How can you tell if a PC is upgradeable to Windows 7?

[Pilgrim]

I have a client whose c. 6 year old HP Pavilion dv9000 just died. I suspect that it is the hard drive. Since the recovery partition is on the drive, I'm assuming that if I replace the hdd I am going to have to also purchase an OS too. (correct me if this is not necessarily the case)!! It currently has Windows Vista Home Premium 32-bit installed. IF he needs to also purchase the OS how can I tell if this particular model laptop is compatible with Windows 7 Home Premium (32-bit or 64-bit)?? Of course, the motherboard drivers are probably what is in view here, right?

TIA

[HansV]

If a computer can run Vista, it can probably run Windows 7. To be sure, download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor.

[Pilgrim]

If a computer can run Vista, it can probably run Windows 7. To be sure, download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor.

1. I'm assuming that the Windows 7 version must be the same "bit" as what was installed, correct?
2. Are you saying that no additional motherboard drivers would be needed?
3. Running the Upgrade Advisor would be just a bit difficult since the machine died... it won't boot, etc.

[HansV]

Sorry, you mentioned that the machine died - I should have noticed that.

I'll leave it for the Windows experts to answer your other questions.

[viking33]

If a computer can run Vista, it can probably run Windows 7. To be sure, download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor.

1. I'm assuming that the Windows 7 version must be the same "bit" as what was installed, correct?
2. Are you saying that no additional motherboard drivers would be needed?
3. Running the Upgrade Advisor would be just a bit difficult since the machine died... it won't boot, etc.

Jeff,
There is a list of SYSTEM requirements here:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/wind ... quirements" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You can at least check for the basic needs there. So far as individual programs are concerned, it may or may not be OK but as Hans said, if it ran Vista OK, then you will probably be good for Win 7.
Once the system is up and running, you may have to get some updates for hardware and or programs.
My guess is you will be in good shape with the new OS.
When you purchase the new OS, you should get copies of both 32 bit and 64 bit OSs in the package. I would try the 64 bit first but if it bombs, then go for the 32 bit version.

[tedshemyers]

Check the Windows 7 compatibility Center for some further info.

[John Gray]

IF the side of the case has the Windows Vista hologram sticker with the Product Key on it
AND you can get a copy of the HP OEM version of Vista for that machine on a bootable CD
THEN you could reinstall Vista on the new hard disk.

Vista will probably not activate with a generic Vista CD, and you would have to throw yourself on the mercy of Microsoft Licensing to give you a replacement Product Key (this should be perfectly feasible, since the circumstances are quite logical).

Personally, I wouldn't think of trying to install Windows 7 on such an olde machine. You probably would not receive "a good Windows 7 experience", because of lack of memory (2 GB is a good start) CPU power (Core2Duo ditto) and a decent graphics card if you want to run Aero.

[Bigaldoc]

I have a client whose c. 6 year old HP Pavilion dv9000 just died. I suspect that it is the hard drive. Since the recovery partition is on the drive, I'm assuming that if I replace the hdd I am going to have to also purchase an OS too. (correct me if this is not necessarily the case)!! It currently has Windows Vista Home Premium 32-bit installed. IF he needs to also purchase the OS how can I tell if this particular model laptop is compatible with Windows 7 Home Premium (32-bit or 64-bit)?? Of course, the motherboard drivers are probably what is in view here, right?

TIA

Jeff, why are you considering an "upgrade" to Win7 in this case? In other posts I just detailed my experiences with a friend's laptop, running Vista Home Premium that died because of a bad hard drive. As you might expect, she had not burned the usual laptop recovery DVD so I had to purchase same from Toshiba for $25 which is potentially a lot less than upgrading to Win7.

She was "used to" Vista and has no problem with my "reconstituted" machine for her and the expense (except for the cost of a replacement drive) was minimal at best.

[PJ_in_FL]

3. Running the Upgrade Advisor would be just a bit difficult since the machine died... it won't boot, etc.

Not to rain on any parades, but this discussion is quite moot unless you can at the least get the system to run SOMETHING.

To help diagnose the machine, remove the existing hard drive and battery before continuing.

With the unit plugged in and with no battery or HDD installed:
1. Will the machine turn on and display a boot screen?
2. Can you enter the BIOS screens, usually by pressing the ESC key as soon as something shows on the display after turning the PC on?
3. Have you tried to put a LiveCD of Linux in the machine to see if everything will boot up and run (tests motherboard circuits, CPU, memory, power supply and CD/DVD drive)? Mint or Ubuntu are available as an ISO that will burn to a bootable CD image, to name two of many.
4. Can you do the same as above with the battery installed and running off the battery only?


If you can accomplish ALL of these, then the discussion of what OS to load on this hardware is relevant. Otherwise, the topic needs to be "What replacement laptop should I recommend to my client with these requirements..."

[viking33]

PJ_in_FL,
Your point is well taken but Jeff ( the OP ) had asked for his client, not himself, that IF he needed to purchase a new OS, what could his client use. Also what the system requirements would be for Win 7? Jeff is able to go on line to get those answers before going any further. IF the system wouldn't handle Win 7, then why go through all the additional tests?

