Can W7 (re)install leave partitions as they are? (And other questions.)

I may have to reinstall W7 for my friend (see "sulk mode" thread).

Can an install - or reinstall - of W7 keep the existing partitions, i.
e. only install itself on C:, leaving D: alone? If it can, but the
default is to clear the whole disc and start again, at what point do I
intercept it to tell it not to?

Should we do the install by booting from cold with the W7 disc in the
drive, or try to run something from the disc from within the existing W7
system (which sort of runs, see the other thread). We have several
(well, at least two) W7 discs. None of them, when I tentatively tried
them back in September/October, seemed to offer a repair option, only an
install one, which I didn't take as I didn't want to risk breaking the
system (I'll be Macriuming before doing anything this time): is the
repair option there, but you have to accept the install offer, and then
the repair option is offered part way through that process?

(Or, is there a parser for the log file that sfc /scannow produces, so
that I can get a list of the files which sfc says are corrupted but it
can't restore? That log file is huge and [to me] almost
incomprehensible, despite the sfc run _saying_ it contains details of
the affected files.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

# 10^-12 boos = 1 picoboo # 2*10^3 mockingbirds = 2 kilo mockingbird
# 10^21 piccolos = 1 gigolo # 10^12 microphones = 1 megaphone
# 10**9 questions = 1 gigawhat

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I may have to reinstall W7 for my friend (see "sulk mode" thread).

Can an install - or reinstall - of W7 keep the existing partitions, i.
e. only install itself on C:, leaving D: alone? If it can, but the
default is to clear the whole disc and start again, at what point do I
intercept it to tell it not to?

Should we do the install by booting from cold with the W7 disc in the
drive, or try to run something from the disc from within the existing W7
system (which sort of runs, see the other thread). We have several
(well, at least two) W7 discs. None of them, when I tentatively tried
them back in September/October, seemed to offer a repair option, only an
install one, which I didn't take as I didn't want to risk breaking the
system (I'll be Macriuming before doing anything this time): is the
repair option there, but you have to accept the install offer, and then
the repair option is offered part way through that process?

(Or, is there a parser for the log file that sfc /scannow produces, so
that I can get a list of the files which sfc says are corrupted but it
can't restore? That log file is huge and [to me] almost
incomprehensible, despite the sfc run _saying_ it contains details of
the affected files.)

When doing a clean install, you boot the DVD, and in there
you select "Custom". In the Custom menu, are some disk formatting
materials. A crude kind of Disk Management in a sense. Well,
in your case, you don't have to do anything. Just click and
highlight C: for example. Now, you could select Format and
format it to erase the files. Then highlight it, and click
Next. That should cause a one-partition install, with the
System Reserved materials and C: OS materials, all put in the
same partition.

So you can "point" the installer at a particular existing partition.

*******

There are two kinds of installs.

1) Clean Install. Keep nothing. Boot the DVD to do this.
2) Repair Install. Runs from a booted Win7. You navigate
to the DVD, and run setup.exe off the DVD. The install
starts, and will tell you it plans to keep your
home directory and programs.

If a problem is minor, a repair install might work.
However, if a problem prevents the OS from booting,
you cannot do a Repair install. Since it runs as setup.exe
while the OS is still running.

If you have symptoms that smack of (1), then you're
more likely to be doing a Clean Install. But if you
have nothing but time, you can waste some of that
time trying the Repair install. As that would save a
great deal of time in terms of necessary post-install
activities.

*******

I have a vague recollection of:

findstr [SR] CBS.log

Google says it should be

findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log %userprofile%\Desktop\sfcdetails.txt

which puts a filtered output on your desktop.

Findstr is like "grep" in Linux/Unix.

The only potential problem, is some "whining" about
permissions on cbs.log.

Paul

In message , Paul
writes:
[]
When doing a clean install, you boot the DVD, and in there
you select "Custom". In the Custom menu, are some disk formatting
materials. A crude kind of Disk Management in a sense. Well,
in your case, you don't have to do anything. Just click and
highlight C: for example. Now, you could select Format and
format it to erase the files. Then highlight it, and click
Next. That should cause a one-partition install, with the
System Reserved materials and C: OS materials, all put in the
same partition.

Thanks for that ...

So you can "point" the installer at a particular existing partition.

.... especially that.

*******

There are two kinds of installs.

1) Clean Install. Keep nothing. Boot the DVD to do this.
2) Repair Install. Runs from a booted Win7. You navigate
to the DVD, and run setup.exe off the DVD. The install
starts, and will tell you it plans to keep your
home directory and programs.

Thanks for that. I'll try to find that - when I tried a few months ago,
I could only find offers to install rather than repair, but I may well
not have tried the above exact route.

If a problem is minor, a repair install might work.
However, if a problem prevents the OS from booting,
you cannot do a Repair install. Since it runs as setup.exe
while the OS is still running.

I _think_ it's a minor problem - I just haven't been able to find what
it is! It's that "sulk mode" I asked you about befo after a short
time, the system refuses to open any further applications, though
anything that's already running - such as speech output or even
TeamViewer - continues to run. It doesn't _seem_ like a
running-out-of-resources problem: the mouse cursor is still responsive,
and if I click on a desktop icon it still changes colour, but if I then
press enter (or double-click), the "start application" sound plays (and
more or less immediately), but the application doesn't start. (Whatever
it is - even built-in things like Explorer or Task Manager.)

