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The Ultimate Guide to Installing Windows 7

So, you're ready to install Windows 7? Read on to get guidance on how to approach this installation and make sure your copy of Windows 7 is properly installed.

Planning the Installation


As with any OS installation, we must first plan the installation process. When you run the Windows 7 Setup program, you must provide information about how to install and configure the operating system. Thorough planning can make your installation of Windows 7 more efficient by helping you to avoid potential problems during installation. An understanding of the configuration options will also help to ensure that you have properly configured your system. Here are some of the most important things you should take into consideration when planning for your Windows 7 installation:

Check System Requirements Check Hardware and Software Compatibility Determine Disk Partitioning Options Complete a Pre-Installation Checklist

Microsoft states the minimum recommended specs for Windows 7:

1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor 1 GB of system memory 16 GB of available disk space Support for DirectX 9 graphics with 128 MB memory (to enable the Aero theme) DVD-R/W Drive Internet access (to activate and get updates)

32-bit or 64-bit Version?


You need to decide whether to install the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows 7. The Windows 7 installation disc package includes both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 7. Basically, the 64bit version of Windows handles large amounts of random access memory (RAM) more effectively than a 32-bit system. So if you plan on using Windows 7 on a computer with more than 3 GB or RAM, I would strongly suggest to use the 64-bit version. Most programs designed for the 32-bit version of Windows will work on the 64-bit version of Windows, and if they don't, you can always use Windows XP Mode (read my "How to Install Windows XP Mode on Windows 7" article). Note: Either way, you cannot use an existing 32-bit version of a previous OS to perform an inplace upgrade to a 64-bit version of Windows 7, and you'll need to format and install a fresh copy. Also, you cannot use an existing 64-bit version of a previous OS to perform an in-place upgrade to a 32-bit version of Windows 7.

Type of Installation

Basically, there are 2 approaches to installing Windows 7:

1. Upgrade (In-place upgrade) - This option replaces your current version of Windows with Windows 7, and keeps your files, settings, and programs in place on your computer. 2. Custom ("fresh" installation) - This option replaces your current version of Windows with Windows 7, but doesn't preserve your files, settings, and programs. It's sometimes referred to as a clean installation for that reason.
As always, a fresh installation is much better and I strongly recommend taking that track. Even if you've got an existing Windows XP/Vista OS on your computer, I would strongly recommend that you format it and install a fresh copy of the OS. This article will focus on a fresh installation of Windows 7. Please read my "How to Upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7" and "Upgrade from Windows Vista to Windows 7" articles for more information on those paths.

Beginning the Installation Process


When installing on a physical computer insert your Windows 7 DVD media into your DVD drive and reboot your computer. If you're asked to press a key to boot from DVD or CD, press any key. A black window will appear momentarily while the DVD content is read.

Note: These screenshots are taken from a Windows 7 Ultimate installation performed on a virtual machine running on VMware Workstation. I will be using an .ISO file mounted on the VMs CD/DVD drive. Next, a Starting Windows screen will appear.

Note: If the Windows installation page doesn't appear and you're not asked to press a key to start from DVD or CD, you might have to specify that your computer uses its DVD or CD drive as the startup device.

The Installation Process


Like in Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008, and unlike previous versions of Windows, Windows 7 does not have a noticeable text phase of the setup process, and it will boot directly into the Graphical User Interface (GUI) mode. After a few moments you will see the first prompt:

Click "Next" unless you want to change some regional settings for the installation process. Hebrew users should read my "Installing Hebrew on Windows 7" article.

Click on the "Install now" button.

Note: If you're using the installation media to repair an existing installation of Windows 7 you should also read my latest article on the Windows Recovery Environment. Next, accept the license terms and click on "Next".

Next, unless you're upgrading an existing Windows installation, press the Custom (Advanced) installation type button. Note that in this case, the Upgrade button is disabled because this specific installation if performed on a new computer without any previous operating system on it.

The next phase is to pick the installation partition. Since this computer has a new hard disk that hasn't been formatted before, you will only have the option to create a new partition on it. If you don't want to specify a specific partition to install Windows on, or create partitions on your hard disk, click Next to begin the installation. If you already have another existing partition with enough free space and want to install the Windows 7 on that partition to create a multiboot configuration, select the partition you want to use, and then click Next to begin the installation. If you want to create, extend, delete, or format a partition, click Drive options (advanced), click the option you want, and then follow the instructions. Since I don't need to perform any additional task I will just click on the "Next" button. The installation process will then create a partition on all the available disk space, and format it.

The setup process will now begin to copy files from the installation DVD media to the hard disk.

Process could take a while depending on the type of hardware your computer uses. In my VM test sample I've used for this demo, the entire process finished before I could finish writing the previous 3 paragraphs, so it could be pretty quick. The computer will reboot, and the next thing you'll see is the prompt to set the user's and computer's name. By default, the computer's name will be username-PC, where username is the username you've entered. Note: The user you're creating will be the only user currently available on the system. Like Vista, the built-in Administrator's account is disabled. Read my article on how to enable the Windows 7 Administrator's account article for more information. Click on "Next".

