[brainout]

MKZ1945, on 30 January 2013 - 05:23 PM, said:

Okay people, this is what I found out from a couple of friends that have had experience with this loss of old operating system rights problem and how to get around it. I don’t know if any of this is 100% true, so I’m not recommending anything here. These are guys I know and also know they are more the computer geek types than I am.

For the download upgrade version ($40.00) you must have a compatible version of Windows running just to download the software. Select the option for the ISO file and burn it to a disk that will be used for installation. Make sure you have the installation disks and appropriate serial code for your old version. Now you will need to reformat you’re the hard drive that the operating system is on. It’s important that you have no Windows operating system on your machine when installing the upgrade or you will lose it. Once the format is complete you can install Windows 8. After installation you can than install your old operating system on another drive, or partition of a drive. The d

The hole in the system appears to be that if you do a clean install you are never exposing the old software to MS for serial code. It’s not even asked for during the install process. If you do like I did and install Windows 8 over an older operating system you lose access to it. I suspect that at some point during installation MS records the old serial number and it’s history. There are rollback options, but it’s at the cost of making phone calls and losing Windows 8. MS allows going back to the previous version, but it does not allow you to keep the new version. For some reason, this makes sense to me. After all, it’s an upgrade.

I’ll state again that this is just word of mouth info from a couple of friends and I have no documentation to back it up. I guess if I had only one operating system on my main computer I might have been a lot smarter on the subject. Anyway, I’m not wasting my time with this mess anymore. I had no intentions of upsetting anyone, but I’ve been known to do that without trying.

You're not upsetting anyone. Your information is valuable. Thank you very much. I was in the middle of trying to decide what to do prior to January 31 (tomorrow), and your post helped me to decide. Again, thank you very, very much!

[brainout]

MKZ1945, on 30 January 2013 - 05:23 PM, said:

Now you will need to reformat you’re the hard drive that the operating system is on. It’s important that you have no Windows operating system on your machine when installing the upgrade or you will lose it. Once the format is complete you can install Windows 8. After installation you can than install your old operating system on another drive, or partition of a drive. (snip)

The hole in the system appears to be that if you do a clean install you are never exposing the old software to MS for serial code. It’s not even asked for during the install process. If you do like I did and install Windows 8 over an older operating system you lose access to it. (snip)

The two blue '(snip)' instances mean I cut text from the quote, to focus on the relevant parts.

I'll try doing this, MKZ. I can afford to replace the upgrades with System Builder later, if the above doesn't work. Unfortunately I can't do it by tomorrow. But what you write here, I've seen in many places over the internet in varying contexts. The System Builder will NOT reformat the drive, and System Builder is only for one machine.

I bought the DVDs, instead of downloading for $40. Two sets of two DVDs, each 32-bit and 64-bit Win8 Pro. So that cost of $130 is worth testing. I could return the DVDs or sell them to a friend if I don't like the results. System Builder can't be resold. So that decided me on what to do. You were a tremendous help, and if it doesn't work, don't worry -- I won't blame you. My guess is your guys are right in what they say, because I've seen so many other explanations in computer magazine articles and in user forums, which say the same thing. So bottom line, there are three scenarios:

1. Upgrade OVER the existing OS -- wipes out the earlier version. You can only downgrade, after that, if even eligible to downgrade.
2. Upgrade as a clean install after formatting the partition on which the earlier version resides. Doesn't wipe out the earlier version's usage, but does replace it on that same partition.
3. Install on a second partition, leaving the earlier version intact: MS says you need System Builder to do that. Other stuff on the internet says that during #2, you can also install Win8 to a separate blank partition. So there's some conflict of information, here.

I'll be testing whether #3 and #2 are doable with the Upgrade. If not, then I'll report on the effects. However, it may be a year before I do this. Tax season is hot, now.

[waldojim]

MKZ1945, on 30 January 2013 - 05:23 PM, said:

Okay people, this is what I found out from a couple of friends that have had experience with this loss of old operating system rights problem and how to get around it. I don’t know if any of this is 100% true, so I’m not recommending anything here. These are guys I know and also know they are more the computer geek types than I am.

