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Windows 8 Pro Download, Upgrade, and Clean Install FAQs

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In my last post you had seen how to download the newly released Windows 8 Pro version from Microsoft. Yes, there are a lot of other question on how do we install it etc. But first of all let me clear some questions which I had in my mind for all of you to see.

Will Microsoft allow Installation of the Upgrade version to any other PC instead of the Windows PC you used while buying the Upgrade key?

YES! Well it is very good in the part of Microsoft that they allow you to keep both Windows 7 and Windows 8 PCs! The FAQs in the Upgrade Offer page says:

“The upgrade offer is tied to a Windows 7 PC purchased between 2 June 2012 and 31 January 2013, but you can choose to redeem the offer and install the upgrade on any compatible Windows-based PC with a qualifying base operating system.”

The last part says “with a qualifying base operating system.” Well this is not necessary when you go for a clean install using the backup media. FYI, the base operating systems Microsoft is talking about is Windows XP, Vista, and Windows 7

Selecting “Keep Nothing” while running Windows 8 Upgrade program mean Clean Install?

NO. Clean install means installing the Windows to a formatted partition, meaning there will be no Data present before. “Keep Nothing” is an option during the Upgrade install where none of your Apps or files will be retained while Upgrading to Windows 8 from your previous Windows.

I selected Keep Files or Keep Apps instead of Keep Nothing while purchasing the Key. Will I be able to do a clean install from the backup media?

YES. Those options are valid only if you upgrade using the Windows 8 Upgrade program. Once you choose to create media instead of Install, those options are no longer  relevant.

I want a 64-bit Windows 8 Pro, but my eligible PC is running 32-bit Windows. Will I be able to get and Install a 64-bit with the upgrade key I purchased?

YES. The upgrade is common for both 32-bit and 64-bit, meaning it works for both. You can download a 64-bit Windows 8 Pro with your key but only from a 64-bit Windows PC. This is because the Upgrade/Setup program will downloads the version which is only compatible to your Base OS. You can follow my last post on How to download Windows 8 Pro.

If you have any other questions while Installing or upgrading to Windows 8, do let me know. Just leave a comment below.

[How To] Download Windows 8 Pro 32/64-bit from Microsoft with Upgrade Key

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The new shiny Windows 8 featuring Tiles and all is here. Windows 8 was officially launched last week on October 26 along with Microsoft’s Surface Tablet which runs Windows RT. Windows 8 seems to be getting good reviews from users except from few. Well many of us are still thinking whether to upgrade or not.

For all those who are not aware of the Windows Upgrade program, Microsoft is offering you a Windows 8 Pro (32/64-bit) for only $39.99 (USD). This offer is valid for many countries. The criteria is you should be running Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7. Additionally if you bought a Windows 7 PC after June 2, 2012 you can get it for $14.99.

Windows 8 Logo

Well for those who are aware and have already purchased Windows 8 key(s), you might have already downloaded it or you might be still waiting to download. We just wanted to inform everyone through this post that you need not worry about the download. You can do it whenever you are free or if you are in a limited internet plan, you can do it during your next billing cycle.

Requirements to Download Windows 8 Pro Legit from Microsoft:

# Operating System: Windows XP, Vista, or 7
# Of course an internet connection and
# Your Windows 8 Pro Upgrade Key you purchased earlier

Step 1: Download Windows8-Setup.exe from here. it is 5.2MB in size.

Step 2: Decide which Windows Pro version you want – either 32-bit or 64-bit. Well do note that you can install 64-bit only if your processor supports it. you can check if your CPU supports 64-bit OS here.