[PJ_in_FL]

PJ_in_FL,
Your point is well taken but Jeff ( the OP ) had asked for his client, not himself, that IF he needed to purchase a new OS, what could his client use. Also what the system requirements would be for Win 7? Jeff is able to go on line to get those answers before going any further. IF the system wouldn't handle Win 7, then why go through all the additional tests?

I read the OP differently. Either way, I hope Jeff received information helpful to himself and his client.

[viking33]

PJ_in_FL,
Your point is well taken but Jeff ( the OP ) had asked for his client, not himself, that IF he needed to purchase a new OS, what could his client use. Also what the system requirements would be for Win 7? Jeff is able to go on line to get those answers before going any further. IF the system wouldn't handle Win 7, then why go through all the additional tests?

I read the OP differently. Either way, I hope Jeff received information helpful to himself and his client.

We will just have to wait for Jeff to come back here to give us some straight answers, in place of assumptions.

[Pilgrim]

Thanks for all the input. I didn't realize there were so many responses to my original query since I have not been getting the e-mail notifications after the first two for some reason????

At this point, the client wants me to try and fix the laptop instead of purchasing a replacement, which was my personal recommendation. So, I will order a new hard drive and stick with Vista Home Premium 32-bit since according to HP, that will avoid trying to find drivers, etc. for anything else.

Before I spend any further time and money looking for replacement hardware/software, I'll run through the list of items to do offered by "PJ_in_FL". It is my educated guess that it is the hard drive, but it also could be the power supply or processor. And because it is a laptop, I don't have the knowledge to run diagnostics on those items. But I did run a hdd diagnostic using MemTest-86 and the long test showed 14 errors right out of the gate. I couldn't get the repair feature to work so I managed to run Chkdsk and thereafter it did boot and seemed to run fine for about 5 days. After I handed the unit over to the client, he called back after 3 days and said it wouldn't boot again. So, that's why I'm going with hard drive failure.

I'll report back with what decision I make on the repair.

Thanks again for all the responses offered. It is much appreciated. Every time I have one of these type of laptop issues I am very glad I have a desktop.

[Pilgrim]

To help diagnose the machine, remove the existing hard drive and battery before continuing.

With the unit plugged in and with no battery or HDD installed:
1. Will the machine turn on and display a boot screen? NO

2. Can you enter the BIOS screens, usually by pressing the ESC key as soon as something shows on the display after turning the PC on? NO

3. Have you tried to put a LiveCD of Linux in the machine to see if everything will boot up and run (tests motherboard circuits, CPU, memory, power supply and CD/DVD drive)? Mint or Ubuntu are available as an ISO that will burn to a bootable CD image, to name two of many. YES, but it won't load the CD (Ubuntu 9.01)

4. Can you do the same as above with the battery installed and running off the battery only? NO, same results=Nada

The machine powers on, the CPU fan begins to run, then the fan stops... power remains on for about 20 seconds then it powers off and on again going through this same cycle.

Soooooo, wouldn't that indicate either a faulty fan? or power supply? or even a CPU? I can't decide which, hehe.

[JoeP]

If you are charging for diagnostic time the client may be better off just replacing the PC. Diagnostics & repair can be very time consuming. Besides, six years old is ancient for a laptop. If it is a normal business PC (i.e. not doing heavy duty graphics or gaming), a new laptop should not cost that much.

Joe

[Pilgrim]

If you are charging for diagnostic time the client may be better off just replacing the PC. Diagnostics & repair can be very time consuming. Besides, six years old is ancient for a laptop. If it is a normal business PC (i.e. not doing heavy duty graphics or gaming), a new laptop should not cost that much.

This is very true, although I am very fair in regard to charging for my time.

And, as you probably read, my personal recommendation to this individual due to the age of the laptop, etc., was to go for a replacement. I even did a quick shopping search and found several that I felt would be good replacements. But he was insistent upon my trying to repair this one with a new hard drive and OS. With the above tests all failing, it seems my first assessment that it was a bad hard drive was incorrect and that the problem lies elsewhere. So, I will once again recommend to him that he abandon his desire to resurrect this laptop and purchase a new one.

Any further thoughts from you Joe, or anyone else before I make that phone call?

[PJ_in_FL]

With the unit plugged in and with no battery or HDD installed:
1. Will the machine turn on and display a boot screen? NO

That one statement sums up the situation to me. The patient is dead!

[viking33]

With the unit plugged in and with no battery or HDD installed:
1. Will the machine turn on and display a boot screen? NO

That one statement sums up the situation to me. The patient is dead!

Agreed!
See if they need a new anchor for their boat.

[Pilgrim]

Final report... The client finally agreed that it would be a waste of money to try and fix the laptop and he purchased a new one as a replacement. I did recommend, since he knows someone who actually fixes and rebuilds laptops, that he take his dead unit and have his friend check the CPU fan to see if that is faulty. It could be that if the fan wouldn't spin or stopped prematurely, that it could account for the problem.

Case closed and I'm thankful it is.