USB 2.0 drive in a USB 3.0 port just won't work when installing Windows 7.

 

So the only option you currently have is CD/DVD?

I don't get it obviously. You can't attach a USB flash drive with Windows 7 installer and make it work on any USB port in the computer, i.e., it is CD/DVD or bust?

------------------

So that I don't have to go searching everywhere you've talked about this, why don't you provide as much info about your system in your signature as you do languages for W7.

 

Not for me, personally. I'm just trying to gather info so I can update the OP.
My Z77 desktop can't install Windows 7 from USB 3.0 ports (Intel and ASMedia), the other ports works fine, of course.

This is a big problem for those with USP 3.0-only laptops who wants to install Windows 7.

In fact, an external USB DVD reader probably won't help either, since you still have to plug it into a USB 3.0 port.

 

If the processor and chipset don't natively support USB3.0 at boot time then this is going to be a big problem. Looking at some of the replies over at the link, it seems there is a lot of pain and very little reward. I have Renasus USB, there are 6 files in the x64 folder, two each of .inf, .sys, .cat. Loading one of the .inf files pulls the thing up for operation (I so seldom use that I cant remember which one), otherwise it fails.

 

Well my Z77 motherboard does have native USB 3.0 but that won't help me here.

 

As a matter of fact, yes. But if it's booting from that mass media, why does it insist that it needs yet another driver for that same mass media in order to continue the installation?

 

he said "mass media controller chipset driver," i.e. driver for the port.

Sent from my Lumia 1520 using Tapatalk

 

Not even that is working for me (same error as installing from USB thumb drive). I'm guessing it's because the CD/DVD device attaches through a USB port, and after doing a further search on specs, I've confirmed that ALL FOUR USB ports on this machine are USB 3.0. No 2.0 ports at all.

I know your other comment was directed at Mats, but I've added the system specs for this machine to my signature. If I need to provide further info, let me know and I'll see what I can find. This is a machine that my sister purchased for my sister, with the expectation that I would back-level it to Win7 (she couldn't get one with pre-installed Win7, apparently). As a result, I'm not as familiar with the specs as I would be for a machine of my own. I'm quite experienced with desktops (building, installing, etc.), but laptops not so much. This is also my first experience with installing Win7 (I've done DOS, Win2K, WinXP, OS/2, and Red Hat Linux--skipped Win3, 95, 98, NT, ME and Vista).

But that port is being used to BOOT. Why can't it install from that same port without an additional driver that isn't on the install media? That's the part that makes no sense, and that I'm trying to find a solution for.

 

because you have only USB 3.0 ports and W7 installation contains no native support for USB 3.0. this has been explained to you in both threads, and Mats and RCB have been discussing it for the last ten posts prior to ours.

can you confirm that the machine i linked to in the other thread is the machine we're troubleshooting here?

Sent from my Lumia 1520 using Tapatalk

 

Then why can it boot to Win7 installation media using that USB 3.0 port?

Yes, that's the one.

 

I don't know exactly why, but it doesn't really matter. It was the same during the XP days, you could boot the CD but you couldn't install without SATA drivers if such were required.

 

All of the WinXP installs I did, and I NEVER ran into this issue. Was it fixed in one of the SPs?

Have you found a workaround for installing Win7 from USB 3.0 (thumb drive or external CD/DVD)?