Step 3: Run the “Windows8-Setup.exe” you have downloaded  from a PC which has a 32-bit Windows if you want to download Windows 8 Pro 32-bit. Similarly run from a 64-bit PC if you want 64-bit version.
Size Details:
# 32-Bit Windows 8 Pro: 2.01GB
# 62-Bit Windows 8 Pro: 2.63GB

Step 4: When the Setup program starts, it will ask for your Windows 8 Pro key. Just enter your keys and viola, your download will commence.

windows 8 download

windows 8 download2

Step 5: After the download is completed, before installing the upgrade, we suggest you to create an iso or a USB drive backup for future setups. You can exit the setup program after that. Don’t loose the backup!

Windows 8 Pro Install

Step 6. While closing the setup program, it automatically creates a desktop icon(if it doesn’t you can re-start the program and it will start where you left off). So if you want to install Windows 8 as an upgrade to your existing OS, you can proceed to ‘Install’. But if you want a clean install, make use of the iso or USB drive backup. I personally recommend clean install over any upgrade install. Its up to you.

Windows 8 Pro Install by media

Important Notes:
# The back up you created to a USB drive or a DVD after download is similar to a retail version, meaning it is not linked to any key. You can use it for installing to any compatible system with any other legit key.
# The same product key can be used for downloading ether 32/64-bit Windows 8 i.e. the key is common for both versions.
# The Upgrade program will ask for your choice if you want to keep files, apps, or none. This choice is irrelevant if you are going for a clean install using a media device (USB/DVD)
# The language will depend on your location. You can install your preferred languages after installing windows 8.

If you have any questions or updates please leave a comment.

[Download] Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 Security Fix (KB2744842) – Critical Update

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We had issued and advisory earlier that the Internet Explorer 9 and lower versions are facing a security flaw where the attackers may exploit the bug, targeting hundreds of millions of computers, to infect the PC of somebody who visits a malicious website and then take control of the victim’s computer. Well this issue has been fixed.

 

 

Internet Explorer 9

Microsoft promised that the fix will be available by Friday, 21 September. Well they kept their promise but with some variations. Microsoft had said that this is an easy fix and it will not even require a reboot. Well that’s not true. The Critical update details say:

Security issues have been identified that could allow an attacker to compromise a system that is running Microsoft Internet Explorer and gain control over it. You can help protect your system by installing this update from Microsoft. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer.

windows-security-update

The Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 9 for Windows 7 (KB2744842) will be fixing the issue. This update is available in Windows Update. You can directly update it from your Windows PC.

If you don’t use Windows Update service. you can still  download it from Microsoft. Choose the correct Windows Version while downloading.

Download from Microsoft

[Download] Yahoo Messenger 11 Final Full Standalone Offline Installer

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Yahoo Messenger 11 final screenshot

The final version of the Yahoo! Messenger 11 has now been officially released and is available for download. Version 11 of the popular instant messaging software Yahoo Messenger has been in beta development since last November. The build number of the latest version is 11.0.0.2009 which can be downloaded from the links added towards the end of this post. Improvements in the Yahoo Messenger 11 according to the official Yahoo Messenger blog include:

>> Social gaming: Users can invite and play social games like Mafia Wars, Fishville inside the Messenger.

>> Social Integration: Receive and post updates from all your social network sites like Facebook, Twitter and Flickr etc. from right inside the Messenger.

>> Facebook chat

>> Chat history: All your conversations will be saved on the PC from where you signed into the Messenger.

Yahoo Messenger 11 Direct Download Links:

Follow the below mentioned direct links to download the full offline installers for the Yahoo Messenger 11 final. The

Offline version (US) – 18.1 MB

You may also want to install the Yahoo Messenger using the following online installer. Keep in mind that, you need to have active internet on the PC where you wish to install Yahoo Messenger using this particular version.

Online Installer – 414 KB

[Download] Internet Explorer 10 Platform Preview

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IE logo

Microsoft has released the first platform preview of the upcoming Internet Explorer 10 (IE10)  browser.  Looks like Microsoft learnt lessons from the success of Chrome and is now more keen to take on it and that might be the reason why we are seeing a platform preview of Internet Explorer 10 just weeks after Internet Explorer 9 final was released. IE10 is just under three weeks of development as of now and we already have a platform preview! Internet Explorer 10 will have native support for HTML5 and supports emerging CSS3 standards like CSS3 Multi-column Layout, CSS3 Grid Layout, Flexible Box Layout, CSS3 Gradients on background images, 3D Transforms and ES5 Strict Mode etc. Microsoft has said that it would update IE10 every 8-12 weeks.

