How did You install Windows 7?

I currently have Vista Home Basic pre-loaded on my sl500.
I do plan to remove all partition and have main partition as Windows and the remainder for others.
I'm basically wiping everything and doing a clean install.

Not sure if this is the most convenient and easy way to install, but it does get rid of everything preinstalled.

How about you guys?

 

I'm going to leave my recovery partition just in case.

 

If I ever decide to install Windows 7, I'd do a clean install. I have what appears to be an anytime upgrade disc for Windows 7. It includes all versions of Windows 7 from Basic to Ultimate, both x86 and x64.

 

I ordered through win741.com and got my email w/download link earlier. The installation file I downloaded would not run because I am going from XP 32 bit to 7 64 bit. I had to create an .iso of the files extracted and burn it to DVD. I am currently installing Windows 7 from the burnt DVD on my T400.

Unfortunately, I wasted the $13 through win741 because I wasn't sure how the installation file would run. I had thought that the installation would just run from the PC and not have anything to do with creating bootable DVDs, etc. So pretty much I spend $13 on a DVD that I just burnt myself for the cost of the DVD..

I opted not to go through Lenovo's "free" $17 upgrade, since I wasn't sure if they were sending recovery disks, or if I would have any issues with them in terms of going from 32 bit to 64 bit.

 

It won't be recovery disks I don't think that we'll get from Lenovo, but Upgrade versions with the COA label.

I would actually prefer actual recovery disks.

 

Clean install, I deleted all partitions including Recovery.

 

Which drivers did you install?

7 drivers aren't up on lenovo's page.

 

I'm a total noob to the new OS's.. I've been using XP up until now. That being said, I'm having a lot of trouble getting Hotkeys (Fn+F5, etc) working. I installed what I thought was the hotkeys driver but I don't get anything if I press Fn and the F keys.. What am I doing wrong?

 

Also, in that Hotkeys driver set, apparently the OSD got installed, but that isn't working either. No OSD when I adjust brightness, volume, etc.

On the positive side, I got Power Manager and the fingerprint reader working. I have Access Connections so I can control Bluetooth, but I can't get any Bluetooth related info on that..

Windows is telling me I have a PCI Serial Port, PCI Simple Communications Controller, and Unknown device that need to be installed.. What are they?

 

Yeah, I'm not sure if the drivers are fully updated for W7 64-bit on Lenovo's website. From my understanding a lot of the W7 x64 drivers only work on the Lenovo W700???

 

I wiped the drive recreated my partitions using a bootable disc partitioning tool. I installed Windows 7 ENT and then added drivers in the order from the clean install guides from this forum. The drivers I used came from either the beta site or the T61p site depending on which was newer with one exception. I allowed Windows to use the video driver from Windows Update because NVidia's latest driver broke OSD and the driver from Vista was older than the one from Windows Update. That's pretty much it.

 

First Time I installed I went from Vista Ult to 7 Ult as an upgrade. Last night I finally did a clean install. It made me happy.

 

I created all disks first, C: and four others and I did this on an SSD in the home rig and then the Lenovo. I then installed the operating system, mindful that the vista install has been a clean. I then copied the user disks,

Renee