Installation, Upgrade and Updates

The upgrade path from Windows 7 goes to Windows 8 or Windows 10. If you want to be on Windows 8, you can go for a clean install or upgrade from Windows 7. There is some preparation needed for an upgrade like the download of Windows 8.1 ISO to upgrade using an upgrade disc, or create a bootable USB. If you don’t really want to have Windows 8 as the primary OS, you can dual boot it with Windows 7, try it out on VirtualBox or on Parallels for Mac.

For upgrading to Windows 8.1 (and its updates), you can go for the automatic upgrade or do a manual upgrade. You can run into several issues that you may need to troubleshoot like the refresh reset bugthe upgrade loophole, or even internet connection issues. Once done with the upgrade, you can delete the Windows.old folder. To control the updates, you can disable the auto app update as well.

Backup, Restore, Reset and Recovery

To keep everything running smoothly, you need to do a bit of prep. This includes creating a custom recovery image or a recovery USB. You should also access system restore and create a restore point, in case you want to restore Windows 8 to a previous state. On Windows 8, since it uses apps, you can also backup Windows 8 apps data.

There are a few more things that you can do to play on the safe side – create a password reset disk and create a Windows 8 system repair disc. You can always run automatic repair,  refresh your Windows 8 system and as an extreme measure, you might need to completely reset your Windows 8 system.

Tweaking Windows Settings and Features

Windows 8 Apps and Start Screen

Networking on Windows 8

Security in Windows 8

Customize Windows 8

Other Possible To-Dos

That's it

You should be able to locate information for most things you need in Windows 8 right here. Even as a seasoned user of Windows 8, you can give a boost to your speed by using keyboard shortcuts for Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 as well.

If there is something else that you need, and it is not available here, let us know!