IE10 Platform Preview 1

The Platform Preview of IE10 is available only for Windows 7 (both 32-bit and 64-bit). Web developers can download  the preview from the link added at the bottom of this post. The Platform Preview builds (upcoming) require some specific updates (KB2454826) to be installed on your Windows 7 machine to render Platform Preview graphics, media and printing functionalities. IE10 Platform Preview should install all the prerequisites automatically. But in case of any error during the installation, users have to manually install the updates before installing the Platform Preview. For more detailed instructions on installing the require updates prior to the installation of Platform Preview, head over to this page.

Download Internet Explorer 10 Platform Preview 1 [Direct Link ]

[via] Microsoft Official IE Blog

Download Internet Explorer 9 Final Now

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IE9 logo

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 9 has moved out of beta and the final version is now available for download for Windows 7 and Windows Vista based computers. Internet Explorer 9 looks sleek with minimalistic design, no toolbars, without any toolbars. As we have covered earlier, there is no search bar in IE9 and it has been integrated to the address bar adopting the popular move that was earlier taken by Google Chrome. Changing the default search engine in IE9 is quite easy as well. All you have to do is enter your search query and choose the search engines that have added to IE9.

IE9 Search Engine address bar

When it comes to speed, IE9 is neck-to-neck with Google Chrome 10 (without considering Firefox 4, equations may change when the final version of Firefox 4 releases). New tab page in IE9 has also been revamped to show most frequently sites along with their favicons and the frequency of visit to them. What’s more? If you use Windows Phone 7, you will soon have hands on mobile version of IE9 on your device.

 

Download IE9 Final:

Windows IE9 download

The final version of IE9, Internet Explorer 9 RTM (build number 9.00.8112.16421.110308-0330) is available for public download for Windows 7 and Vista and Windows Server 2008 R2. However, IE9 is not available for Windows XP users as Microsoft chose not to develop Windows XP version of the IE9. Find the direct download links for the standalone offline installer of IE9 after the break.

 

Windows 7 (32-bit) (17.3 MB)

Windows 7 (64-bit) (34.7 MB)

Windows Vista (32-bit) (17.2 MB)

Windows Vista (64-bit) (34.5 MB)

IE9 Product Guide (PDF – 28 MB)

[Download] Adobe Flash Player 10.3 Beta

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Flash-logo

Adobe has just released the Adobe Flash Player 10.3 Beta with the addition of few features that have been sought for long time by users. Flash 10.3 beta is coming with settings related to changing your privacy, flash storage etc. The new version also brings the native integration of Flash native control panel with that of Mac’s System Preferences and Control Panel in Windows 7. Until now users had no option to delete their flash storage (also known as flash cookies) data using their browser. They had to either visit Adobe online Settings Manager or use some third party software.

Adobe Flash Website Privacy Settings Panel

But starting from Flash Player 10.3, users can access the Flash local storage within their web browser (It’ll be first available for Firefox 4 users followed by IE8 and finally to Safari and Chrome users).

Adobe Flash Local Storage Settings

Another new feature that is bundled with Flash Player 10.3 is the introduction of Native Control Panel for Windows, Mac and Linux. You can find the Flash Player settings right from the Control Panel in Windows 7 or System Preferences in Mac OS X (search for “flash” for the settings) :

 

Flash Player control panel

Other improvements include auto-update notification for Mac OS, “Acoustic Echo Cancellation” for developers to improve communication in Flash Player.

