Downgrade Windows 10 to Windows 7

Question

I have a brand new ASUS laptop that came with Windows 10 pre-installed. I would like to downgrade this to Windows 7.

Do I need to get a valid Windows 7 key? If yes, how is this downgrade process different from just installing a different operating system?

Thank you very much

Answer 1

Windows 10 Pro has downgrade rights to Windows 7 Pro. If your new laptop came with the Pro (not Home) version of Windows 10, then you should be eligible to downgrade without buying any new Windows 7 license.

You should first ask ASUS about the downgrade process. They should at least provide the installation media (DVD) for Windows 7 Pro. If that comes with its own key, or is BIOS-locked and pre-activated, then you can simply install it and be done. Otherwise you may need to activate by phone using the Windows 10 key, while explaining the situation to the MS rep.

From Microsoft's Understanding downgrade rights:

Windows 10 Pro includes downgrade rights to:

• Windows 8.1 Pro
  
• Windows 7 Professional
  

Follow these steps to downgrade to an earlier version of Windows software:

• Use genuine Windows media and a corresponding product key for the version of Windows that is eligible for downgrade. The media/key should come from a previously licensed product from the OEM or retail channel.
  
• End users who are licensed separately through Microsoft Volume Licensing (VL) may provide their VL media and key to a system builder to facilitate the downgrade on their own systems.
• Insert the downgrade-eligible version of Windows media and follow the installation instructions.
• Enter the product key.
• If the software was previously activated, it cannot be activated online. In this case, the appropriate local Activation Support phone number will be displayed. Call the number and explain the circumstances. When it is determined that the end user has an eligible Windows license, the customer service representative will provide a single-use activation code to activate the software. Please note that Microsoft does not provide a full product key in this scenario.
• Activate the software.

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[EDIT] Like with any fresh install of Windows, you should check in advance that the manufacturer provides the necessary Windows 7 drivers. This has become more of a problem lately with brand name notebooks/tablets that often come with customized/proprietary hardware, making it harder to locate generic drivers that provide full functionality and performance. In your case, you should ask ASUS about Windows 7 drivers for the particular model you have.

Answer 2

Although the above question might have answered your question, I still want to answer as this well cover every version of windows 8, 8.1 and 10. All these os lack something, the legacy boot menu which prevents the windows to be downgraded. What you need to do is to enable it.

To do it open task manager, file->open and type cmd, and also check the option to run program as administrator. Then in command prompt type: " bcdedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy legacy " without the quotes and it will enable the legacy boot menu, which will let you open the menu when you used to mash F8 button several times while the PC boots up to get into safe move.

After doing this just put a windows 7 DVD, and install as usual. This does not require the windows to be of pro version, or having the same windows version. So you can install windows 7 ultimate on windows 10 home version, or whichever you like.