Windows 7 Install Guide Page 5

21) Product Key:

Windows 7 now asks you to enter the product key that was included with your purchase. This key determines what features and which version will be installed on the system. 32 and 64-bit versions have the same product key.

I highly recommend to uncheck "Automatically activate Windows when I'm online". The reason is that you only have a finite amount of times that you may activate online. After this limit is reached, you will need to call Microsoft directly to have them activate your installation. This can be a big hassle, especially when you are in a hurry to get the computer back up and running. Windows 7 will nag you every so often to activate upon logging in, but this is a minor nuisance compared to the phone call method of activating Windows 7. After verifying that everything works as you intend, you can activate and know that you could have avoided problems later on if you let Windows 7 do it right after logging in for the first time.

30 days is the intended grace period before requiring activation with retail versions, even with this method. However, you can boost that number up to 116 days using the following method:

Open up a command prompt with administrator privileges

Type:

slmgr -rearm

After a reboot, you will have an additional 30 days to ensure everything is running properly. You can perform this action up to 3 times with the current Windows 7 retail release, bringing the required activation time to 116 days, if the Software License Manager is invoked at the end of the required activation period (on the 29th day). I would recommend not waiting until the 30th day to run the command, thus 116 days total and not 120.

After this information is entered, select the Next button.

22) Use Recommended Settings:

This is where Automatic Updates and problems and reports solutions are offered as an option. I recommend to most users to "Use Recommended Settings" here. These options can always be changed later.

Make your selection to continue to the next screen.

23) Time and Date:

Ensure that your time zone is entered correctly and make adjustments as necessary. Also ensure the proper time is set. This information is extracted from the BIOS settings, so if the time was set correctly in a previous installation of Windows (or most any other OS), it should still be correct here.

After this information is verified, select the Next button.

24) Network Profile:

Here, you can select the "general" security measures put in place for your particular network. Most people will want to use "Home network" for desktop installations or "Public network" for a portable system, like a laptop.

Make your selection to continue to the next screen.

25) Network Connecting:

Windows 7 is now connecting to the network. This is where your initial IP address is acquired and internet connectivity is verified.

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