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    Question about ultimate upgrade

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by Wohh, Aug 6, 2008.

  1. Wohh

    Wohh Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have vista home premium 32-bit right now, and i have the disks for the ultimate upgrade. I was wondering if i have to use the 32-bit upgrade for ultimate of if i could use the 64-bit and upgrade my OS to a 64-bit system.
     
  2. livesoft

    livesoft BUSTED

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  3. crash

    crash NBR Assassin

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    If you use the 32-bit upgrade you don't have to clean install and can keep your files intact.

    If you use the 64-bit upgrade, you have to do a clean install.
     
  4. synic

    synic Notebook Deity

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    You can't "upgrade" from a 32bit OS to a 64bit OS. Doing this requires a clean install.
     
  5. Wohh

    Wohh Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ok thanks for the help, and is it possible to do a clean install with just the upgrade version?
     
  6. crash

    crash NBR Assassin

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    I'm sorry, it seems I jumped the gun with my response and am a little off. Allow me to clarify...

    • A Vista Upgrade Disk (aka Anytime Upgrade) will keep your files intact when installing the newer version (Home Premium, Ultimate, etc) of Vista. You CAN do a clean install with an upgrade disk by selecting "Custom" during the install process.
    • You cannot use a 64-bit Upgrade disk to "upgrade" Vista 32-bit. You need to do a "custom" (clean) install while booting your computer from the disk.
    Again, sorry for the confusion.
     
  7. Wohh

    Wohh Notebook Enthusiast

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    ok thank you for the clarification
     
  8. synic

    synic Notebook Deity

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    This guide makes it seem like you are able to do a clean install with an Anytime Upgrade disc.

    Anyway, I'm pretty sure the Anytime Upgrade, OEM, and Retail discs have every version of Vista on them. You just need a valid serial number. However, a single disc will not have both 32bit and 64bit versions of Vista. You either have a 32bit disc or a 64bit disc. Depending on what you have/what you want, you will need to request another disc from Microsoft. I'm also pretty sure if you already have a Vista license, requesting a disc is free (you just pay shipping).

    For example, if you own a Vista license, and have a 32bit disc, you can request a 64bit disc from Microsoft.

    In your case however, you need to purchase Ultimate if you want to use Ultimate. You only have Home Premium and you cannot use that S/N for Vista Ultimate.

    If you really want Vista Ultimate, go to newegg and buy an OEM copy for ~$179.
     
  9. crash

    crash NBR Assassin

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    Post edited.

    From Microsoft...
    Source: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/932795/en-us
    It seems it is possible to upgrade from 32-bit Vista to a different 64-bit Vista version. Make sure you back up your activation + certificate with Orev's ABR tool as mentioned in the guide posted by synic if you're upgrading an OEM copy of Vista.
     
  10. synic

    synic Notebook Deity

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    Eh, that's weird...
     
  11. Wohh

    Wohh Notebook Enthusiast

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    Well i got the ultimate upgrade for 70 bucks and i has both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. my OS is 32-bit but id like to upgrade to 64-bit so i wasnt sure if there was any way of doing that with the ultimate disk, thanks for the info.
     
  12. crash

    crash NBR Assassin

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    You can't do what is typically called an "upgrade", but you can do a clean install. The previous posts in this thread explain the steps needed to do this as well as this guide.