Installing Windows 7 over pre-existing XP

[Krattle]

I'm a total newb when it comes to installing/upgrading new operating systems, so I'd like a little assistance with this.

I'm thinking about buying Windows 7 Ultimate (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116762) to upgrade from my current OS - XP Professional. I hate Vista, so that's why I've stayed with XP for so long, but Windows 7 is looking promising, and I want to finally utilize 8GB or more of RAM on a 64-bit OS.

Anyway, what would I need to do in order to wipe XP and install Windows 7? I would prefer to keep my current partition because I have dozens of very large (5-10GB) games installed that would take literally weeks to reinstall. Is it possible to delete XP and install Windows 7 without having to format my hard drive? Also, it's a 1TB drive, so formatting takes a century.

If I do have to format, then so be it. What do I need to do to accomplish this and get a clean OS installation?



On a side note: if I do go through with the upgrade, I would be purchasing 8GB of RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145217

I do game and I do multitask, so I figure 8GB is a good upgrade to go with. My motherboard supports 16, but that seems like overkill. It would also be seriously expensive.

[12twelve12]

If you have the space on your HDD why not create a new partition and install 7 on it? This will give you a "dual boot" system leaving your XP OS and all it's programs intact. With a dual boot system you will see a new start-up screen giving you the option to load XP or 7 in your case.

[EzyStvy]

You can't upgrade XP to Win7.....The install will automatically wipe out XP and do a fresh install...

[Krattle]

^^Ah, ok, that's pretty much what I wanted to know. If Windows 7 just wipes out XP, then that's exactly what I want.

Thank you!