Enter the user's password. Remember this password, as it will be the ONLY user on the system, and unless you create an additional user or enable the built-in administrator account, if you forget this password you'll need to crack it to gain access to the system. The best option would be to choose a complex password made of at least 7 characters or more (something like Pssw0rd or MYpa$$w0rd). You must also enter a password hint. Click on "Next".

Next, type in your product key. If you do not have the product key at hand you can still click "Next", and proceed with the installation. You will be asked to enter the product key after Windows is installed.

Choose what sort of protection your computer gets. The recommended settings are best for someone that doesn't plan to hide their computer behind a corporate firewall (and even then, in some cases, this would be the best option). If you plan to install a 3rd-party firewall later you can opt to be prompted later. Note that this setting will also have effect on how the computer uses the Microsoft Windows Update (Automatic Updates) features.

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Choose your time zone and location and click on "Next".

Select your network location type. This setting can be changed later, but do note that choosing a profile will have effect on the Windows Firewall and sharing settings. Click on "Next".

Windows will finalize the settings and your desktop will appear.

This concludes the Windows 7 installation. Next, you would probably want to update your computer with the latest hotfixes and/or patches from Microsoft.

The Ultimate Guide to Hard Drive Partitioning


Disk partitioning divides the data storage space of a hard disk into separate areas referred to as 'partitions'. Partitions are usually created when the hard disk is first being prepared for usage. Once a disk is divided into partitions, directories and files may be stored on them. Because of later changes on the computer and operating system, often an administrator or power user will be faced with the need to resize partitions, create new partitions in the unallocated space, and sometimes even undelete partitions that were previously removed or deleted. Hard disk partitioning tools will allow you to create additional partitions from existing ones by resizing the existing partitions and creating empty, un-used space on which you can create new partitions. The most important aspect of such tools is their ability to do this without losing your data that is currently on your existing partitions. Such tools allow you to create and format these new partitions.

Hard Drive Partitioning: Use Caution!


Most tools will let you convert a partition from one file type to another, i.e. from NTFS to FAT/FAT32 or vice versa. Needless to say that in most cases, such a conversion, especially from

NTFS to FAT/FAT32 will cause the files to lose their NTFS permissions (ACLs), and in some cases where EFS was used to encrypt the files, it will actually cause you to lose access to these files. So beware! Some of these tools may be able to help you recover deleted partitions, and if data on that disk was un-damaged, actually help you gain access to that data. Some, but not all of the tools may have the ability to move existing partitions from one location on the disk to another location, again, without losing data. Note: We've tried to make this guide as definitive as possible, there are always changes in the software world that we're not aware of. We would gladly accept your feedback, comments and tool recommendations. Please limit your feedback to freeware utilities. Disclaimer: The author of this article cannot be held responsible for any data loss or computer malfunction due to using any of the tools listed in this article. Please carefully read the software creators read-me files and manuals, and always test before using any tool on a computer or hard disk that holds critical information. Remember as well that free products rarely, if ever, provide any kind of end user support other than forum or community support. If you're unsure of what you're doing, or need technical support, it's best to go with a paid product.

10 Free Partition Tools


1 . Ultimate Boot CD
The Ultimate Boot CD is a bootable CD containing tools that allow you to:

Run floppy-based diagnostic tools from CDROM drives. More and more PCs are shipped without floppy drives these days, and it is such a royal pain when you need to run diagnostic tools on them.

Free yourself from the slow loading speed of the floppy drive. Even if you do have a floppy drive, it is still much much faster to run your diagnostic tools from the CDROM drive, rather than wait for the tool to load from the floppy drive.

Consolidate as many diagnostic tools as possible into one bootable CD. Run Ultimate Boot CD from your USB memory stick. A script on the CD prepares your USB memory stick so that it can be used on newer machines that supports booting from USB devices. You can access the same tools as you would from the CD version.

When you boot up from the CD, a text-based menu will be displayed, and you will be able to select the tool you want to run. The selected tool actually boots off a virtual floppy disk created in memory. UBCD contains a ton of tools including: CPU Tests, Memory Tests, Peripherals Tools, CPU Information, System Information, Benchmark Tools, BIOS Tools, Hard Disk Installation Tools, Hard Disk Diagnostic Tools, Hard Disk Device Management Tools, Hard Disk Wiping Tools, Hard Disk Cloning Tools, Hard Disk Low-Level Editing Tools, Partition Tools, Boot Managers, File Tools, NTFS Tools, Anti-Virus/Malware Tools, Network Tools, DOS Boot Disks and Linux Boot Disks.

