I have a 5 year old laptop.
I have the registration code for the laptop's existing Windows 7 - it's 32 bit
Did you mean XP or Vista on the laptop ? Or did you put 7 on it at some point ?
Desktop operating systems
Date of general availability
Retail software end of sales *
End of sales for PCs with Windows preinstalled |
Windows XP
|
| December 31, 2001
|
| June 30, 2008
|
| October 22, 2010
| Windows Vista
|
| January 30, 2007
|
| October 22, 2010
|
| October 22, 2011
| Windows 7
|
| October 22, 2009
|
| To be determined
|
| To be determined
|
You can install Windows using the same disk or flash drive on multiple machines as long as you purchase a valid license for each one from MS. For instance, the new Windows 8 can be downloaded to a flash drive. If you purchase 5 licenses you can use the same flash drive for the install on 5 different machines. You validate each machine with it's own unique product key.
If you're not a lawyer, the subject of Windows licensing can be overwhelmingly confusing.
zdnet.com
32 bit vs 64 bit
windows.microsoft.com
techsupportalert.com
Many of your questions lead to more questions. It's helpful if you mention the brand, model and specs etc.
If I owned a 5 year old laptop that booted slow:
I wouldn't spend money on a new operating system.
Use Revo Uninstaller to remove unnecessary software.
Use CCleaner to clean system and minimize startup programs.
Set a restore point.
Use CCleaner to clean the registry ( make a backup of the registry when it asks )
Some may say don't do this, I've done it dozens of times without problems.
Run malwarebytes or similar.
If it has XP, you lost the disks but want to install a fresh copy of XP you need to get a copy of XP and download the appropriate laptop drivers. Once installed , validate windows using the License key that came with the laptop. It should be on a sticker, often on the bottom of the case.
Another option, since you have a couple of new machines now, you could use the old laptop to learn a bit about Ubuntu or Linux. Install one and dual boot with windows.
It would probably boot and run fast since it requires few resources.
ubuntu.com
linuxmint.com |
