T400 upgrade to Win7

[kp216]

Hi,

      I used customize way to upgrade my T400 vista to windows 7. Can I back up my new windows 7 file to disk lenovo(Q) and overwrite old vista file? How to do it?

I have read the overview about disk SERVICEV003(S), it is holds critical start up (booting) information, and cannot be deleted, I am wondering if this still the case under Windows 7?

Thanks

[zoltanthegypsy]

So your S and Q partitions survived the Win 7 custom install?  I did a clean retail install to Win 7 Pro 64 and let it wipe out all the partitions.  Win created its little boot partition and C on the rest of the drive.

In the past, ThinkPads would boot without the service partition - but of course you couldn't boot to rescue and recovery.   I didn't try deleting S on my T400.

I can tell you that if you blow them away (or not I guess) during a clean install you can install the latest Rescue and Recovery app into Win 7 and burn a backup CD/DVD set with it.  I did that and even tested recovery onto a blank drive.  It worked fine.

I was also able to boot to R&R with the "Think" button.  Not sure how that magic happened since there was definitely NOT a recovery/service partition on the drive.

That's my favorite approach anyway.  Keep my "factory" image on optical media and don't waste the space on the hard drive.

Z.

[cassio]

if you installed r&r and the predesktop environment (or whatever the hell its called) then you'd get that

[zoltanthegypsy]

I guess, but when I was a boy, the "predesktop environment" went into a separate partition or a host-protected-area on the drive.  (That wasn't a partition but was an area only the gods could see or write to so it might as well have been).

I just installed R&R and it all worked.  Clearly the predesktop/bootable R&R is somewhere, but where?

Just curious,

Z.

[cassio]

that is when i was a boy too

but maybe they work differently now. just guessing.

i haven't installed r&r since i installed win7, so i don't know either

[kp216]

I still have two more questions.

how to access predesktop envirnoment, or I have to install some software to get it.

How to delete partition Q, and S.

Thanks

[hatbrox]

don't know what predesktop is.

to delete partition, go to http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

download their ISO file, burn it and boot your computer with the CD.

There are multiple utilities that will let you delete your partiitions.

[kp216]

Does anyone know to access pre-desktop environment ?

[hatbrox]

can you give a definition of "pre-desktop"?