So, if I can actually get the system to offer me a repair install, I'll
definitely be trying that first.

If I _do_, should I do it from safe mode?

If you have symptoms that smack of (1), then you're
more likely to be doing a Clean Install. But if you
have nothing but time, you can waste some of that
time trying the Repair install. As that would save a
great deal of time in terms of necessary post-install
activities.

It certainly would - you'd be amazed how much software my friend has put
on the PC! (Especially as she's blind!) And before anyone suggests it:
this "sulk mode" _doesn't_ seem to be because of all the crud she's put
on (though I'm sure the bootup time does).

*******

I have a vague recollection of:

findstr [SR] CBS.log

Google says it should be

findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log
%userprofile%\Desktop\sfcdetails.txt

which puts a filtered output on your desktop.

Findstr is like "grep" in Linux/Unix.

Great. Is [SR] - i. e. exactly those four characters - what I should be
grepping CBS.log for? (I presume that's the log that sfc creates.)

The only potential problem, is some "whining" about
permissions on cbs.log.

Paul
I'll get round that. I don't _think_ there's any problem - I was able to
look at it (I think in NotePad), just not actually make sense of it. I
just wanted a list of the files that sfc couldn't fix, which is what it
_implied_ that log file contained, but it contains a lot else too )-:.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"If god doesn't like the way I live, Let him tell me, not you." - unknown

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:


If I _do_, should I do it from safe mode?

I don't think you can. It expects to be in running
state, because it needs to use Migration logic while
doing the install. It should make a Windows.old, a new Windows,
and copy stuff as it goes. The Repair Install expects
everything to be running as it normally would be. You
should have at least 20GB of slack before you start,
and with your "customer" large Program Files collection,
maybe there should be 40GB of slack instead.


Great. Is [SR] - i. e. exactly those four characters - what I should be
grepping CBS.log for? (I presume that's the log that sfc creates.)

You can use Notepad to search for those four letters "[SR]"
if you want. The "findstr" command is just to
concentrate *only* the desired lines, into one file.
They tag the lines like that, for that very reason,
for post-analysis at Microsoft. Even though Microsoft
makes just about the worst log files around,
occasionally they get some feature right :-)

Paul

In message , Paul
writes:
[]
You can use Notepad to search for those four letters "[SR]"
if you want. The "findstr" command is just to
concentrate *only* the desired lines, into one file.

Sounds like a good idea.

They tag the lines like that, for that very reason,
for post-analysis at Microsoft. Even though Microsoft
makes just about the worst log files around,
occasionally they get some feature right :-)

Paul

Thanks for the info!
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

I never watched /Doctor Who/ as a kid. I thought it was stupid and still do.
- Dennis Waterman in RT 2015/12/5-11

In message , Paul
writes:
[]
There are two kinds of installs.

1) Clean Install. Keep nothing. Boot the DVD to do this.
2) Repair Install. Runs from a booted Win7. You navigate
to the DVD, and run setup.exe off the DVD. The install
starts, and will tell you it plans to keep your
home directory and programs.

Hmm. Doing as instructed in 2 above: it goes through something like
"setup is copying files", then asks me if I want to go online to get
updates, or not. I select not, accept the licence terms, and it offers
me two options: Upgrade ("to a newer version of Windows, and keep your
files, settings, and programs. ...") and Custom ("does not keep your
files, settings, and programs."). No trace of a "repair" option. I try
selecting upgrade, and it goes into "Checking compatibility..." for
several minutes, then says something like "your version of windows is
newer", as well as other things including that some hardware won't work
(two items, one of which I recognise as a scanner we tried ages ago and
isn't 7-compatible).

Actually, the compat. check has finished again, so I can tell you
exactly what it says (snipping): "The following issues are preventing
Windows from upgrading. Cancel the upgrade [I have no option - all I
have at this stage is a Close button], complete each task, and then
restart the upgrade to continue.

o Your current version of Windows is more recent than the version you
are trying to upgrade to. ...
o You can't upgrade 64-bit Windows to a 32-... [get a 64 disc]
o 32 bit Windows cannot be upgraded to a 64-... [get a 32 disc]"
then the bits about the hardware (an Acer/BenQ 5000 scanner, and "Jungo:
ZoomEx5mp", whatever that is (MP3 player?)).

The above seems sloppily written - I can't be simultaneously both trying
to upgrade a 32-bit system to a 64 and a 64 to a 32. (I'm pretty sure
it's 64, as it has and sees 8G of RAM, and I selected the 64 bit to
install/upgrade/whatever.)

Do I select Custom, and the repair option is further down the line?

If a problem is minor, a repair install might work.
However, if a problem prevents the OS from booting,
you cannot do a Repair install. Since it runs as setup.exe
while the OS is still running.

No, it boots OK.

If you have symptoms that smack of (1), then you're
more likely to be doing a Clean Install. But if you
have nothing but time, you can waste some of that
time trying the Repair install. As that would save a
great deal of time in terms of necessary post-install
activities.

It most definitely would, but see above I can't _see_ a Repair option.

*******

I have a vague recollection of:

findstr [SR] CBS.log

Google says it should be

findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log
%userprofile%\Desktop\sfcdetails.txt

which puts a filtered output on your desktop.

