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Going back to Windows 7 from Windows 10

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I have a new computer with Windows 10 as the Operating System. I have an Acronis True Image 2015 boot disc and back up from the old machine that ran Windows 7.

I dislike Win 10!

Can I just reboot via Acronis and reinstall Windows 7 from the earlier back ups from the old machine? Or will this screw things up badly on the new machine?

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Well you're restoring the W7 image onto a machine that is different and the backup is not likely to have all the drivers your new machine needs. That being the case you'll need to investigate the Universal Restore option which is intended to permit restore to different hardware.

Also I am not sure on the licensing of W7 and any applications on your backup. They may not be authorised to be installed on a different computer. I think I'd remove the HDD from the W10 machine and put it somewhere safe, insert a different HDD and test the universal restore to that. If it all goes wrong pop the W10 HDD back in.

Thanks Chris. As I've created a Win 10 restore drive on a USB stick (two actually, just in case!) I guess that I could use this to get the new computer up and running again if anything went wrong?

That is to say, could I risk the Universal Restore without changing the hard drives? I confess that I am a retired oldie and a bit past fiddling with the insides of computers these days.

Yes you can if you trust your Windows 10 backup and restore...

If you have a Windows 7 retail product key, no issue with licensing. If you have an OEM product key, there is a risk Windows 7 will not activate.

Before worrying about activation, you have to worry about successful Universal Restore...

i know it sounds stupid. but i was locked out of my computer windows 10 after upgrade. the computer doesn't allow the previous password, saying the password is incorrect. so a friend of mine helped me uninstall windows 10 and go back to windows 7.

Kevin,

despite of all backup and restore options and whether they work or not, I recommend to stay with Windows 10 on your new computer.
If you hate the Windows 10 Start menu, simply use a small program called Classic Shell (or Classic Start Menu, which is part of Classic Shell). This will give you back your old feeling of the Start button of Windows7 (or even WinXP) and from that on you will forget that you are running Windows 10.