Get your copy here

2. GParted Live
The purpose of GParted is to allow the individual to take a hard disk and change the partition organization therein, while preserving the partition contents. GParted is an industrial-strength package for creating, destroying, resizing, moving, checking and copying partitions, and the file systems on them. This is useful for creating space for new operating systems, reorganizing disk usage, copying data residing on hard disks and mirroring one partition with another (disk imaging). GParted Live is a small bootable GNU/Linux distribution for x86 machine. It enables you to use all the features of the latest versions of GParted. GParted Live can be installed on CD, USB, PXE server, and Hard Disk then run on an x86 machine. Note: Take care when using GParted on Windows XP/Vista installations. Read here for more information: Update to "resize-windows.txt" - Draft to discuss (Page 1) - Documentation - GParted forum Using GParted to Resize Your Windows Vista Partition The How-To Geek You can also get GParted on various distributions such as the SystemRescueCD, listed below.

Get your copy of GParted here

3. System RescueCD
SystemRescueCd is a Linux system on a bootable CD-ROM for repairing your system and recovering your data after a crash. It aims to provide an easy way to carry out admin tasks on your computer, such as creating and editing the partitions of the hard disk. It contains a lot of system tools (parted, partimage, fstools, ...) and basic tools (editors, midnight commander, network tools). It is very easy to use: just boot the CDROM. The kernel supports most of the important file systems (ext2/ext3/ext4, reiserfs, reiser4, btrfs, xfs, jfs, vfat, ntfs, iso9660), as well as network filesystems (samba and nfs). System tools included with SystemRescueCd

GNU Parted creates, resizes, moves, copies partitions, and filesystems (and more). GParted GUI implementation using the GNU Parted library (see previous post). Partimage saves / restores partitions to an image file on another partition or to another system. FSArchiver flexible tool to save/restore a filesystem to a compressed archive. File systems tools (for Linux and Windows filesystems): format, resize, and debug an existing partition of a hard disk Ntfs3g: enables read/write access to MS Windows NTFS partitions. sfdisk saves / restores partition table (and more). Test-disk tool to check and undelete partition, supports reiserfs, ntfs, fat32, ext2/3 and many others Memtest+ to test the memory of your computer (first thing to test when you have a crash or unexpected problems) Network tools (Samba, NFS, ping, nslookup, ...) to backup your data across the network

Get your copy SystemRescueCD

4. TestDisk
TestDisk is a powerful free data recovery software! It was primarily designed to help recover lost partitions and/or make non-booting disks bootable again when these symptoms are caused by faulty software, certain types of viruses or human error (such as accidentally deleting a Partition Table). Partition table recovery using TestDisk is really easy. TestDisk has features for both novices and experts. For those who know little or nothing about data recovery techniques, TestDisk can be used to collect detailed information about a non-booting drive which can then be sent to a tech for further analysis. Those more familiar with such procedures should find TestDisk a handy tool in performing onsite recovery. TestDisk can:

Fix partition table, recover deleted partition Recover FAT32 boot sector from its backup Rebuild FAT12/FAT16/FAT32 boot sector Fix FAT tables Rebuild NTFS boot sector Recover NTFS boot sector from its backup Fix MFT using MFT mirror Locate ext2/ext3 Backup SuperBlock Undelete files from FAT, NTFS and ext2 filesystem Copy files from deleted FAT, NTFS and ext2/ext3 partitions.

Get your copy of TestDisk here.

5. Ranish Partition Manager


Ranish Partition Manager is a powerful hard disk partitioning tool. It gives users high level of control for running multiple operating systems, such as Linux, Windows 98/XP, FreeDOS, and FreeBSD on a single disk. Partition Manager can create, copy, and resize primary and extended partitions. It includes command line interface and simulation mode that works with large files so you can safely experiment before working on the real hard drive partition tables.

Get your copy of Ranish here.

6. Partition Logic
Partition Logic is a free hard disk partitioning and data management tool. It can create, delete, format, defragment, resize, and move partitions and modify their attributes. One cool feature about it is that it can copy entire hard disks from one to another. Partition Logic is free software, based on the Visopsys operating system. It boots from a CD or floppy disk and runs as a standalone system, independent of your regular operating system. It is intended to become a free alternative to such commercial programs. Its worth noting that the current (as of March 2009) version of Partition logic has the following limitations:

Does not work with some SATA hard disks, no hardware support for non-USB SCSI hard disks Supports only DOS/Windows-style MBR partition tables (used on nearly all IBM PCcompatibles) No support for Sun or BSD disk labels, or EFI/GPT tables used on Itanium and Intel Mac platforms Most important: Cannot format partitions as NTFS (however, it can resize NTFS) Cannot resize FAT or EXT filesystems No hardware support for serial mice or for PCMCIA