Findstr is like "grep" in Linux/Unix.

The only potential problem, is some "whining" about
permissions on cbs.log.

Paul

Yes, it says access to the file (which is about 12 MB) is denied. I'm
sure when I did the sfc or whatever back in September/October I _could_
look at the resulting file, just couldn't make sense of it! I'll just
run sfc /scannow again (as I think it was only about 4MB last time, so
this one may be from something else) ...

Yes, I can run the findstr now. I get a file containing lots of older
stuff, but lines with today's date a
lots of three-line sets saying: "Verifying 100 (0x64)
components\Beginning Verify and Repair transaction\Verify complete",
interespersed with the odd line "cannot repair member file", those lines
containing lots of garbage, but including a filename. The filenames a
ir_begin.wav "source file in store is also corrupted"
- just that one file, repeated several times (called from several places
perhaps?). I can't imagine a .wav file with IR in the name being
corrupted would cause "sulk mode" (mouse moves quite freely and can
select [highlight] desktop icons, but I can't activate them; start menu
operates, but nothing selected from it opens; right-click on taskbar
pops up little menu, but can't actually select Task Manager from it;
machine does _not_ appear sluggish in any way, just won't _do_
anything!), after a few minutes of running fine. (IR something .wav
sounds to me as if it's a sound file that plays when you do something
with an IR control; as far as I know, this Dell small-factor desktop
doesn't even have an IR interface.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Never rely on somebody else for your happiness.
- Bette Davis, quoted by Celia Imrie, RT 2014/3/12-18

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , Paul
writes:
[]
There are two kinds of installs.

1) Clean Install. Keep nothing. Boot the DVD to do this.
2) Repair Install. Runs from a booted Win7. You navigate
to the DVD, and run setup.exe off the DVD. The install
starts, and will tell you it plans to keep your
home directory and programs.

Hmm. Doing as instructed in 2 above: it goes through something like
"setup is copying files", then asks me if I want to go online to get
updates, or not. I select not, accept the licence terms, and it offers
me two options: Upgrade ("to a newer version of Windows, and keep your
files, settings, and programs. ...") and Custom ("does not keep your
files, settings, and programs."). No trace of a "repair" option. I try
selecting upgrade, and it goes into "Checking compatibility..." for
several minutes, then says something like "your version of windows is
newer", as well as other things including that some hardware won't work
(two items, one of which I recognise as a scanner we tried ages ago and
isn't 7-compatible).

Actually, the compat. check has finished again, so I can tell you
exactly what it says (snipping): "The following issues are preventing
Windows from upgrading. Cancel the upgrade [I have no option - all I
have at this stage is a Close button], complete each task, and then
restart the upgrade to continue.

o Your current version of Windows is more recent than the version you
are trying to upgrade to. ...
o You can't upgrade 64-bit Windows to a 32-... [get a 64 disc]
o 32 bit Windows cannot be upgraded to a 64-... [get a 32 disc]"
then the bits about the hardware (an Acer/BenQ 5000 scanner, and "Jungo:
ZoomEx5mp", whatever that is (MP3 player?)).

The above seems sloppily written - I can't be simultaneously both trying
to upgrade a 32-bit system to a 64 and a 64 to a 32. (I'm pretty sure
it's 64, as it has and sees 8G of RAM, and I selected the 64 bit to
install/upgrade/whatever.)

Do I select Custom, and the repair option is further down the line?

If a problem is minor, a repair install might work.
However, if a problem prevents the OS from booting,
you cannot do a Repair install. Since it runs as setup.exe
while the OS is still running.

No, it boots OK.

If you have symptoms that smack of (1), then you're
more likely to be doing a Clean Install. But if you
have nothing but time, you can waste some of that
time trying the Repair install. As that would save a
great deal of time in terms of necessary post-install
activities.

It most definitely would, but see above I can't _see_ a Repair option.

*******

I have a vague recollection of:

findstr [SR] CBS.log

Google says it should be

findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log
%userprofile%\Desktop\sfcdetails.txt

which puts a filtered output on your desktop.

Findstr is like "grep" in Linux/Unix.

The only potential problem, is some "whining" about
permissions on cbs.log.

Paul

Yes, it says access to the file (which is about 12 MB) is denied. I'm
sure when I did the sfc or whatever back in September/October I _could_
look at the resulting file, just couldn't make sense of it! I'll just
run sfc /scannow again (as I think it was only about 4MB last time, so
this one may be from something else) ...

Yes, I can run the findstr now. I get a file containing lots of older
stuff, but lines with today's date a
lots of three-line sets saying: "Verifying 100 (0x64)
components\Beginning Verify and Repair transaction\Verify complete",
interespersed with the odd line "cannot repair member file", those lines
containing lots of garbage, but including a filename. The filenames a
ir_begin.wav "source file in store is also corrupted"
- just that one file, repeated several times (called from several places
perhaps?). I can't imagine a .wav file with IR in the name being
corrupted would cause "sulk mode" (mouse moves quite freely and can
select [highlight] desktop icons, but I can't activate them; start menu
operates, but nothing selected from it opens; right-click on taskbar
pops up little menu, but can't actually select Task Manager from it;
machine does _not_ appear sluggish in any way, just won't _do_
anything!), after a few minutes of running fine. (IR something .wav
sounds to me as if it's a sound file that plays when you do something
with an IR control; as far as I know, this Dell small-factor desktop
doesn't even have an IR interface.)