For the download upgrade version ($40.00) you must have a compatible version of Windows running just to download the software. Select the option for the ISO file and burn it to a disk that will be used for installation. Make sure you have the installation disks and appropriate serial code for your old version. Now you will need to reformat you’re the hard drive that the operating system is on. It’s important that you have no Windows operating system on your machine when installing the upgrade or you will lose it. Once the format is complete you can install Windows 8. After installation you can than install your old operating system on another drive, or partition of a drive. The d

The hole in the system appears to be that if you do a clean install you are never exposing the old software to MS for serial code. It’s not even asked for during the install process. If you do like I did and install Windows 8 over an older operating system you lose access to it. I suspect that at some point during installation MS records the old serial number and it’s history. There are rollback options, but it’s at the cost of making phone calls and losing Windows 8. MS allows going back to the previous version, but it does not allow you to keep the new version. For some reason, this makes sense to me. After all, it’s an upgrade.

I’ll state again that this is just word of mouth info from a couple of friends and I have no documentation to back it up. I guess if I had only one operating system on my main computer I might have been a lot smarter on the subject. Anyway, I’m not wasting my time with this mess anymore. I had no intentions of upsetting anyone, but I’ve been known to do that without trying.

I gave you the answer direct from Microsoft already. You never lose your old code.

[brainout]

brainout, on 30 January 2013 - 07:31 PM, said:

MKZ1945, on 30 January 2013 - 05:23 PM, said:

Now you will need to reformat you’re the hard drive that the operating system is on. It’s important that you have no Windows operating system on your machine when installing the upgrade or you will lose it. Once the format is complete you can install Windows 8. After installation you can than install your old operating system on another drive, or partition of a drive. (snip)

The hole in the system appears to be that if you do a clean install you are never exposing the old software to MS for serial code. It’s not even asked for during the install process. If you do like I did and install Windows 8 over an older operating system you lose access to it. (snip)

The two blue '(snip)' instances mean I cut text from the quote, to focus on the relevant parts.

I'll try doing this, MKZ. I can afford to replace the upgrades with System Builder later, if the above doesn't work. Unfortunately I can't do it by tomorrow. But what you write here, I've seen in many places over the internet in varying contexts. The System Builder will NOT reformat the drive, and System Builder is only for one machine.

I bought the DVDs, instead of downloading for $40. Two sets of two DVDs, each 32-bit and 64-bit Win8 Pro. So that cost of $130 is worth testing. I could return the DVDs or sell them to a friend if I don't like the results. System Builder can't be resold. So that decided me on what to do. You were a tremendous help, and if it doesn't work, don't worry -- I won't blame you. My guess is your guys are right in what they say, because I've seen so many other explanations in computer magazine articles and in user forums, which say the same thing. So bottom line, there are three scenarios:

1. Upgrade OVER the existing OS -- wipes out the earlier version. You can only downgrade, after that, if even eligible to downgrade.
2. Upgrade as a clean install after formatting the partition on which the earlier version resides. Doesn't wipe out the earlier version's usage, but does replace it on that same partition.
3. Install on a second partition, leaving the earlier version intact: MS says you need System Builder to do that. Other stuff on the internet says that during #2, you can also install Win8 to a separate blank partition. So there's some conflict of information, here.

I'll be testing whether #3 and #2 are doable with the Upgrade. If not, then I'll report on the effects. However, it may be a year before I do this. Tax season is hot, now.

Click here for a link in Windows 8 Forums which tends to confirm MKZ's query to his friends. Many links like that one are on the internet. Just google on 'Windows 8 upgrade dual boot'. The hickey seems to be with the license agreement on whether the prior Windows version is still allowed, as you'll see if you click here.

So that does it, for me. I'm sick to death of all this complicated nonsense. PCs had a golden time when they were easier to use, but all this crazy stuff post-XP has made it insane. But at least now I can go back to work and forget about it.

This post has been edited by brainout: 30 January 2013 - 10:08 PM

[djnforce9]

Quote

The d The hole in the system appears to be that if you do a clean install you are never exposing the old software to MS for serial code. It’s not even asked for during the install process. If you do like I did and install Windows 8 over an older operating system you lose access to it.

You can check this ahead of time by looking at the system screen in the control panel which will tell you whether or not windows is activated. There is also a guide on how to activate Windows 8 without having a previous operating system (which is what I did when my SSD failed and I had to do a fresh install thereafter):

http://www.ghacks.ne...stall-possible/