ARCHIVED: About Windows 7 at IU

This content has been archived, and is no longer maintained by Indiana University. Information here may no longer be accurate, and links may no longer be available or reliable.
Important:
Both Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 will reach end of life on January 14, 2020, with Microsoft no longer providing security patches and support ending at IU. If you haven't already done so, UITS strongly recommends that you move to a more modern operating system before that time.

On this page:


Introduction

Windows 7 is a different operating system from its predecessor, Vista, providing greater functionality in communication, multimedia, and security, including improved, streamlined User Account Control (UAC) performance with fewer prompts. The interface introduced uses 3D graphics and other high-end visual effects.

System requirements

The minimum hardware requirements for Windows 7 as specified by Microsoft, as well as further recommendations from UITS, are listed as follows:

  • 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
    UITS recommends: A dual-core (Core 2) processor
  • 1 GB of system memory (32-bit) or 2 GB of system memory (64-bit)
    UITS recommends: 2 GB system memory
  • A graphics processor that is DirectX 9-capable with Hardware Pixel Shader v2.0 and WDDM Driver support
  • 128 MB of graphics memory
    UITS recommends: 256 MB graphics memory; non-integrated video card
  • 40 GB of hard drive capacity with 16 GB free space (32-bit) or 20 GB free space (64-bit)
    UITS recommends: 80-100 GB capacity
  • DVD-ROM drive
  • Audio output capability
  • Internet access capability

For more, see Microsoft's Windows 7 system requirements.

Windows 7 versions and upgrades

IU students, faculty, and staff can install and use Windows 7 Ultimate; IU departments use Windows 7 Enterprise.

  • If you are using any version of Windows 7 or Vista except Enterprise, you can upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate. For example, if you purchase a new computer from an outside retailer, it might be shipped with Windows 7 Home Premium; you can upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate if you wish.
  • Departments that use Vista Enterprise can upgrade to Windows 7 Enterprise. If you have Vista Enterprise for personal use, you cannot upgrade that to Windows 7 Enterprise, but you can do a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate, which will format your hard drive and remove your previous version of Windows.
  • For all other versions of Windows, migrating to Windows 7 will require a clean install.
  • Your upgrade path must be consistent with your system type; you cannot upgrade from Windows Vista Ultimate 32-bit to Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit, or from a 64-bit to a 32-bit operating system.
  • The 64-bit version will not run on a 32-bit computer. If you're not sure what you need, contact your campus Support Center.

Windows 7 Home Premium does not have all the features of the Ultimate or Enterprise versions; specifically, it cannot join IU's Active Directory domain. UITS recommends that Windows 7 Home Premium users upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate.

For information about upgrading from an earlier version of Windows, see Microsoft's Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. For information about the differences between versions, see Wikipedia's Windows 7 editions comparison chart.

This is document ayrx in the Knowledge Base.
Last modified on 2021-09-07 17:10:49.