There are some nice tutorials with pictures. I don't know
if this dwells on versioning or not. Like, it might not like
it if you installed Win7SP0 over Win7SP1. I would expect
Win7SP1 over Win7SP1 to work. It should not be offended by
that. And you want to make sure the trim level ("Ultimate")
and bitness ("x64") match. Some optical media will offer
up to five different OS versions on the same disc. (Something
that you used to be able to enable, by deleting ei.cfg from
a disc that happened to have multiple images.)

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials...r-install.html

*******

Anything with "5mp" in the name is probably a webcam

*******

The later OSes, have both a working DISM and a sfc /scannow.
DISM can repair WinSXS. SFC can repair linked content in
the Windows folder, that might depend on WinSXS.

On Win7 (we might have discussed this before), we have
SURCheck or CheckSUR, I can never remember the name. That
*might* be able to fix up WinSXS. Dunno. It's a separate
download. After I'd tried to repair WinSXS, then I might
try another SFC. Try the recipe here.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/947821

Paul

In message , Paul
writes:
[]
There are some nice tutorials with pictures. I don't know
if this dwells on versioning or not. Like, it might not like
it if you installed Win7SP0 over Win7SP1. I would expect
Win7SP1 over Win7SP1 to work. It should not be offended by
that. And you want to make sure the trim level ("Ultimate")

[I presume that means home, pro, ultimate etc., and has nothing to do
with the same or similar term(s) - trim? - used when talking about
SSDs.]

and bitness ("x64") match. Some optical media will offer
up to five different OS versions on the same disc. (Something
that you used to be able to enable, by deleting ei.cfg from
a disc that happened to have multiple images.)

Yes, the one I have (which I'm pretty sure is the copy I got the people
building the system in front of me to make, of what they were using)
does that. My note on it is that it still requires keys, so isn't a
pirate one as such.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials...r-install.html

Yes, looks a good tutorial, thanks. I got up to step 12:
1. Start 7, and log on as admin. (I think we are - certainly, we got no
"cannot" or "needs" messages that mentioned privileges.)
2. Disable any 3rd-party AV. (We didn't, but the way it failed doesn't
sound like that was the reason.)
3. Do 4, 5, or 6 depending on whether SP1 or not. (I _think_ this is
where we're coming a cropper! See below.)
5. Repair SP1 using SP1 DVD, by running setup.exe from it.
7. Accept UAC prompt.
8. Click Install now.
9. Get updates - well, I didn't, as (a) all the problems I've heard
about (b) offline at the time anyway as being on seems to have some
connection with the problems.
10. Accept licence terms.
11. Select Upgrade from the two options offered (Upgrade and Custom - no
"Repair" offered at this stage).
"12. Windows will now check for any compatibility issues. If any are
found like in the example below, take care of them first then restart
the repair install process over again." Well, the example in their
picture only has a couple of warnings, and has a Next button; mine had
errors, and only a Close button. The errors were, more or less, "you're
trying to upgrade to an older version", "32 bit can't be upgraded to
64", "64 can't be upgraded to 32", and the hardware warnings re the
scanner and webcam(?).

Obviously I couldn't follow the remaining steps.
I think I've divined the error. The system is W7 64 Home Premium with
SP1. The disc I have is, I'm pretty certain, a copy of the one the
people who assembled the system in front of me (including activating)
used, but looking at it now, I see the 5 folders in its root are dated
2009-7-19, and the 3 files (including setup.exe) 2009-7-13; looking at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7#Service_Pack_1 suggests SP1 came
out sometime around 2010 or 2011. I don't _remember_ either the people
who built it adding SP1 (I'm sure I'd have asked for a copy of that too
if I did), or doing it myself; however, it seems likely that I (or they)
did, since the system definitely identifies as SP1.

I tried the "software recovery centre"
https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows7, which confirmed
that the key I have is an OEM (so wouldn't let me download).

https://www.heidoc.net/joomla/techno...download-links
suggests I can download a genuine SP1 ISO using their tool, and
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/faq includes
"Windows came pre-installed on my device, can I use media from this site
to download and install?
Before using operating system copies from this site for install,
re-install or recovery on devices with pre-installed operating systems,
see your device manufacturer or reseller for the customized drivers and
applications specific to your machine. Using operating systems copied
from this site for install, re-install or recovery may void your support
agreement with your manufacturer or reseller. Any drivers or programs
that were installed by the device manufacturer or reseller may be
removed during installation."

Which to me reads as saying it _will_ work unless I need any special
drivers (which I have, if any are needed), and I won't get any
manufacturer-inserted rubbish software (a bonus!).

But I wanted to ask your opinion, before I start a ~4G download:
1. Do _you_ think an SP1 download using the heidoc tool can be installed
over an OEM installation ...
2. ... especially if the installation was originally SP0 with SP1 added?

As an alternative, I do have SP1 (and the convenience rollup, and the
little file that might be needed to make the con'roll work) downloaded
(all done this month); do you think (re-?)trying these would (a) cause
harm* (b) fix the problem?
(* I've imaged C: - and the hidden 100M partition [C: is about 100G] -
to an external drive, so I can always get back to where I am now, if any
of these alternatives breaks the system to the extent it won't boot.)

*******

Anything with "5mp" in the name is probably a webcam

Seems plausible, especially with the name ZoomEx before it.

*******
[]
On Win7 (we might have discussed this before), we have
SURCheck or CheckSUR, I can never remember the name. That
*might* be able to fix up WinSXS. Dunno. It's a separate
download. After I'd tried to repair WinSXS, then I might
try another SFC. Try the recipe here.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/947821

Paul

I had a quick look at that, but it didn't seem to describe our situation
(it seemed to be specifically for fixing problems with the upgrade
process, or something like that).
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging
their prejudices." - William James

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , Paul
writes:
[]
There are some nice tutorials with pictures. I don't know
if this dwells on versioning or not. Like, it might not like
it if you installed Win7SP0 over Win7SP1. I would expect
Win7SP1 over Win7SP1 to work. It should not be offended by
that. And you want to make sure the trim level ("Ultimate")

[I presume that means home, pro, ultimate etc., and has nothing to do
with the same or similar term(s) - trim? - used when talking about SSDs.]

and bitness ("x64") match. Some optical media will offer
up to five different OS versions on the same disc. (Something
that you used to be able to enable, by deleting ei.cfg from
a disc that happened to have multiple images.)

Yes, the one I have (which I'm pretty sure is the copy I got the people
building the system in front of me to make, of what they were using)
does that. My note on it is that it still requires keys, so isn't a
pirate one as such.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials...r-install.html

Yes, looks a good tutorial, thanks. I got up to step 12:
1. Start 7, and log on as admin. (I think we are - certainly, we got no
"cannot" or "needs" messages that mentioned privileges.)
2. Disable any 3rd-party AV. (We didn't, but the way it failed doesn't
sound like that was the reason.)
3. Do 4, 5, or 6 depending on whether SP1 or not. (I _think_ this is
where we're coming a cropper! See below.)
5. Repair SP1 using SP1 DVD, by running setup.exe from it.
7. Accept UAC prompt.
8. Click Install now.
9. Get updates - well, I didn't, as (a) all the problems I've heard
about (b) offline at the time anyway as being on seems to have some
connection with the problems.
10. Accept licence terms.
11. Select Upgrade from the two options offered (Upgrade and Custom - no
"Repair" offered at this stage).
"12. Windows will now check for any compatibility issues. If any are
found like in the example below, take care of them first then restart
the repair install process over again." Well, the example in their
picture only has a couple of warnings, and has a Next button; mine had
errors, and only a Close button. The errors were, more or less, "you're
trying to upgrade to an older version", "32 bit can't be upgraded to
64", "64 can't be upgraded to 32", and the hardware warnings re the
scanner and webcam(?).

Obviously I couldn't follow the remaining steps.
I think I've divined the error. The system is W7 64 Home Premium with
SP1. The disc I have is, I'm pretty certain, a copy of the one the
people who assembled the system in front of me (including activating)
used, but looking at it now, I see the 5 folders in its root are dated
2009-7-19, and the 3 files (including setup.exe) 2009-7-13; looking at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7#Service_Pack_1 suggests SP1 came
out sometime around 2010 or 2011. I don't _remember_ either the people
who built it adding SP1 (I'm sure I'd have asked for a copy of that too
if I did), or doing it myself; however, it seems likely that I (or they)
did, since the system definitely identifies as SP1.

I tried the "software recovery centre"
https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows7, which confirmed
that the key I have is an OEM (so wouldn't let me download).

https://www.heidoc.net/joomla/techno...download-links

suggests I can download a genuine SP1 ISO using their tool, and
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/faq includes
"Windows came pre-installed on my device, can I use media from this site
to download and install?
Before using operating system copies from this site for install,
re-install or recovery on devices with pre-installed operating systems,
see your device manufacturer or reseller for the customized drivers and
applications specific to your machine. Using operating systems copied
from this site for install, re-install or recovery may void your support
agreement with your manufacturer or reseller. Any drivers or programs
that were installed by the device manufacturer or reseller may be
removed during installation."

Which to me reads as saying it _will_ work unless I need any special
drivers (which I have, if any are needed), and I won't get any
manufacturer-inserted rubbish software (a bonus!).

But I wanted to ask your opinion, before I start a ~4G download:
1. Do _you_ think an SP1 download using the heidoc tool can be installed
over an OEM installation ...
2. ... especially if the installation was originally SP0 with SP1 added?

As an alternative, I do have SP1 (and the convenience rollup, and the
little file that might be needed to make the con'roll work) downloaded
(all done this month); do you think (re-?)trying these would (a) cause
harm* (b) fix the problem?
(* I've imaged C: - and the hidden 100M partition [C: is about 100G] -
to an external drive, so I can always get back to where I am now, if any
of these alternatives breaks the system to the extent it won't boot.)

*******

Anything with "5mp" in the name is probably a webcam

Seems plausible, especially with the name ZoomEx before it.

*******
[]
On Win7 (we might have discussed this before), we have
SURCheck or CheckSUR, I can never remember the name. That
*might* be able to fix up WinSXS. Dunno. It's a separate
download. After I'd tried to repair WinSXS, then I might
try another SFC. Try the recipe here.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/947821

Paul

I had a quick look at that, but it didn't seem to describe our situation
(it seemed to be specifically for fixing problems with the upgrade
process, or something like that).

I think you're headed in the right direction.

Use a Heidoc DVD (3.5GB download) which is the same level
as your "Win7 x64 Home Premium bumped to SP1". So you'd
want a Home Premium disc from Heidoc, then use that
for install.

I did a *clean* install that way, and activated using
the license key on the COA. And the procedure required
phone activation (robots, not humans).

You should be able to examine the OS version in the System
control panel, or execute "winver" for a second opinion.

Maybe that will result in setup.exe reporting less-conflicting
info at install time.

Paul

In message , Paul
writes:
[]
I think you're headed in the right direction.

Use a Heidoc DVD (3.5GB download) which is the same level
as your "Win7 x64 Home Premium bumped to SP1". So you'd
want a Home Premium disc from Heidoc, then use that
for install.

I got the "W7SP1 Home Premium OEM" one (~4½G I think), and made a DVD
from that, and ran setup from it. All _seems_ well: no "you _can't_ do
this), just a warning that itunes (as well as the old scanner and camera
as before) might not work.

It now, several reboots later, is on the fifth of the five stages. There
have been some very long pauses, and (after one of the reboots during
the third or fourth stage) it had gone to a much lower resolution, but
subsequently went back to what it had been, and the sound is working, so
hopefully we won't even need new drivers. However, it has stopped for a
_very_ long time at 66% of the final stage (and it tells me how many
files, out of how many, it is doing [both 6-figure numbers], and that
hasn't changed either), and disc activity has dropped to a very brief
flash about once a second. We've left it while we come to sleep. I'm
hoping that in the morning it has completed (or at least moved!), and of
course that we subsequently find the fault (sulk mode) no longer occurs.
(Julia's way of stopping sulk mode was to boot the system with the USB
wifi dongle unplugged. Booting with it connected caused the system to
boot OK, but sulk mode to cut in after what seemed like 5-10 minutes;
booting with it unplugged, then plugging it in subsequently, seems to
make it run fine all day [she always powers it off at the end of the day
anyway]. Rereading the above description as I typed it, it _does_ sound
like one of the "update" hangs, but there's no sign that it's actually
doing updates [and it doesn't when the internet is plugged in afterwards
anyway], and it also isn't sluggish, it just won't do most things. [An
interesting wrinkle: at one point {before attempting the reinstall},
when it had got into sulk mode and I told it to shut down {and it
didn't}, when I unplugged the wifi dongle the shutdown completed, or
rather proceeded further - we got the screen dimming you normally get
before a shutdown - before still not actually completing.])

I did a *clean* install that way, and activated using
the license key on the COA. And the procedure required
phone activation (robots, not humans).

I'm hoping that won't be required with just the repair, but I've got a
note of the key used at the original installation if it is.

You should be able to examine the OS version in the System
control panel, or execute "winver" for a second opinion.

Oh, I know it's 7 SP1 64 bit as it is now (or at least was before the
repair attempt started), and I know it was OEM because (a) the Microsoft
download centre said so when I tried to get an ISO direct from them, (b)
the repair using an ISO (via Heidoc) of 7 SP1 64 OEM hasn't complained
so far.

Maybe that will result in setup.exe reporting less-conflicting
info at install time.

Paul

As I say, all seems to have been OK so far. The first time, after the
compatibility check, it said Windows had to restart, and I took the DVD
out as I was concerned it would start a clean install when it did
restart; however, it just rebooted to normal boot and didn't carry on,
so I reran setup.exe, and did a restart (with some trepidation) when it
asked for one but leaving the disc in, and touch wood all seemed well.
(Watching the various reboots it has done by itself since then, I've
seen the "press a key to boot from CD/DVD" or similar wording, so I
think the BIOS on this machine has that feature - so [since I _didn't_
press a key on any of those reboots] I think it didn't, but carried on
with the reinstall, accessing the DVD only when necessary.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

The average age of a single mum in this country is 37
- Jane Rackham, RT 2016/5/28-6/3

In message , "J. P. Gilliver
(John)" writes:
In message , Paul
writes:
[]
I think you're headed in the right direction.

Use a Heidoc DVD (3.5GB download) which is the same level
as your "Win7 x64 Home Premium bumped to SP1". So you'd
want a Home Premium disc from Heidoc, then use that
for install.

I got the "W7SP1 Home Premium OEM" one (~4½G I think), and made a DVD
from that, and ran setup from it. All _seems_ well: no "you _can't_ do
this), just a warning that itunes (as well as the old scanner and
camera as before) might not work.

