1

I have a sony vaio laptop. The pre-installed operating system that came with this laptop was Windows Vista Home Premium. I don't remember if it was 32bit or 64bit but I can even see the product number on the bottom of the laptop. The current operating system is windows 8 release preview 64bit. Am I eligible to buy the windows 8 pro 64bit upgrade offer at 29,99 euros?

PS : After an extensive Internet search I found two different opinions on this. Some say that if you use the upgrade assistant you must provide a previous windows 64bit product key, and some others say that you can buy the windows 8 pro 64bit if you manually download the iso.

4
  • 1
    Yes, Windows 8 Release Preview is eligible to be upgraded to Windows 8 Pro. Of course all your applications will have to be reinstalled. Since you already have a x64 operating system you can upgrade it, to the x64 RTm, if it was 32-bit you would have to do a clean install.
    – Ramhound
    Oct 26, 2012 at 14:47
  • In fact I want to do a clean install.I've read that there is such an option when you run the upgrade assistant.
    – skiabox
    Oct 26, 2012 at 14:49
  • @skiabox As per the Upgrade offer site, you will not be able to do a clean install. You will be able to download a copy of Windows 8 Pro (upgrade) CD.
    – Ganesh R.
    Oct 26, 2012 at 15:27
  • 1
    Yes, you are. But, you need to follow [these steps][1] to upgrade. [1]: superuser.com/questions/439898/…
    – Elmo
    Nov 1, 2012 at 13:47

2 Answers 2

0

The answer is simple:

You are eligible to install the Windows 8 Pro upgrade for 29.99 Eur. The promotion ends today, 2013-01-31.

How to get the upgrade? Running the upgrade assistant from Windows 8 Release Preview will not work - you won't be able to purchase the upgrade.

Run the Upgrade Assistant from a different PC (e.g Windows 7). Then after purchase choose: "Install by creating media". Then burn the ISO file to DVD and make a clean install (format partition and install). Try to activate, if you receive 0xc004f061 error code, call ms support customer service, they will help you activate (you will need win vista product key and windows 8 pro upgrade product key).

Another way is to reinstall vista, and then run the upgrade assistant directly from vista. You will be able to activate without error.

To download upgrade assistant follow: http://view.atdmt.com/action/FY13_Win8_Buy_DownloadPro_PT?href=http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink?linkid=259439

-2

EDIT: Just visited Windows.com. The Buy Windows Landing page has a offer to upgrade any Windows PC (XP and above) to Windows 8 Pro for 24.99 Pounds.


Please Ignore the rest of the post


As per the site provided by AbhishekGirish, , the Windows Upgrade offer is only available for users with valid Windows 7 license (that too in new Windows 7 PCs). Since you had Windows Vista license, it is not applicable for you.

Eligibility Details

The offer is for customers (e.g. home users, students, and enthusiasts) who purchase a qualified PC. A qualified PC is a new PC purchased during the promotional period with a valid Windows 7 OEM Certificate of Authenticity and product key for, and pre-installed with:

Windows 7 Home Basic;
Windows 7 Home Premium;
Windows 7 Professional; or
Windows 7 Ultimate.

The promotional price is limited to one upgrade offer per qualified PC purchased, and a maximum limit of five upgrade offers per customer.

Key Dates

You must purchase a qualified Windows 7 PC between June 2, 2012 and January 31, 2013 to be eligible for this offer. The last day to register and order your Windows 8 upgrade is February 28, 2013.

However, there is twist in the end saying that once you have got the key, it is valid for upgrade of any PC with valid Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7 license.

Upgrade Software

Each upgrade license will apply to only one PC and may only be installed on PCs with a valid base license to a qualifying operating system (i.e., Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista or Windows 7)

The FAQ answers most questions you asked:

If I purchased a qualifying PC with Windows 7 Professional on it during the promotion period, but downgraded to Windows XP SP3, does the PC still qualify for the Windows Upgrade Offer?

Yes. The Windows version on the Certificate of Authenticity and related product key are what is relevant for eligibility, not the version of Windows being used. Note that the upgrade experience may vary based on which version of Windows is installed on the PC.

What edition of Windows 8 will I receive when I upgrade?

A download of Windows 8 Pro (Upgrade)

Do I have to install the Windows 8 upgrade on the eligible PC, or can I install it on another PC?

The upgrade offer is tied to a Windows 7 PC purchased from June 2nd, 2012 through January 31, 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.

Finally the main question. You will need to UPGRADE a Windows installation as per license agreement for the upgrade offer.

Does the upgrade need to be done on a PC with Windows already installed?

The license terms for the upgrade require upgrading from a valid "genuine" version of Windows. Visit http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/ if you are not certain whether or not your PC has genuine Windows.

4
  • 1
    There's another discount ('offer'), from 26th October to 31st January, which applies to Win8 upgrades across the board (7/Vista/XP) - 40 USD for an upgrade, which corresponds to about 30 EUR, as stated in the question.
    – Bob
    Oct 26, 2012 at 15:44
  • @Bob, do you have a link for this other discount offer ? Oct 26, 2012 at 17:21
  • @KevinFegan This whole page. If you look at the footnote, * Offer valid from October 26, 2012 until January 31, 2013 and is limited to five upgrade licenses per customer. To install Windows 8 Pro, customers must be running Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista, or Windows 7. and a link to terms and conditions, describing the 40 USD ($39.99) price as promotional 26th Oct to 31st Jan.
    – Bob
    Oct 26, 2012 at 17:46
  • @KevinFegan windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows/buy
    – Ganesh R.
    Oct 26, 2012 at 17:51

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .