Windows 7, a major release of theMicrosoft Windowsoperating system, has been released in several editions since its original release in 2009. Only Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate were widely available at retailers (with Enterprise being available for big businesses, companies etc.).[1] The other editions focus on other markets such as the software development world. All editions support 32-bitIA-32CPUs and all editions except Starter support 64-bitx64 CPUs. 64-bit installation media are not included in Home-Basic edition packages, but can be obtained separately from Microsoft.
According to Microsoft, the features for all editions of Windows 7 are stored on the machine, regardless of which edition is in use.[2] Users who wish to upgrade to an edition of Windows 7 with more features were able to useWindows Anytime Upgrade to purchase the upgrade and to unlock the features of those editions, until it was discontinued in 2015.[1][2][3] Microsoft announced Windows 7 pricing information for some editions on June 25, 2009, and Windows Anytime Upgrade and Family Pack pricing on July 31, 2009.[1][4][5]
Mainstream support for all Windows 7 editions ended on January 13, 2015, and extended support ended on January 14, 2020. After that, the operating system ceased receiving further support.[6] Professional and Enterprise volume licensed editions had paid Extended Security Updates (ESU) available until at most January 10, 2023.[7] Since October 31, 2013, Windows 7 is no longer available in retail, except for remaining stocks of the preinstalled Professional edition, which was officially discontinued on October 31, 2016.[8]
Windows 7 Starter is the edition of Windows 7 that contains the fewest features. It was only available in a32-bit version, does not include theWindows Aero theme, and the desktop wallpaper cannot be changed. It was initially intended to be restricted to running up to three simultaneous programs like previous Starter releases of Windows, however this was dropped in the final release.[9] It only supports up to 2 GB ofRAM.
This edition was available pre-installed on computers, especiallynetbooks or Windows Tablets, through system integrators or computer manufacturers usingOEM licenses.[1][10][11]
Windows 7 Home Basic
Windows 7 Home Basic was available in "emerging markets", in 141 countries.[12] Some Windows Aero options are excluded along with several new features.[1] This edition was available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions and supports up to 8 GB of RAM. Home Basic, along with other editions sold in emerging markets, includes geographicalactivation restriction, which requires users to activate Windows within a certain region or country.[13]
Windows 7 Home Premium
This edition contains features aimed at the homemarket segment, such asWindows Media Center, Windows Aero and multi-touch support. It supports up to 16 GB of RAM and was available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.[14]
Windows 7 Professional
This edition is targeted towards enthusiasts, small-business users, and schools.[1] It includes all the features of Windows 7 Home Premium, and adds the ability to participate in aWindows Server domain.[1] Additional features include support for up to 192 GB of RAM (increased from 16 GB),[15] up to two physical CPUs, operating as aRemote Desktop server, location aware printing, backup to a network location,Encrypting File System, Presentation Mode, Software Restriction Policies (but not the extra management features of AppLocker) andWindows XP Mode.[1] It was available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.[14]
Windows 7 Ultimate is the edition of Windows 7 that contains the most features. It includes all the features of Windows 7 Home Premium and Professional while also adding some additional enterprise-oriented features that were available on the SA-exclusive Windows 7 Enterprise, making it feature-complete with the latter; this edition was also available to home users on an individual license basis.[1] If a Windows 7 Home Premium or Professional user wished to upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate, they would be able to do so by using Windows Anytime Upgrade, for an additional fee. This service was still available for any users who wish to upgrade.[1] Like Windows 7 Professional, it supports up to 192 GB of RAM and up to two physical CPUs, and was available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. Unlike Windows Vista Ultimate, it does not include theWindows Ultimate Extras feature or any other exclusive features that Microsoft has stated.[1]
The main editions also can take the form of one of the following special editions:
N and KN editions
The features in the N and KN Editions are the same as their equivalent full versions, but do not includeWindows Media Player or other Windows Media-related technologies, such asWindows Media Center andWindows DVD Maker due to limitations set by the European Union and South Korea, respectively.[17] The cost of the N and KN Editions are the same as the full versions, as the Media Feature Pack for Windows 7 N or Windows 7 KN can be downloaded without charge from Microsoft.[18]
E edition
The features in the E edition are the same as their equivalent full versions, but does not include Internet Explorer due to limitations set by the European Union. The cost of the E edition was intended to be cheaper than the full version,[19] but it was never officially released due to concerns of confusion[20] and replaced by the ballot system,BrowserChoice.eu. Official RTM builds of the E edition do exist[21], but copies were never sold to consumers through any channel.
Signature Edition
The Signature Edition of Windows 7 is a commemorative edition of Windows 7 Ultimate for those throwing a Windows 7 launch party.[22] It is functionally the same as Windows 7 Ultimate.
In-place upgrade from Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 to Windows 7 is supported if the processor architecture and the language are the same and their editions match (see below).[1][3][23] In-place upgrade is not supported for earlier versions of Windows; moving to Windows 7 on these machines requires a clean installation, i.e. removal of the old operating system, installing Windows 7 and reinstalling all previously installed programs.Windows Easy Transfer can assist in this process.[1][3][24][25]Microsoft made upgradeSKUs of Windows 7 for selected editions of Windows XP and Windows Vista. The difference between these SKUs and full SKUs of Windows 7 is their lower price and proof of license ownership of a qualifying previous version of Windows. Same restrictions on in-place upgrading applies to these SKUs as well.[26] In addition, Windows 7 is available as a Family Pack upgrade edition in certain markets, to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium only. It gives licenses to upgrade three machines from Vista or Windows XP to the Windows 7 Home Premium edition. These are not full versions, so each machine to be upgraded must have one of these qualifying previous versions of Windows for them to work.[27] In the United States, this offer expired in early December 2009.[28] In October 2010, to commemorate the anniversary of Windows 7, Microsoft once again made Windows 7 Home Premium Family Pack available for a limited time, while supplies lasted.[29]
There are two possible ways to upgrade to Windows 7 from an earlier version of Windows:
In-place install (labeled "Upgrade" in the installer): Constitutes an in-place upgrade from an older version of Windows, where settings and programs are preserved from the existing installation. This option is only sometimes available depending on the editions of Windows being used, and is not available at all unless upgrading from Windows Vista.[30]
Clean install (labeled "Custom" in the installer): Constitutes replacing a previous installation of Windows with a new one, where the current operating system is erased entirely and is replaced with Windows 7. All settings, including but not limited to user accounts, applications, user settings, music, photos and programs, are moved to the Windows.old and Users.old folders, and previously installed programs will need to be reinstalled. This option is always available and is required for all versions of Windows XP as well as previous versions of Windows prior to XP, which are not eligible for upgrading to Windows 7.[31]
The table below lists which upgrade paths allow for an in-place install. Note that in-place upgrades can only be performed when the previous version of Windows is of the same architecture. If upgrading from a 32-bit installation to a 64-bit installation or downgrading from 64-bit installation to 32-bit installation, a clean install is mandatory regardless of the editions being used.
Version and its specific edition of Windows to upgrade from
Edition of Windows 7 to upgrade to
Home Basic
Home Premium
Professional
Enterprise
Ultimate
Vista Home Basic
In-place
In-place
Clean
Clean
In-place
Vista Home Premium
Clean
In-place
Clean
Clean
In-place
Vista Business
Clean
Clean
In-place
In-place
In-place
Vista Enterprise
Clean
Clean
Clean
In-place
Clean
Vista Ultimate
Clean
Clean
Clean
Clean
In-place
XP
Clean
Clean
Clean
Clean
Clean
2000/Me and earlier
Ineligible
Ineligible
Ineligible
Ineligible
Ineligible
In-place installation option available.
Requires clean install.
Ineligible for upgrade pricing; requires full version of Windows and a clean install.
Microsoft supports in-place upgrades from a lower edition of Windows 7 to a higher one, using theWindows Anytime Upgrade tool.[1] There are currently three retail options available (though it is currently unclear whether they can be used with previous installations of the N versions),[32] however there are no family pack versions of the Anytime Upgrade editions. It was possible to use the Product Key from a Standard upgrade edition to accomplish an in-place upgrade (e.g. Home Premium to Ultimate).[33][34]
On February 9, 2011, Microsoft announced Windows Thin PC, a branded derivative of Windows Embedded Standard 7 with Service Pack 1, designed as a lightweight version of Windows 7 for installation on low performance PCs as an alternative to using a dedicatedthin client device. It succeededWindows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs, which was based onWindows XP Embedded. Windows Thin PC wasreleased on June 6, 2011.
Mainstream support for Windows Thin PC ended on October 11, 2016, and extended support ended on October 12, 2021.[35]
Embedded versions
Windows 7 is also available in two distinct forms ofWindows Embedded, named as Windows Embedded Standard 7 (known as Windows Embedded Standard 2011 prior to release, the newest being Windows Embedded Standard 7 with Service Pack 1) andWindows Embedded POSReady 7. Both versions are eligible for Extended Security Updates (ESU) for up to 3 years after their end of extended support dates.[7] In addition, binary identicalfor Embedded Systems (FES) variants of Professional and Ultimate editions are also available, differing only in licensing, and with their support periods also matching their non-FES variants.
Mainstream support for Windows Embedded 7 Standard ended on October 13, 2015, and extended support ended on October 13, 2020.[36] Mainstream support for Windows Embedded POSReady 7 ended on October 11, 2016, and extended support ended on October 12, 2021.[37] Extended Security Updates (ESU) ended for Windows Embedded 7 Standard on October 10, 2023[36] and for Windows Embedded POSReady 7 on October 8, 2024.[38][37][39][40]
^Windows Virtual PC including a complete copy ofWindows XP with Service Pack 3 usingRemote Desktop Protocol to display individual applications integrated with the host OS (Windows 7). Windows XP Mode is available as a free download from Microsoft.
^formerly Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM)
^Any edition of Windows 7 can be installed onto aVHD volume; these installations even appear in the boot menu. However, only Enterprise or Ultimate editions start. Other editions return an error message.[58]
^ab"Lifecycle FAQ-Extended Security Updates".support.microsoft.com. RetrievedAugust 12, 2020.The Extended Security Update (ESU) program is a last resort option for customers who need to run certain legacy Microsoft products past the end of support.
^"Windows Embedded POSReady 7 Reaches End of Support – Now What?". Arrow Electronics, Inc. September 23, 2021. RetrievedAugust 14, 2023.The first year, which runs from Oct 2021 to Oct 2022, requires purchasing 100 hours of support priced over $22,000, and the POS7 ESU licenses are $50 per device. The pricing then doubles each year with a maximum of three years.
^"Lifecycle FAQ-Extended Security Updates".support.microsoft.com. RetrievedAugust 14, 2023.The Extended Security Update (ESU) program is a last resort option for customers who need to run certain legacy Microsoft products past the end of support.