It now, several reboots later, is on the fifth of the five stages.
There have been some very long pauses, and (after one of the reboots
during the third or fourth stage) it had gone to a much lower
resolution, but subsequently went back to what it had been, and the
sound is working, so hopefully we won't even need new drivers. However,
it has stopped for a _very_ long time at 66% of the final stage (and it
tells me how many files, out of how many, it is doing [both 6-figure
numbers], and that hasn't changed either), and disc activity has
dropped to a very brief flash about once a second. We've left it while
we come to sleep. I'm hoping that in the morning it has completed (or
at least moved!), and of course that we subsequently find the fault
(sulk mode) no longer occurs. (Julia's way of stopping sulk mode was to
boot the system with the USB wifi dongle unplugged. Booting with it
connected caused the system to boot OK, but sulk mode to cut in after
what seemed like 5-10 minutes; booting with it unplugged, then plugging
it in subsequently, seems to make it run fine all day [she always
powers it off at the end of the day anyway]. Rereading the above
description as I typed it, it _does_ sound like one of the "update"
hangs, but there's no sign that it's actually doing updates [and it
doesn't when the internet is plugged in afterwards anyway], and it also
isn't sluggish, it just won't do most things. [An interesting wrinkle:
at one point {before attempting the reinstall}, when it had got into
sulk mode and I told it to shut down {and it didn't}, when I unplugged
the wifi dongle the shutdown completed, or rather proceeded further -
we got the screen dimming you normally get before a shutdown - before
still not actually completing.])

I did a *clean* install that way, and activated using
the license key on the COA. And the procedure required
phone activation (robots, not humans).

I'm hoping that won't be required with just the repair, but I've got a
note of the key used at the original installation if it is.

You should be able to examine the OS version in the System
control panel, or execute "winver" for a second opinion.

Oh, I know it's 7 SP1 64 bit as it is now (or at least was before the
repair attempt started), and I know it was OEM because (a) the
Microsoft download centre said so when I tried to get an ISO direct
from them, (b) the repair using an ISO (via Heidoc) of 7 SP1 64 OEM
hasn't complained so far.

Maybe that will result in setup.exe reporting less-conflicting
info at install time.

Paul

As I say, all seems to have been OK so far. The first time, after the
compatibility check, it said Windows had to restart, and I took the DVD
out as I was concerned it would start a clean install when it did
restart; however, it just rebooted to normal boot and didn't carry on,
so I reran setup.exe, and did a restart (with some trepidation) when it
asked for one but leaving the disc in, and touch wood all seemed well.
(Watching the various reboots it has done by itself since then, I've
seen the "press a key to boot from CD/DVD" or similar wording, so I
think the BIOS on this machine has that feature - so [since I _didn't_
press a key on any of those reboots] I think it didn't, but carried on
with the reinstall, accessing the DVD only when necessary.)

About 7 or more hours later: it's still on the fifth and last stage,
"transferring files, settings, and programs", but it's been at 66% - and
it says the numbers are 533462 of 625111 files transferred - since we
went to bed. I can still move the mouse cursor, and there is still
occasional disc activity; is it likely to finish? If I have to stop it,
do I just click the red X? Am I likely to have a corrupted system? Etc.
....
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

once described by Eccentrica Golumbits as the best bang since the big one ...
(first series, fit the second)

In message , "J. P. Gilliver
(John)" writes:
[]
About 7 or more hours later: it's still on the fifth and last stage,
"transferring files, settings, and programs", but it's been at 66% -
and it says the numbers are 533462 of 625111 files transferred - since
we went to bed. I can still move the mouse cursor, and there is still
occasional disc activity; is it likely to finish? If I have to stop it,
do I just click the red X? Am I likely to have a corrupted system? Etc. ...

About 2-4 more hours later: it has moved to 68%, 563955 files! I don't
know if those 2% were in the last hour, or two hours ... it's been
stopped at these new figures for quite a few minutes now ... |-:
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

age. fac ut gaudeam.

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , "J. P. Gilliver
(John)" writes:
In message , Paul
writes:
[]
I think you're headed in the right direction.

Use a Heidoc DVD (3.5GB download) which is the same level
as your "Win7 x64 Home Premium bumped to SP1". So you'd
want a Home Premium disc from Heidoc, then use that
for install.

I got the "W7SP1 Home Premium OEM" one (~4½G I think), and made a DVD
from that, and ran setup from it. All _seems_ well: no "you _can't_ do
this), just a warning that itunes (as well as the old scanner and
camera as before) might not work.

It now, several reboots later, is on the fifth of the five stages.
There have been some very long pauses, and (after one of the reboots
during the third or fourth stage) it had gone to a much lower
resolution, but subsequently went back to what it had been, and the
sound is working, so hopefully we won't even need new drivers.
However, it has stopped for a _very_ long time at 66% of the final
stage (and it tells me how many files, out of how many, it is doing
[both 6-figure numbers], and that hasn't changed either), and disc
activity has dropped to a very brief flash about once a second. We've
left it while we come to sleep. I'm hoping that in the morning it has
completed (or at least moved!), and of course that we subsequently
find the fault (sulk mode) no longer occurs. (Julia's way of stopping
sulk mode was to boot the system with the USB wifi dongle unplugged.
Booting with it connected caused the system to boot OK, but sulk mode
to cut in after what seemed like 5-10 minutes; booting with it
unplugged, then plugging it in subsequently, seems to make it run fine
all day [she always powers it off at the end of the day anyway].
Rereading the above description as I typed it, it _does_ sound like
one of the "update" hangs, but there's no sign that it's actually
doing updates [and it doesn't when the internet is plugged in
afterwards anyway], and it also isn't sluggish, it just won't do most
things. [An interesting wrinkle: at one point {before attempting the
reinstall}, when it had got into sulk mode and I told it to shut down
{and it didn't}, when I unplugged the wifi dongle the shutdown
completed, or rather proceeded further - we got the screen dimming you
normally get before a shutdown - before still not actually completing.])

