DoIT Showroom Buyer's Guide
An overview of the Windows 7 operating system.
General Information
The Windows 7 homepage can be found here.
New Features: For an overview of all the new features available in Windows 7, click here.
| STARTER | HOME BASIC | HOME PREMIUM | PROFESSIONAL | ENTERPRISE/ |
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| Availability | Sold only with new PCs | Available only to emerging markets | Retail | Retail | Enterprise is available to volume-license customers only; Ultimate is available via Retail and OEM channels |
| 32-bit & 64-bit Versions | 32-bit only | Both | Both | Both | Both |
| Maximum Physical Memory | 4 GB | 8 GB | 16 GB | 192 GB | 192 GB |
| Home Group (Create & Join) | Join only | Join only | Both | Both | Both |
| Multiple Monitors |  |
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| Fast User Switching | |
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| Desktop Window Manager | |
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| Windows Mobility Manager | |
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| Windows Aero | |
Partial | |
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| Multi-Touch | |
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| Premium Games Included | |
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| Windows Media Center | |
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| Backup & Restore Center | Manual to local HDD only | Manual to local HDD only | Manual to local HDD only | |
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| Encrypting File System | |
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| Location Aware Printing | |
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| Remote Desktop Host | |
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| Presentation Mode | |
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| Windows Server domain joining | |
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| Windows Virtual PC & XP Mode | |
Virtual PC only | Virtual PC only | |
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| AppLocker | |
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| BitLocker Drive Encryption | |
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| BranchCache Distributed Cache | |
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| DirectAccess | |
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| Subsystem for Unix-based Applications | |
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| Multilingual User Interface Pack | |
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| Virtual Hard Disk Booting | |
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| DoIT Tech Store products available to: UW-Madison Students, Faculty, and Staff |
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| Licensed Products | Not Available | Not Available | Not Available |
32-bit Version* ($42.95)
64-bit Version* ($42.95) |
32-bit Version* ($82.95)
64-bit Version* ($82.95) |
| Shrink-wrapped Products | Not Available | Not Available | Full DVD ($193.01) | Full DVD ($283.06) | Full DVD ($296.74) |
| DoIT Tech Store products available to: UW-Madison Departments |
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| Licensed Products | Not Available | Not Available | Not Available | Not Available |
32-bit Version* ($10)
32-bit Version* [x5] ($25) 64-bit Version* ($10) 64-bit Version* [x5] ($25) |
| Shrink-wrapped Products | Not Available | Not Available | Full DVD ($193.01) | Full DVD ($283.06) | Full DVD ($296.74) |
For more information see Microsoft's FAQ on 32-bit vs 64-bit versions of Windows 7.
Here are Microsoft's Windows 7 system requirements. There is also an Upgrade Advisor available, which can scan your computer and notify you of any potential compatibility issues.
Sales and Distribution for University of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Technical College Systems
Current UW-Madison Faculty, Staff and Students can purchase uniquely-keyed license and media for Windows 7 Pro ($42.95) or Windows 7 Ultimate ($82.95) for installation on their personally-owned computers in person at the DoIT Tech Store or online at the Wisconsin Integrated Software Catalog (WISC). These products include full install media and an upgrade license that requires a qualifying Windows license. For more details, see: Microsoft Select License for personal use. Eligibility requires that students be currently enrolled, and that faculty/staff be currently employed on the UW-Madison payroll. To check your eligibility go to the appropriate WISC web site (UW-Madison Student or UW-Madison Faculty/Staff), click on Order Products, then enter your NetID and password. The shrink-wrapped products are available for situations where the above products do not qualify.
Faculty, Staff and Students from other UW-System campuses and WI Technical Schools purchase these products online at the Wisconsin Integrated Software Catalog (WISC).
All campus-owned computers can be upgraded to the Enterprise edition of Windows 7 under the terms of our current Microsoft Desktop Campus Agreement. Enterprise edition media-only items (DVD single copy for $10 or DVD 5-pack for $25) for UW-Madison are now available through WISC and the Tech Store.
Microsoft has not announced any changes to Volume Activation 2.0 for Windows 7. Windows 7 will use KMS activation instead of the MAK activation used with departmental Vista installations. Installations performed with the Windows 7 media sold to UW-Madison departments will automatically be directed to activate against UW-Madison's KMS server. No manual entry of a key is required.
Computers that do not connect to the UW network at least every 6 months will still need to use MAK activation or WiscVPN. When you purchase Windows 7 media from the Tech Store, you will receive an email with instructions on how to obtain the UW-Madison's MAK.
Neither WISC nor the Tech Store will sell Windows 7 Enterprise to non-UW-Madison campuses because of limitations inherent in Microsoft's Volume Activation 2.0: The servers used for KMS activation must be available only to each campus' computers; and each campus has its own Multiple Activation Key (MAK) with a limited number of installations.
This refers to installation method, not licensing limitations.
You can upgrade from Windows Vista Home Basic to:
You can upgrade from Windows Vista Home Premium to:
You can upgrade from Windows Vista Business to:
You can upgrade from Windows Vista Enterprise to:
You can upgrade from Windows Vista Ultimate to:
You can not perform an upgrade install in the following circumstances:
Note that if you cannot upgrade your existing operating system to Windows 7, you should still be able to do a clean install.
The product keys required for Windows 7 Student Select media are located on the back of the media sleeve. For Microsoft's installation instructions, click here.
For more information about activation issues with clean installs, please see our document here.
Windows 7 Upgrade Option: When you buy Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, or Ultimate either as a packaged product or on a qualifying PC you can get a comparable upgrade version of Windows 7 after it's generally available on October 22, 2009. Qualifying PCs, offer details, and product delivery methods will vary by manufacturer, so check their sites for specifics. If you buy a packaged copy of Windows Vista you can order your upgrade from Microsoft. The Windows 7 Upgrade Option program runs from June 26, 2009 through January 31, 2010. However, individual PC manufacturers may choose to offer the option for a shorter period. For full details, see the FAQ located here.
Anytime Upgrade is the ability to upgrade your edition of Windows 7 to a higher version without reinstalling or purchasing a physical disk, and can be accomplished online. For the Anytime Upgrade process, the original Windows 7 installation disk is not required. Note that you can not upgrade to or from the Enterprise edition (and there would be no reason to upgrade from Enterprise since the Ultimate edition has an identical feature set).