Get Partition Logic here

7. SwissKnife
SwissKnife allows you to create, delete and format partitions on your hard disk drives in one smooth, simple process. While the product has been tested up to 400GB, it should support hard disks of up to 2048GB. SwissKnife allows creation of FAT32 & NTFS partitions. FAT16 option is provided for compatibility. Supports Internal interfaces such as IDE and SCSI and External interfaces such as Hi-Speed USB, Parallel port, PCMCIA, USB On-The-Go, Firewire, SATA interfaces etc. Creates Fixed and Removable Disk Format types. Latest version adds support for NTFS and features resizable windows. Upon completion, the drive icons will be dynamically updated on your computer. Key Features:

Formats faster than the OS (click on chart for details) Allows change of cluster size during Full format or Quick Format Divides a single hard drive into one or more partitions Supports Hi-Speed USB, PCMCIA, SATA, SCSI, USB 1.1, and FireWire external drives Supports Fixed and Removable disk formats Supports FAT, FAT32 & NTFS systems Allows creation of a single partition of up to 2048GB of FAT32 or NTFS file systems. Full format or Quick Format of existing partitions Selective partitions can be modified for optimum flexibility

Get your copy of Swiss Knife here:

8. Cute Partition Manager (CPM)


Cute Partition Manager is a free advanced hard disk partition management utility that allows you to easily add, edit, delete and manage the partitions in your computer. Cute Partition Manager is very easy to use, and one of the best features about it is that It lets you preview the changes before you save them. It lets you edit the boot flag, partition type and other advanced parameters. It gives you total control of your system during the partition process. For example, it lets you edit all existing partitions. It even lets you install all the operating systems from scratch. It supports all versions of Windows (9x,ME,NT,2K,XP,Vista), DOS, Linux, etc. Some features include:

Lets you create more than 100 partitions per hard disk. Lets you preview changes before you can save them. Lets you edit advanced partition parameters such as boot flag, partition type, etc. Lets you remove every single partition in your system. Does not require an operating system to run (everything is built-in). Can be booted from CD, DVD, Blank Floppy, DOS Boot Floppy, etc.

Get your copy of CPM here.

9. EaseUs Partition Manager


EaseUs Partition Master Home Edition is a FREE disk partitioning utility that offers a powerful range of functions such as resizing partitions, formatting partitions, copying partitions, creating new partitions, deleting partitions, hiding partitions, changing drive letters, setting active partitions, and a handful other functions. Some of the main characteristics of EaseUs Partition Manager are:

Material support for RAID Re-size and move partitions without losing data Create and delete partitions with a simple stage Allocated in a partition to make easier recognition Format of partitions by simple click Partition of ownership of every partition Conceal and to show partitions - to protect important data Specify a boot partition Outline of the effects of partitioning of a hard disk before applying Works on hard disks of 20GB to 800GB

Note: EaseUs Partition Master Home Edition ONLY supports 32 bit Windows systems. If your computer is running 64 bit Windows systems, please check the Professional or Server editions which are not free. Get your copy here:.

10. eXtended FDisk


eXtended FDisk, or short XFDisk, is a free DOS FDISK replacement that offers more comfort and comes with a bootmanager that allows you to have more than one operating system installed on your hard disk. With XFDisk you can partition your hard disk or install and configure the bootmanager, which will be located in the first 17 sectors of your first hard disk. The bootmanager will not occupy an own partition, so you can fully use the four available primary partitions per hard disk. If you choose to have an extended partition with logical drives on your hard disk, XFDisk transparently manages the extended partition for you. So you don't need to worry about the size of the extended partition any more. Of course, XFDisk and the bootmanager support more than one hard disk and even booting from logical drives.

Get eXtended FDisk here. Do you have other recommendations? Contact me and Ill be happy to upload them to this page!

Try Novicorp WinToFlash 0.4.0013 beta to create a bootable Win7 flash drive.. Its really easy..

How To Boot And Install Windows 7 From USB Flash Drive (Updated)

Previously, I have discussed the way to create a Windows 7 USB installer drive using the command prompt. Even though I have make it easy to follow, there are still some of you having some difficulty in the process. Recently, I have come across this little cool portable application that is able to do all the things covered in the previous tutorial in a breeze and without the command prompt. The application that I am talking about is WinToFlash. This is a small application (only 2.1MB) that allows you to convert your Windows installer CD/DVD to a bootable USB drive. Not only is it easy to use (nearly idiot-proof and does not require you to have any technical knowledge), it is also fully portable No installation is required and you can bring

it wherever you are.

Preparation
Before you start, here are some stuffs that you need to take note of: 1) You need to have a USB drive of at least 3GB space in order to create a Windows 7 bootable USB drive. 2) The process will format and wipe off all your files in the USB drive. Remember to backup before you proceed. 3) You need to have a Windows 7 installer DVD and an optical drive to read the DVD. If you have only the ISO file (downloaded directly from Microsoft), you can use Virtual Clone Drive to mount the ISO in your computer.

