After upgrading from Window 7 Home Premium to Professional, I noticed that I now have two Program Files folders. One has the designation "(x86)" behind it. They are not quite identical, but most of the folders in the original are also in the new folder and the duplicates are the same size. This seems like an awful waste of hard drive space. How do I get rid of the duplicates?

Strongly urge you NOT to try removing it.You have installed 64-bit Windows, and the dual 'Program files' structure is 'by design'. 32-bit software programs, by default, install to the 'Program files (x86)' folder. This is to minimise or eliminate the risk of having both 32-bit and 64-bit installs of the same program present, and their installation files creating conflicts and/or performance problems.Some software applications programs install both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the program, so you should leave the structure as it is. If, on your machine, the contents are almost entirely 'duplicated' then that must mean that a large proportion of the software you have installed installs both platform versions. On a machine here I just then checked, the (64-bit) Program Files folder was approximately 3Gb in size, whilst the (32-bit) Program Files (x86) folder was approximately 11Gb in size.It's not "waste", you can be sure of that!

Sharon, As I read and understand your explanation for the duplicate Program Files Folders (with and without x86 designation), when I clean installed Win7 Pro 64 bit OS from Win7 Pro 32 bit on my laptop, it duplicated major Windows programs in both folders The duplicate files are Internet Explorer, Windows Defender, Mail, Media Player, NT, Photo Viewer, Portable Devices and Sidebar. Does this mean that these duplicate Windows apps are needed for 32 bit and 64 bit software to be able to work with them respectively? Do I really need a 32 bit and 64 bit versions of Internet Explorer, Windows Defender, Mail, Media Player, NT, Photo Viewer, Portable Devices and Sidebar? It would have been nicer just to have one set of these Windows applications that works with both 32 bit and 64 bit software. These Windows applications do use a lot of HDD real estate. It would also be good to be able to have the option of uninstalling one of the duplicate sets. Is the ability to do just that available now?

Great help ... cut through all the tech jargon in the searches I have done. Saved my Axs.

You seem to suggest that the software would automatically know the best configuration to install the files in the appropriate 'program files' folder. I believe this also means that users are expected to choose the default installation settings. Would like to know if it is possible for users who prefer to implement custom settings during their installation, to know where best to designate the program to be saved in? more explicitly, whether or not to install it in the x86 or regular program files folder.