I can’t see all the new features listed in the release notes being implemented in most of the browsers as now. But we can expect Adobe to roll out them very soon. If you are using Flash Player 10.2 or earlier versions, you can now download the Adobe Flash Player 10.3 beta from the following direct links:

Direct Download Links:

Active-x for Internet Explorer in Windows (3 MB)

Plug-in for other browsers (2.9 MB)

Plug-in for Mac OS X (6.1 MB)

Plug-in for Linux (5.3 MB)

 

You might also want to learn how to install these beta versions of Adobe Flash Player in Google Chrome by reading: Make Google Chrome to Use Flash Player 10.2 (works well for 10.3 as well).

[Download] Firefox 4 RC Now

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Firefox 4 RC

After releasing numerous minor beta releases of Firefox 4, Mozilla has now officially released the Firefox 4 first Release Candidate (RC1) version which is now available for download. Firefox 4 RC1 will have all the features that have been previously included in the beta releases of Firefox 4 like fresh new UI, Firefox button, app tabs, Firefox Sync, hardware accelerated graphics (Windows and Mac), multitouch support (Windows 7 only), JägerMonkey JavaScript engine etc.. Firefox 4 is said to be more than six times faster than the previous releases (Learn more about Firefox 4 RC features here).

Firefox 4 RC screenshot

While we wait for the official release notes for Firefox 4 RC, you may hit the following direct links to download the Firefox 4 Release Candidate 1 installer for your computer (Windows / Mac / Linux).

Firefox 4 RC Direct Download Links:

Windows [12 MB]

Mac OS X [26.8 MB]

Linux [13.2 MB]

 

You can also try this tip to install both Firefox 3 and Firefox 4 on the same computer.

[Download] Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (KB976932)

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Windows 7 SP1 update

Microsoft has released the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1) RTM for everyone. Windows 7 SP1 was earlier released for MSDN and TechNet subscribers last week. Starting today users of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 can download the the Service Pack 1 (SP1) via Windows Update (as KB976932) when it becomes available to them. Most of the Service Pack 1 contains updates most of which have already been released through Windows Update.

You can either download the SP1 for Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 through the Windows Update or also from the direct links from Microsoft Download Center, made available by Microsoft (added at the bottom of this post). The advantage with downloading and installing Service Pack 1 through Windows Update is that it automatically detects the updates that have been installed previously on your Windows 7 and downloads only the ongoing updates that are not yet installed on your computer.

The build number of the final RTM is 7601.17514.101119-1850 and it does indicate the build has been compiled on November 19, 2010. The SP1 (KB976932) package includes client-side support for RemoteFX and Dynamic Memory two new features that are enabled in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1.

If you have installed a pre-release version of Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 (like Beta or Release Candidate versions) on your machine, you must uninstall them before proceeding further with installing the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 final RTM version.

Download:

Windows 7 SP1: 32-bit (537.8 MB) | 64-bit (903.19 MB)

[Via] [Image credit]

[Download] Internet Explorer 9 Release Candidate

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Internet Explorer 9

Microsoft has just released the release candidate version of the Internet Explorer 9 for Windows 7 and Windows Vista operating systems. The first public beta of Internet Explorer 9 was released in September 2010. So that was like nearly five months ago. Microsoft has stated that there were more than 2,000 changes incorporated since the release of IE9 beta. Here are the few new feature improvements in the Internet Explorer 9 release candidate.

>> Improved JavaScript Engine (Chakra) Performance

>> Dynamic GPU Usage

>> Lesser Power Consumption Levels

>> ‘Do Not Track’ feature

Other minor improvements include the increase of temporary internet files size from 50 MB to 250 MB.

Download IE9 RC:

Download the Internet Explorer 9 RC (Build 9.00.8080.16413) online setup (from the below links) which needs an active internet connection to download and install the browser on your Windows.

Windows 7 32-bit

Windows 7 64-bit

Windows Vista 32-bit

Windows Vista 64-bit

For more information on IE9 RC release, read this blog post on official IE9 blog.