ntGetting started

To get started, just click the Install now button

ntAs soon as the initial steps are taken care of, you’ll see the Windows Setup screen shown in Figure C and will click the Install Now button.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

You'll enter your product key to start the information collection phase of the installation procedure

ntCollecting Information

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ntOnce you click the Install now button, you’ll see the beginning of the information collection phase of the installation procedure. As you can see in Figure D, the first step here is to input the Windows 8 product key.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

The new EULA is much easier to read that previous versions

ntThe next step is to acknowledge that you accept the license terms, as shown in Figure E. If you take the time to read through them, you will see that Microsoft has indeed radically overhauled EULA as Ed Bott over at ZDNet wrote about in a recent column.

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ntEven if you don’t take the time to read the license terms during the installation, once you have installed Windows 8, you can find the Microsoft Software License Agreement in the Windows Help and Support system – just search with the term License. Not only is the license shorter in length, but it is also much clearer and easier to read.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

In order to perform a clean install of Windows 8, you'll select the Custom option

ntWhen you are prompted to choose which type of installation you want to perform, as shown in Figure F, you’ll choose Custom: Install Windows only (advanced) type in order to perform a clean install of Windows 8.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

On you example system there are four partitions that I will be blowing away

ntWhen you are prompted to choose where you want to install Windows, as shown in Figure G, you’ll see a list of any partitions that are currently on your hard disk. As you can see in my example system there are actually four separate partitions. You may have a different combination depending on your system.

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ntAs I mentioned, performing a clean install means blowing away all existing partitions. The first partition in this list is labeled System Reserved and it was created automatically during the Windows 7 installation. A new System Reserved partition will be created by Windows 8, so you can remove existing one. The partition labeled Recovery contains the OEM recovery for Windows 7. I created the recovery DVDs soon after I got the new system. It won’t do me any good going forward with Windows 8 anyway, so I will remove that partition too. The partition labeled WIN7 contains the Windows 7 installation that I am replacing, so it is definitely going. The partition labeled DATA contains all of my data that I copied to an external hard disk, so it is safe to blow that one away too.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

When you click Drive options (advanced), you'll see a list of commands for managing partitions

ntTo begin blowing away partitions, you start by clicking Drive options (advanced). When you do so, you’ll see a list of commands for managing partitions, as shown in Figure H.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

As you delete each partition, you'll be prompted to confirm the operation

ntNow, you’ll select each of the partitions, one by one, and select the Delete command. When you do, you’ll see a confirmation prompt like the one shown in Figure I. Just click OK to delete the partition.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

All of the space will be combined together in one chunk labeled Unallocated Space

ntOnce you delete each of the existing partitions, you’ll see that all of the space will be combined together in one chunk labeled Unallocated Space, as shown in Figure J. While you could create a new partition and format it, you don’t have to. Windows 8 will automatically take care of that in the next step. So just go ahead and click Next.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

The Installing Windows stage begins with copying files from the DVD to the hard disk

ntInstalling Windows

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ntWhen you click Next, Setup creates the partition, formats it, and then instantly moves into the Installing Windows phase which begins with copying and getting files ready for the installation, as shown in Figure K. This process will take a while to progress though, so you can sit back and relax a bit.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

Windows will restart after the first part of the process is complete

ntWhen this phase of the process is complete, Windows will alert you that it is going to restart in order to continue, as shown in Figure L. If you are really impatient and really quick, you can click the Restart now button.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

Windows Setup will get all installed devices ready to work with Windows 8

ntUpon restarting you’ll see the black screen with the blue Windows logo and see that Setup is getting devices ready, as shown in Figure M.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

Windows will restart again

ntAs soon as that part of the process is complete, Windows will alert you that it is going to restart again, as shown in Figure N.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

You can choose a color schema and name your computer

ntConfiguring Windows

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ntWhen the system restarts, you’ll be prompted to choose a color scheme for Windows 8 and a PC name, as shown in Figure O. I chose a light blue color scheme for now. I can change it later.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

You can customize the settings or just go the express route

ntWhen the Settings screen appears, as shown in Figure P, you can choose to customize these settings or you can allow Windows to use the express settings. If you are unsure, you can click the Learn more link and get more details. I chose to use the express settings. I can change any or all of these setting later if I want.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

It will be to your advantage to use an existing Microsoft account or to create one

ntOn the next screen, you’ll choose how you want to sign on to Windows 8, as shown in Figure Q. While you can choose to sign in with a local account, I would recommend that you use an existing Microsoft (email) account, such as a Hotmail.com or a Live.com account. If you don’t have a Microsoft account, you can sign up for one or you can use any email address that you want and Windows 8 will create an account for you.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

While this screen changes color often, it will remain for a few minutes while Setup works in the background

ntThe advantage of using an existing Microsoft account or creating one is that you will be able to instantly use the Windows Store, will be able to easily sync settings between multiple Windows 8 computers, and be able to easily take advantage of other Windows 8 features. I already have a Microsoft account, so I entered it here.

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ntAfter filling the details of your account on the next couple of screens, you’ll eventually see a screen that changes color as it alerts you the Setup is getting your PC ready. The green version of this screen is show in Figure R.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

As the last step in the installation, Windows 8 installs its set of native apps

ntAs you may know, Windows 8 comes with a host of native apps for the Start screen interface that replace and add to the group of applications that used to come with previous versions of Windows. The screen shown in Figure S indicates that Setup is installing those apps.

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic

The Start screen appears when the installation procedure is complete

ntOnce the apps are installed, you’ll see the Start screen, as shown in Figure T, and can begin using Windows 8.

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ntWhat’s your take?

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ntAre you planning on performing a clean install of Windows 8? As always, if you have comments or information to share about this topic, please take a moment to drop by the TechRepublic Community Forums and let us hear from you.

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ntAlso read:

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• nttTransfer a Windows 8 ISO to a bootable USB flash drive

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• nttThe first 10 things you should do to a new Windows 8 desktop installation

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• nttDual-boot Windows 7 and Windows 8

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ntCredit: Images by Greg Shultz for TechRepublic