Installation
Download WinToFlash Put in your Windows 7 installer DVD and plug in your USB drive. Unzip the folder to your desktop and run the WinToFlash.exe file Some of you might see the WinToFlash DLP_NotFound error message. You can safely ignore this error message.

On the main screen, click on the Window Setup Transfer Wizard. This will bring you to the wizard mode where it automates (almost) the whole process for you.

On the next screen, there is an option for you to go into the Advanced mode and tweak some of the settings. You can ignore that (if you are not into tweaking) and click Next to proceed.

Point the Windows file path to the Windows Installer DVD directory. Point the USB drive to the USB directory.

Click Next. Accept the agreement.

Preparing your USB drive. Make sure you have backup all the important files before you proceed. This will erase all your data.

Transferring in progress. This might take a while. Go for your coffee break.

Once you see the following message, the whole process is done. You can now boot Windows 7 from the USB drive.

Some computers require you to change the bootup setting in the BIOS before you can boot from USB. Look into your motherboard/computer manual for more instruction.
http://maketecheasier.com/mount-iso-images-in-windows/2009/05/19 http://maketecheasier.com/boot-and-install-windows-7-from-usb-flash-drive/2009/01/23

This guide works 100% for Windows 7 and Windows 8 unlike most of the guides out there. I have seen many sites/blogs that have Install Vista from USB guide but either with incomplete steps or not working guide. I have also seen some guides that dont use proper commands in this guide. After spending many hours I have come up with this 100% working guide to install Windows 7 and Windows 8 from USB flash drive.

I just did this method on one of my friends machine and installed Windows 7 and Windows 8 . The main advantage is that by using USB drive you will be able to install Windows 7 or Windows 8 in just 15 minutes. You can also use this bootable USB drive on friends computer who doesnt have a DVD optical drive. The method is very simple and you can use without any hassles. Needless to say that your motherboard should support USB Boot feature to make use of the bootable USB drive.

Requirements: *USB Flash Drive (Minimum 4GB) *Windows 7 or Windows 8 installation files. Follow the below steps to create bootable Windows 7/Windows 8 USB drive using which you can install Windows 7 or Windows 8 easily. Procedure: 1. Plug-in your USB flash drive to USB port and move all the contents from USB drive to a safe location on your system. 2. Open Command Prompt with admin rights. Use any of the below methods to open Command Prompt with admin rights. *Type cmd in Start menu search box and hit Ctrl+ Shift+ Enter. Or *Go to Start menu > All programs > Accessories, right click on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator. 3. You need to know about the USB drive a little bit. Type in the following commands in the command prompt: First type DISKPART and hit enter to see the below message.

Next type LIST DISK command and note down the Disk number (ex: Disk 1) of your USB flash drive. In the below screenshot my Flash Drive Disk no is Disk 1. 4. Next type all the below commands one by one. Here I assume that your disk drive no is Disk 1.If you have Disk 2 as your USB flash drive then use Disk 2.Refer the above step to confirm it. So below are the commands you need to type and execute one by one: SELECT DISK 1 CLEAN CREATE PARTITION PRIMARY SELECT PARTITION 1 ACTIVE FORMAT FS=NTFS (Format process may take few seconds) ASSIGN EXIT Dont close the command prompt as we need to execute one more command at the next step. Just minimize it.

5. Next insert your Windows7/Windows 8 DVD into the optical drive and check the drive letter of the DVD drive. In this guide I will assume that your DVD drive letter is D and USB drive letter is H (open my computer to know about it). 6. Maximize the minimized Command Prompt in the 4th step.Type the following command now: D: CD BOOT and hit enter.Where D is your DVD drive letter. CD BOOT and hit enter to see the below message. 7. Type another command given below to update the USB drive with BOOTMGR compatible code. BOOTSECT.EXE /NT60 H:

Where H is your USB drive letter. Once you enter the above command you will see the below message. 8. Copy your Windows 7 or Windows 8 DVD contents to the USB flash drive.

9. Your USB drive is ready to boot and install Windows 7 or Windows 8. Only thing you need to change the boot priority at the BIOS to USB from the HDD or CD ROM drive. I wont explain it as its just the matter the changing the boot priority or enabling the USB boot option in the BIOS. Note: If you are not able to boot after following this guide means you havent set the BIOS priority to USB. If you got any problem in following this guide feel free to ask questions by leaving comment. Update on Jan 11, 2012: If you find this guide difficult to follow, please use the easy-to-use guide to create a bootable USB to install Windows 7 or Windows 8 using official tool. This guide works 100% for Windows 8 as well. Make sure you follow all steps correctly and launch the Command Prompt with admin rights (as given in the guide) to avoid errors. Good luck!

Installing Windows 7 on a netbook


There are three recommended ways to install Windows 7 on a netbook or other PC that doesn't have an internal DVD drive:

Purchase and download Windows 7 from the Microsoft Store as an installation file. When you download Windows 7in this format, you can install Windows 7 on your netbook just like any other program, with no additional tools or hardware. For more information about the options available in your country or region, go to the Microsoft Storewebsite.

