Windows Vista Anytime Upgrade

[Magin Sriubas]

Id like to upgrade Vista Home to Vista Ultimate on my desktop computer. I have a MSDN subscription, which means I can download just about every Microsoft software there is. However, there doesn't seem to be any Vista anytime upgrade DVD available in the MSDN downloads section.

As an alternative, consider using the Windows Easy Transfer tool to save documetns and settings, then use the 'clean install' option, finally re-run the Windows Easy Transfer tool to restore documents and settings.

Vista's 'clean install' actually doesn't do a clean install. It will move the existing installation to a folder called Windows.old, where you'll be able to access all your documents. Sometimes, if you don;t have a lot of programs to reinstall, this is easier than using Easy Transfer, you can just drag'n'drop your files back to the new My Documents folder.

You could try downloading the torrent of the Anytime Upgrade DVD and see if your MSDN key works with that. Not a 100% legal option (though with your own key it is probably more legal), but if you really want to do an in-place upgrade it is an option.

I am sharing my own personal experience and I know this works. I have had 2 vista machines one vista ultimate and one netbook - vista home basic. I have upgraded both to win 7. The desktop with vista ultimate was upgraded to win 7 using the full version. The netbook, which I just bought over the weekend, came with vista home basic. I purchased windows 7 professional upgrade online from microsoft and downloaded it to the netbook. When it came to the section asking me to upgrade or fresh install, I choose fresh install and it worked like a charm. I could have choose upgrade and it would have worked also. Both Vista and Win 7 have anytime upgrade making it possible to go from vista home basic to win 7 ultimate with no problems.

If you buy a retail version you can upgrade to Windows 7 home and then use you pro key to do an anytime upgrade to Windows 7 Pro. I would recommend a clean install in any case. The upgrade path is just an option. Either way you will need to by a Full version.

i have an hp pavilion a6400f desktop in vista and would like to upgrade to newer system (7,8,10) to keep it current. what are my best options at this point in time, i knoww it's kinda late to be doing this. what would be easiest to install?

I wish I had good news for you, but I don't -- because your options are VERY limited at this point.

When Win7 was new, MS offered the Anytime Upgrade, and with this, you had an "Upgrade Path" to Win7, meaning, you could do the upgrade in-place and retain your settings, personal data, and applications.

MS discontinued that years ago, and while you might be able to purchase Win7 from online sources (e.g., NewEgg), they only offer the full Win7 DVD, and that is not the same as the Anytime Upgrade option, and costs a lot more.

In addition, there is the problem of newer HP drivers for the hardware that came with your PC. HP does not carry drivers for anything newer than Vista for your PC. This means that if you install a newer OS version, you will be stuck with the generic drivers that Microsoft installs, and while that MIGHT work, if any hardware doesn't work properly after that, you will then be stuck permanently, as there will be no HP drivers coming along to remedy that problem.

Sorry, but it's time to be thinking about getting a new PC, rather than upgrading your old one.

Good Luck

WAWood, thank for your reply, you confirmed my suspicions about my options. i have been looking for latest model desktops for some time now. guess i may "bite the bullet" and get it over with, then i will be good for several years to come.

3. look at www.bestbuy.com and search for "refurbished computer" -- a computer that was sold to a customer, broke, was sent back to the factory, repaired, recertified, and shipped back to BestBuy. Such computers work fine, and are often sold at a very attractive price, and run Windows 10.

mdklassen, thanks for replying. i bought this unit at the end of 2008 so it has seen better days. it has it's ups and downs and sometimes can run very sluggish. after clearing history it moves a bit quicker. i use it primarily for banking, shopping and visiting forums. i don't play games on it, just don't have the time. i have some music and photos stored on it but not much.

Windows Anytime Upgrade (WAU) is an upgrade method offered by Microsoft and selected resellers for users who wish to upgrade their edition of Windows Vista by buying a license. As we talked about in our Windows 7 pricing post, WAU will also be available for Windows 7. Since May 2007, WAU packs have been sold at retail in North America, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific countries. That would suggest that there are WAU retail boxes for Windows 7, right? Correct, as pictured above, Aero XP has managed to grab a few snapshots of them and confirm that the "full version boxes carry the same dimensions as the current Vista boxes."

If the boxes seem familiar, that's because they were leaked last month. We thought they were normal upgrade boxes and were suspicious about how different they looked from the Windows 7 retail boxes that were confirmed earlier this week. Now it all makes sense: they're simply WAU retail boxes for Windows 7.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to Ars that WAU for Windows 7 could be purchased via two separate channels: "You can buy WAU options at retail or online." However, Microsoft is still holding back on pricing: "As with previous Windows operating systems, we know customers are often interested in upgrading to a richer experience by purchasing a higher SKU via Windows Anytime Upgrade," the spokesperson told Ars. "We can confirm that we will be offering anytime upgrades for Windows 7 and will be providing full details of Windows Anytime Upgrade pricing in the future."

A tipster tells us that WAU for Windows 7 might not end up being offered in retail stores in the US and other developed countries. Only regions where broadband access is extremely limited or unavailable will have the WAU retail boxes offered. This is unlike Vista, which required the actual disc to perform the upgrade from edition to edition. Since Windows 7 does not require a disc to perform an upgrade from edition to edition, most users will be able to simply pay for the key online and perform the upgrade. In short, you may not end up seeing the WAU retail boxes for Windows 7 after all.

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