Hi Everybody, I am purchasing a PC for use in my lab in the University. The University has a volume license agreement with Microsoft which provides access to Windows 7 Enterprise. I would like to know the answer to this question: If I purchase a computer with Win 7 Home Premium (from Dell Home), will I be able to upgrade it to Win 7 Enterprise? I need the ability to join a domain, which is not available in Home Premium. Can I upgrade the OS or will I have to do a complete reinstall? Thank you for your time. Hemant

You need Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise or Ultimate. An upgrade is easy. Vote if answered or helpful, I am running for Office (joke)! IT/Developer, Windows/Linux/Mainframe RaidMax Smilodon, 680W, Asus M2NBP-VM CSM AMD X2 4200+, 2GB DDR2-800, x600, more details on my site, need a video card for the Windows machine, the 8600 GT fried

You need Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise or Ultimate. An upgrade is easy. Vote if answered or helpful, I am running for Office (joke)! IT/Developer, Windows/Linux/Mainframe RaidMax Smilodon, 680W, Asus M2NBP-VM CSM AMD X2 4200+, 2GB DDR2-800, x600, more details on my site, need a video card for the Windows machine, the 8600 GT fried This is not a rhetorical question:Does an Enterprise key permit an upgrade-in-place?It could, although I doubt that it would be of much interest to most corporate IT departments.

I have not tried it, but you should be able to use the Windows key+pause/break to bring up the system and there is a link to change the product key. You might need your DVD. I installed Windows 7 with the Ultimate Key so I am already to go. So changing the key should be OK as the disk does have the needed software. Vote if answered or helpful, I am running for Office (joke)! IT/Developer, Windows/Linux/Mainframe RaidMax Smilodon, 680W, Asus M2NBP-VM CSM AMD X2 4200+, 2GB DDR2-800, x600, more details on my site, need a video card for the Windows machine, the 8600 GT fried

The answer is NO, you can't upgrade, it will require a clean install. see this table From Windows 7 Repair-In-Place Upgrade to Windows 7 Enterprise Enterprise Home Basic Home Basic Home Premium Home Premium Professional Professional Starter (x86 only) Starter (x86) Ultimate Ultimate From Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade to Windows 7 Home Basic Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate Home Premium Professional, Ultimate Professional Ultimate Starter Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate So do a backup of any data on your Windows 7 Home Premium (if there's any data you want saved). I would at least do a system image backup, so you can return it back to factory specs when you're ready to do so. Then do a clean install of Windows 7 Enterprise (wipe the drive). Don't forget to obtain all the Windows 7 drivers beforehand, however since you're getting a dell with 7 home premium preintalled, Dell should include a drivers disk with your unit (pay the extra $10 for the recovery disk too).MCSE, MCSA, MCDST [If this post helps to resolve your issue, please click the "Mark as Answer" or "Helpful" button at the top of this message. By marking a post as Answered, or Helpful you help others find the answer faster.]