Purchase and download Windows 7 from the Microsoft Store as an ISO file, and copy it to a USB flash drive. If you need to start, or boot, your PC during Windows 7 installation (for example, if you want to format your hard disk during installation), you can download Windows 7 in a special format called an ISO file and use the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool to create a USB flash drive, which you can then use to install Windows 7 on your netbook. Use an external DVD drive. If you already have a Windows 7 installation disc, you can attach an external DVD drive to your netbook to install Windows 7.

Change BIOS Settings

Optimize Your BIOS for Top Performance


By now you know that there are tons of things you can do to make your Windows PC run faster and smoother and Im sure your computer is now a lot more comfortable to use. But now is the time to speed up your computer even more by delving under the hood and tweaking some more advanced settings. One of the more advanced optimization techniques is BIOS tuneup. BIOS stands for Basic Input-Output System and is the standard firmware for motherboards. It is the first software your computer loads when you power it up. It prepares everything for your operating system by detecting your computers hardware components and letting the operating system know it can use them, calculating the amount of available RAM and setting the CPU speed. Once everything has been taken care of, the BIOS boots the operating system and lets the OS take it over. Just like any other piece of software, the BIOS can be fine-tuned. Optimizing the BIOS will decrease your computers boot time and make it run more efficiently.

Access the BIOS


On most systems, accessing the BIOS is not all that hard. When you power up your computer, a startup screen appears. That screen is usually accessible for only a few seconds, so youll need to act quickly. On the screen, you should see which key you need to press to enter Setup. Usually its either Del, F1, F2 or F12. Make sure you press the appropriate key quickly, as you might not have more than a few seconds. This will get you through to the BIOS settings.

If the startup screen flashes too quickly or doesnt appear at all, try pressing the abovementioned keys you will eventually catch the right one. And if there is a splash screen that doesnt show anything, try pressing Esc this should get you through to the DOS screen where you enter BIOS setup.

Configure boot order


Configuring boot order is something that can significantly speed up computer startup. The BIOS manages the order of system boot items, such as floppy (yes, they still exist), CD/DVD optical drive, flash drive and hard drive. At times, you might need to boot from a CD or a flash drive, but most of the time you boot from your hard drive. However, your BIOS checks whether there are any bootable CDs or floppies, just in case. When it doesnt detect any of these devices, it moves on to the hard drive. Since you use the hard drive to boot your OS every time you turn your computer on and almost never use bootable CDs or other drives, it only makes sense to put your hard drive first in line. This will save you a few seconds during computer startup. Here is how you can do it: 1. 2. Access the BIOS by pressing the correct key for your system Look for the Boot entry and navigate to the submenu

3. 4.

Find an entry that says Boot Sequence or Boot Priority Order or Boot Device Then find your hard drive on the list. It could be called something like IDE0. If its nr.

Priority (or something of the like). Press Enter if required. 1, then thats great and you dont need to configure anything. If its not, then youll need to make it nr. 1 by either assigning the number to it or moving it up the list. Just follow the onscreen instructions.

5.

When youre done, press F10 to save the changes and exit.

6.

Reboot your computer for the changes to take effect.

It also makes sense to disable floppy altogether because its highly unlikely that you will be booting from there (even if you have a floppy drive, that is). To disable FloppyDrive in BIOS, youll need to click on FloppyDrive A within BIOS and set it toDisabled.

Save the changes in BIOS and your computer wont look for floppy drives anymore. You can do the same for your CD drive and re-enable it or move it to the top later on in case you need to boot from your Windows disc.

Enable the Quick Boot option


In the past, computers needed to run POSTs power-on self tests, which are no longer necessary. However, some systems still perform them and thus increase your PCs startup time. Memory check is the longest of them all and can last for several seconds. The Quick Boot option still performs all the necessary tests, but it does that quicker. This makes sense, because the complete version of POSTs is not really needed every time you power up your PC. Turning on Quick Boot is pretty easy: 1. Press the appropriate key to enter your BIOS 2. When youre in, find an item that refers to Quick Boot, Fast Boot or Memory Check. Use the arrow keys to highlight it

3. 4. 5.

Follow the on-screen instructions to either enable Quick Boot or disable Memory Press Esc to exit the BIOS and dont forget to save all changes Reboot your computer for the changes to take effect.

Check

Update your BIOS


Just like any other software, BIOS needs updating. And just like any other vendor, your motherboard manufacturer should issue regular updates and bug fixes, as well as improve compatibility with new devices. BIOS updates can significantly decrease your PCs boot time and increase its overall performance. BIOS updates are available for download through your PC/motherboards manufacturer website. But before downloading youll need to find out which BIOS version your computer is running. To do that, simply type msinfo32 in the Search boxin Windows 7/Vista, or in the Run box in Windows XP and hit Enter.

