Cologne Cathedral and Hohenzollern Bridge Germany

Thanks to http://www.hd-wallpapersx.com/

5 Ways to Get Windows 7 On Your New PC

Yes, Windows 7 is still available. If you want a new PC and you also want Windows 7, you can probably get it. This is easiest for businesses, but even home users have ways to get Windows 7. If you’re a home user, we wouldn’t recommend doing this. You’ll have to pay more and spend more time setting things up. Windows 8.1 isn’t as bad as Windows 8 was, and you can always install a start menu replacement.

-Buy a PC With Windows 7

-Find Your Old Boxed Copy of Windows 7

-Locate and Buy a Copy of Windows 7

-Use Downgrade Rights

-Take Advantage of Your Organization’s Volume Licensing Agreement

-You May Want to Reconsider

Buy a PC With Windows 7

Some PCs are still available with Windows 7, although they’re vanishing fast. Search a site like Amazon for “Windows 7 laptop” and you’ll probably find them. The big problem with purchasing a laptop with Windows 7 is that it will likely be rather old. It’s now been 14 months since Windows 8 became generally available, so all these laptops will be over a year old. When you consider the huge advances made in hardware in the last year, particularly with Intel’s Haswell chips and their extremely improved power efficiency and battery life, these don’t look like such a great deal. Seeking out an old laptop is a dangerous game, as you may end up paying significantly more than the laptop is worth. Be sure to compare it to new models and verify that you’re actually getting a good deal — new Haswell and Atom laptops are becoming surprisingly cheap. You’d probably be happier with a longer-lasting, newer device, even if it comes with a version of Windows you don’t prefer.

Find Your Old Boxed Copy of Windows 7

Did you ever buy a boxed retail copy of Windows 7? If you did, you may still be able to install it on your new PC today. Note that there are several different versions of Windows 7. There’s an OEM copy, which you’re only allowed to install on a single PC. There’s also an upgrade copy, which can only be installed as an upgrade. However, if you picked up a full retail boxed copy, you can install it on your new Windows 8 PC. The only catch is that it can only be installed on one PC at a time, so you’ll have to remove it from any other PCs it’s installed on before installing it on your new PC. If you already have a retail copy of Windows 7, this is an inexpensive way to replace Windows 8. Before you do this, you should do some research and ensure your new PC’s hardware is fully compatible with Windows 7. If the manufacturer only made hardware drivers available for Windows 8, the hardware may not work properly on Windows 7. Luckily, due to all the businesses standardizing on Windows 7, manufacturers will likely provide Windows 7 drivers for most hardware.

Locate and Buy a Copy of Windows 7

These boxed copies of Windows 7 are still available, even though Microsoft is no longer selling them. You can find them on any site that sells computer stuff, from Amazon to Newegg. For example, perform a search for Windows 7 on Amazon.com and you’ll see you can buy a boxed copy of Windows 7 Home Premium for $89. Note that this is an OEM edition, so you’re only able to install it on one PC ever — that’s what the license agreement says, at least. This isn’t a terrible deal, but you may want to reconsider spending the $89 and try using Windows 8.1 to see if you like it. You should also try to ensure that your PC’s hardware offers full support for Windows 7 before purchasing a copy.

Use Downgrade Rights

If you have a computer that came with the Professional edition of Windows 8, you have downgrade rights. This means that you can install Windows 7 over Windows 8 without needing an additional license key. These downgrade rights are intended for businesses, which is why you can only do this if you buy a PC that comes with Windows 8 Professional. You can’t just upgrade your laptop to Windows 8 Professional and then exercise downgrade rights — you can only do it if your PC originally came with the Professional edition. This effectively locks most home users out, leaving the option only available to businesses.

Take Advantage of Your Organization’s Volume Licensing Agreement

If your organization has a volume licensing agreement with Microsoft, you likely have downgrade rights for all your devices. You can choose to install Windows 7 on devices that came with Windows 8 without paying any additional licensing fees. This is how so many businesses are standardizing on Windows 7, even if they’re purchasing new devices that come with Windows 8.