I did a *clean* install that way, and activated using
the license key on the COA. And the procedure required
phone activation (robots, not humans).

I'm hoping that won't be required with just the repair, but I've got a
note of the key used at the original installation if it is.

You should be able to examine the OS version in the System
control panel, or execute "winver" for a second opinion.

Oh, I know it's 7 SP1 64 bit as it is now (or at least was before the
repair attempt started), and I know it was OEM because (a) the
Microsoft download centre said so when I tried to get an ISO direct
from them, (b) the repair using an ISO (via Heidoc) of 7 SP1 64 OEM
hasn't complained so far.

Maybe that will result in setup.exe reporting less-conflicting
info at install time.

Paul

As I say, all seems to have been OK so far. The first time, after the
compatibility check, it said Windows had to restart, and I took the
DVD out as I was concerned it would start a clean install when it did
restart; however, it just rebooted to normal boot and didn't carry on,
so I reran setup.exe, and did a restart (with some trepidation) when
it asked for one but leaving the disc in, and touch wood all seemed
well. (Watching the various reboots it has done by itself since then,
I've seen the "press a key to boot from CD/DVD" or similar wording, so
I think the BIOS on this machine has that feature - so [since I
_didn't_ press a key on any of those reboots] I think it didn't, but
carried on with the reinstall, accessing the DVD only when necessary.)

About 7 or more hours later: it's still on the fifth and last stage,
"transferring files, settings, and programs", but it's been at 66% - and
it says the numbers are 533462 of 625111 files transferred - since we
went to bed. I can still move the mouse cursor, and there is still
occasional disc activity; is it likely to finish? If I have to stop it,
do I just click the red X? Am I likely to have a corrupted system? Etc. ...

Is this a HDD or SSD ?

I'd be checking the SMART with HDTune and see if the
disk is OK.

*******

This one is for "stuck at 62%". It probably doesn't
apply to you, since you're at 66%.

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...d-cdd6d563e595

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/975253

Another example here. It looks like the successful
person here threw "belt and suspenders" at fixing it.
So did not try fixes one at a time.

"Windows 7 upgrade fails during migration (63%-66%)"

https://social.technet.microsoft.com...w7itproinstall

Paul

In message , Paul
writes:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
[]
Is this a HDD or SSD ?

HDD.

I'd be checking the SMART with HDTune and see if the
disk is OK.

Good thinking. If we ever finish!, I might do that. Although its disc
light is only giving very short flashes - is that what you'd expect if
it's unwell? (I'd have expected long "on"s, as it tried to read the
recalcitrant areas, if any.)

*******

This one is for "stuck at 62%". It probably doesn't
apply to you, since you're at 66%.

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...7-windows_inst
all/installation-stalled-at-transferring-files/ee19b81f-0f31-4c92-951d-c
dd6d563e595

Interesting. At least two of them said definitely don't do it unless
stuck at exactly 62%, but they also say that corresponds to 520258 of
688330 transferred; my numbers (at 66%) were 533462 of 625111, which
sounds as if it might be in the same ballpark. Also, what they did do
involved reverting (to Vista in all the ones where I understood what
they were doing) before applying some patch, which I'd very much like
not to have to do! (Or to 7SP1 in my case.)

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/975253

Another example here. It looks like the successful
person here threw "belt and suspenders" at fixing it.
So did not try fixes one at a time.

"Windows 7 upgrade fails during migration (63%-66%)"

https://social.technet.microsoft.com...885bb7fa-bc07-
4b8f-bf11-7b5dc9afbb64/windows-7-upgrade-fails-during-migration-6366?for
um=w7itproinstall

Those seemed to be mostly concerned with upgrading from Vista to 7,
rather than as I'm trying to do repair a 7SP1.

Paul

Now at 68% - 563955 of 625111 - and has been for some time. Mouse cursor
still movable, disc light flashing briefly about once a second.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

age. fac ut gaudeam.

In message , "J. P. Gilliver
(John)" writes:
[]
Now at 68% - 563955 of 625111 - and has been for some time. Mouse
cursor still movable, disc light flashing briefly about once a second.

_Still_ at exactly the same stage over 5 hours later. I did try the
escape key, and it came up with a message to the effect that upgrade
cannot be stopped at this point as it might leave the computer in an
unusable condition, so it hadn't frozen or anything - but it didn't seem
to be _doing_ anything, either (still the very slight flashes from the
disc light). The message only had an OK button, which I clicked and it
went back to doing the upgrade (or not).

The message _did_ take some tens of seconds to appear, which suggests
it's doing _some_thing that's taking most of its attention, but I can't
think what; it's not online, and I declined its offer to fetch updates
at the start of the process anyway. And besides, at this stage it _says_
it's only transferring files and functions, or something like that.

We've left it overnight, and will probably leave it tomorrow as we have
something else to do, but I fear we're going to have to interrupt it
after that, at least if it hasn't shown any change in the numbers. (And
possibly even if it has, if extrapolating to completion is _too_ long.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

once described by Eccentrica Golumbits as the best bang since the big one ...
(first series, fit the second)