Assessing Your Computer for Windows 7 Requirements

What You Should Know Before Installing Windows 7

Windows 7 logo
Microsoft
Updated September 11, 2016

Windows 7 will soon be available. If you want to upgrade from Vista or XP, first make sure you have sufficient hardware, capability, and capacity.

To install Windows 7 on your computer, your PC should have these minimums, so that you will have a good computer experience:

  • A Dual Processor (AMD or Intel) – you can use a lower Celeron or Pentium Processor, but you will regret it
  • 2 GB RAM (operating memory) – you can use less, but you will regret it
  • 16 GB available disk space and another 20 to 30 GB if you plan on running applications
  • A Vista compatible graphics card (DirectX 9 graphics process with WDDM 1.0 or higher)
  • A Vista compatible sound card
  • Vista drivers for any other unique hardware you have on or connected to your computer

To make sure there are not any other issues, you should also download, install and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. The information this tool will create can help you avoid other problems. Notice that Microsoft recommends these minimums requirements for Windows 7:

  • 1 GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
  • 1 GB RAM (32-bit) / 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
  • 16 GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20 GB (64-bit)
  • DirectX 9 graphics processor with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

The requirements recommended by Microsoft are insufficient; these are minimums, which means your experience may be minimal. If you load Windows 7 on a PC that does not have enough processing power, operating memory, hard drive space and the right combination of video and sound cards Windows 7 will operating, but at a much lower capability than its optimum performance.