This will open the System Information tool where you will be able to see which BIOS version you are using (look for it under System Summary). Record your BIOS version and close System Information.

Now that you know your BIOS version, go to your PCs manufacturers website and check whether there is an update available. Most manufacturers sort updates by PC lines and models.

Be very careful and make sure that you download the right BIOS update file that is intended for your particular model. Installing a BIOS that is not intended for your model will most likely wreck your computer and make it unbootable. Most BIOS updates will warn you if you try to install them on hardware that doesnt match, but its best to be careful in the first place. Once youve found the right BIOS update, download it along with any supporting documentation and Read Me files. IMPORTANT: its absolutely essential to read the update instructions in the Read Medocumentation. Updating the BIOS incorrectly can ruin your computer.

http://wintoflash.com/download/en/

Good Netbook - NO drivers CD included

As always Flipkart service was excellent. They delivered this laptop in 2 days. Thank you Flipkart. Built Quality: Built Quality of this netbook is very good. If you carry this netbook in hand it will not look cheap or make any squeeze sounds. It looks very professional in black color.

No Drivers Included: HP did included CDROM with this laptop however it only contains acceptable user policy and do not contains any drivers!. If you choose to install windows then you have to download all drivers from HP support web site which may take you few hours. Windows 7 Professional / Home Basic etc, 32 bit OS works very well on this laptop and you will not feel any speed lags if you are using it for browsing, watching movie, listening Music, MS Office work. It does it all and it does it well. Speakers: Speakers in this laptop are of good quality and they sound better then my 12-inch dell laptop. Don't expect too much sound from speaker because its 10-inch laptop, however you will still be able to enjoy music. Keyboard and touch pad: Keyboard and touch pad are very well built and you will not have any problem in typing or using touch pad as mouse. Battery: I have not yet tested battery fully but it can definitely go beyond 5-6 hours for normal usage. It however takes about 2 hours to get fully charged from 10% charge. Wifi and USB: Wifi and usb are working just fine. If you are installing windows 7 then you need to install "Atheros 2011 Wireless LAN Driver" for wifi. I am telling you to save your time. Display: It has MATT display which means screen is not shiny. This was the primary reason I bought this laptop. Matt displays are much better from glossy displays because they do not have any reflection and you can see better in bright light. Display of this laptop is very nice and you can easily view 720p HD videos on it. Screen brightness is very good and properly visible even in bright sunlight. It can also drive external monitor and you can even extend your desktop on second monitor. It means you can work on external monitor through this laptop. I tested my external monitor which has 1650x1050 resolution and it was able to drive it properly. I also tried playing some you tube videos on external monitors and they work fine, however there was some lag on external monitor (not primary display) while playing youtube videos in FULL screen mode. I think this is fair considering processing power of this laptop. It also means you can watch some video in low settings on your external tv through pc connectivity. However, don't expect much. Installation: HP did not include any windows or linux drivers on CD supplied with this laptop. Only Windows 7 drivers are available for download from HP Support web site. You can only install Windows 7 x86 (32-bit) version on this laptop as atom processor is 32-bit processor. If you get cd/dvd driver not found error during installation from USB stick make sure to change drive boot options in bios and make CD boot option as 1st, following by USB and then finally HDD. I also recommend buying avira internet security suit to ovoid virus related problems. It also comes with built in firewall to protect cyber attacks and you can restrict your child from browsing un safe content. Please buy genuine software to ovoid problems in long run and support

software developers. Conclusion: If you want netbook and this is your budget, go for it. Remember this laptop do not comes with windows operating system. Dos included with this laptop if of no use. If you are not a tech savy person and don't own windows license then go for other version of this laptop which comes with windows 7 pre-installed. Finally, I am giving this laptop 4 stars because HP did not include any drivers with this laptop resulting in waste of time downloading them. Also, I am geek and own many laptops. I have named this laptop chotu because its the smallest in my collection. If you find this review useful then please do select yes.

awesome and cheap

Lets face it no one buys Acer!!!! Asus is fine but has only one gb ram in this price range. To load windows 7 ultimate one needs 2 gb ram(works like a charm on this one). 10 inch led is perfect for travel. 10 times better than buying tablets at way higher price. Internet speed processing speed awesome(upto 5 applications)(second gen dual core atom N2600 with two cores is enabled with hyperthreading making it look like four cores) And man oh man....awesome battery life!!!!!!!!! you are in for a treat with this one... 9 hrs straight.. good for developers too....Netbeans, Eclipse etc loads up in seconds pc Boots up in seconds. just get this product. you wont regret it!

Best at its Price..

The Best Netbook at this price... Bcoz it stays alive for 9 hrs, and decent looks, The Bestr in its class... Paisa Vasool.............................................................................................................................

Excellent Netbook. Search no more. Go for it.

