WIndows 10 Will there be any hardware incompatibility issues upgrading from Windows 7 to 10 (or 11)?

[JohnJSal]

Hi all. I've been clinging to Windows 7 because everything just works fine as is (and it was much better for gaming than 8), but I'm thinking it may be time to upgrade. Is it possible that I will run into any compatibility issues with my hardware and Windows 10? I upgraded my PC about 4-5 years ago, so most parts are from that time. The HDD is actually much older.

Also, would it be better to upgrade to Windows 11 instead? Is it stable and good for gaming?

 

[johnb35]

Before you even think about upgrading, since your hardware doesn't support an NVME SSD I would consider getting a SATA SSD in there You can install Windows 10 using your windows 7 key. Your hardware should be fine for windows 10. Windows 11 would require a fresh install and you would have to bypass the system requirements using a special procedure. The cpu is outdated for an upgrade to 11. Unless you feel its time to get new hardware and actually get an NVME SSD which would boot up a lot quicker then a SATA SSD. But even with a SATA SSD you'll notice huge improvement from a mechanical hard drive.

 

[JohnJSal]

Is the new hard drive necessary for Windows 10, or just a strong suggestion? If I get an SSD, would that mean a fresh install of Windows 10 from scratch? (I'm not necessarily opposed to that.) If I keep my current HDD, would I be able to upgrade my current version of 7 to 10 without having to reinstall Windows?

 

[porterjw]

Hi all. I've been clinging to Windows 7 because everything just works

I feel you.

Is the new hard drive necessary for Windows 10, or just a strong suggestion? If I get an SSD, would that mean a fresh install of Windows 10 from scratch? (I'm not necessarily opposed to that.) If I keep my current HDD, would I be able to upgrade my current version of 7 to 10 without having to reinstall Windows?

Is it a necessity? No.

That being said, will it vastly improve your experience? 100% yes.

As far as upgrading goes on your HDD, it's recommended to do a fresh install, but not required. If you opt for the SSD route, absolutely do a fresh install.

 

[JohnJSal]

Ok, it sounds like I probably won't have any issues (in particular hardware) with Windows 10, but I probably will with Windows 11. That's fine if I don't need to upgrade to the latest just yet, though it seems weird to finally upgrade but NOT to the latest version.

Is 10 good/stable/etc. and works well with gaming?

This is making me nervous......

 

[johnb35]

Once you get windows 10 installed, you will not get nagged to update to 11 since you have old hardware that technically isn't supported by an upgrade going from 10 to 11. The only way you'll get windows 11 on your machine is to bypass the system requirements.

How to Bypass Windows 11's TPM, CPU and RAM Requirements

Use simple utilities to install Windows 11 on any PC.

www.tomshardware.com

10 will be fine for gaming.

 

[JohnJSal]

Thanks. And is it possible to just do an upgrade from 7 to 10 that doesn't make me lose what's on my system? Is this advisable?

 

[johnb35]

Not advisable but doable. It's just like any other upgrade as there is more of a chance to something going wrong during the upgrade especially if you don't keep your system is tip top shape, like doing general cleanup and making sure there is no malware. I would still highly recommend getting a 500gb SATA SSD and doing a clean install of 10 using your windows 7 key. If you do it this way then make sure you disconnect all other drives so that your boot files don't get placed on a different drive. Once windows is install then you can reconnect your drives. If you have any important data on the drive you want to upgrade to 10 then I would back it up first in case something happens. When I was doing 7 to 10 upgrades, I ended up having to do fresh installs afterwards because of all the issues.

 

[JohnJSal]

Thanks so much! I am considering getting an SSD, but that raises many more questions about how to make the switch properly. I'll head over to the hard drive forum for that!

Edit: But as for upgrading to 10 with the 7 key, do I need to get a physical disc for 10, or is it all done online? I believe I still have the physical disc (which should include the key) for 7, or will it all happen automatically? I know it was free for a while, but I'm not sure now.

 

[Intel_man]

Nah, you don't need a physical disc. Download the media creation tool from their website and install it onto a USB. Just set your BIOS to boot from USB afterwards so it loads the windows 10 installer.

Download Windows 10