SHIPPING: Ordered it on Friday evening. Received it on Monday morning. It came with a really nice package. I think some accidental drop can even do no harm on a Netbook packed that well. So 5 star for shipping. PERFORMANCE: And talking about the netbook, it's awesome. You can easily watch 720p mkv videos even in power saver mode. Battery backup is really awesome. It really lasts more than 7 hrs. Even if you are watching movies. And while using only internet,with low brightness settings it lasts more than 9 hrs. When i was playing hearts on 85% battery, it showed 10 hrs and 20 minutes left. It also charges fully in two hours. It can take longer if you are working heavily on it. Battery backup is one of the main thing why i bought this netbook. PREJUDICES: I thought before buying this netbook that this is after all a netbook and this is gonna get overheated and will not be able to run many programs simultaneously, it'll freeze many times, i'll not be able to play high quality 720p mkv videos blah blah.... But surprisingly i'm not facing any of this issues. And so far i haven't found any leggings. Processor is powerful enough to do things. Haven't tried to install and play any games though. I'll definitely try some.

OPERATING SYSTEM RELATED ISSUES: I tried Linux mint, joli cloud and windows 7 starter. All works great. Use linux mint if you don't want to buy windows 7 starter(Rs 2500+) or don't wanna install a pirated one. Joli cloud is somewhat in capable when it comes to playing 720p. But on linux mint, you want get any issues. I reckon you'll get no trouble in Ubuntu also. But install linux mint if you don't want to waste time on downloading codecs and essential softwares. But the wireless is not working in linux. You can not even find them in additional drivers tool. They need atheros drivers i guess. I thinks wireless module can work in linux by some effort. Same goes for brightness settings. No change in brightness without right drivers. QUALITY: Build Quality is very good.Sound quality is average. LCD screen is excellent. First i found screen size small but after some days(3-4) i'm now used to it. And now i find my friends laptop(14.1 inches) very big. I couldn't believe that i was using that big screen 3 weeks ago. It also has antireflective feature. So you can even enjoy it even in bright sunlight. Keyboard is also good. You can easily get used to it. Maybe you'll find touchpad small if you're not used to fast pointer speed and no pointer precision.But it has that pinch and zoom, two finger scrolling, 3 finger tap, sensitivity etc etc kinda thing. Overall this netbook is excellent. Battery backup is amazing. Quality is very good. If you travel a lot like me,then this is the perfect companion for you.Ultra portable. Go for it.
Was this review helpful? Yes / No 2 of 4 users found this review helpful.


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Vaibhav Ashar
30 October 12

Good Light Weighted Companion

Hi On Flipkart Delivery Service is Excellent. I'm using this since 9 Long months. Its Good, battery backup is also acceptable. I installed Windows 7 on it. Good Response Time. I'm not playing much game on it. Its NetBook. Using much for internet and Programming & Management Research. Have satisfactory performance. The only bug till date is, after constant use of long hours some simple shortcut keys such as "show desktop" and the "Desktop icons" become un clickable. But I manage it using Windows Explorer. If you want to use it as NetBook go for it. Excellent choice !!

RE: Planning to install Windows 7 on your netbook, here's a couple tips


I installed Win7-Enterprise on a Packard-Bell Dot running atom Atheros with 1gb ram. I didnt' install from a USB key but rather got a portable external dvd drive. Install went very smooth, and the netbook now runs MUCH better than it did on XP.

Can I install Windows 7 on my HP Laptop with DOS previously installed? What steps I have to follow?
Actually I bought HP Notebook model G62- b55se, having DOS operating system, Now I want to install Windows 7 on it, How to proceed installation.Please guide me

2 years ago Report Abuse

Uziel Tech Expert

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker


A Windows 7 clean install simply means an installation of Windows 7 on an unused partition on your hard drive. In most cases, though, a clean install of Windows 7 means to remove an existing operating system which is DOS in your case. I hope you have the Win& DVD media and the Key. To begin the Windows 7 clean install process, you'll need to boot from the Windows 7 DVD. Put the dvd in the dvd drive and restart and immediately start pressing F12 (else change the boot order to boot first from the DVD in BIOS by pressing F2) ....Watch for a Press any key to boot from CD or DVD... message...press nay key immediately... now just wait and follow on screen instructions. Go for the Custom(advance Option)...Windows 7 setup considers partition management as an advanced task so you'll need to click the Drive options (advanced) link to make those options available Now that all available drive options are listed, you can delete any operating system related partitions from your existing hard drive (DOS in this case) ....Highlight the partition you want to delete and then click the Delete link ..... As you can now see, all the space on the installed hard drive is unallocated. No partitions exist on this computer. If you're installing Windows 7 on a computer with a single hard drive on which you've just deleted all the partitions from, your screen should look like the one above, aside from your hard drive being a different size. Now keep following the prompts and you will be able to install windows.

2 years ago

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