MCSA: Windows 10 Complete Study Guide: Exam 70-698 and Exam 70-697

PART I

Exam 70-698, Installing and Configuring Windows 10

Chapter 1

Windows 10 Installation

MICROSOFT EXAM OBJECTIVES COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER:

✓ Prepare for installation requirements.

This objective may include but is not limited to the following subobjectives: Determine hardware requirements and compatibility; choose between an upgrade and a clean installation; determine appropriate editions according to device type; determine requirements for particular features, such as Hyper-V, Cortana, Miracast, Virtual Smart Cards, and Secure Boot; determine and create appropriate installation media.

✓ Install Windows.

This objective may include but is not limited to the following subobjectives: Perform clean installations, upgrade using Windows Update, upgrade using installation media, migrate from previous versions of Windows, install on bootable USB, configure Windows for additional regional and language support.

✓ Configure updates.

This objective may include but is not limited to the following subobjectives: Configure Windows Update options; implement Insider Preview, Current Branch (CB), Current Branch for Business (CBB), and Long Term Servicing Branch (LTSB) scenarios; manage update history; roll back updates; update Windows Store apps.

This book is for exam 70-698, and even though it’s a higher exam number, this is the first of two MCSA Windows 10 exams (70-698 and 70-697). If you are using both of the Sybex books for the Windows 10 MCSA, you will notice that many of the topics in these books are the same in both books. The reason for this is that no matter what test you take, installing Windows 10 is the same. It has the same control panel, the same applications, and the same way to configure the operating system.

So let me be the first to welcome you to Windows 10 and the beginning of a new journey. But as with the start of any journey, we must take our first steps. The first steps for this exam involves learning about the Windows 10 installation process. It is important that you understand the different versions of Windows 10 and which one is right for you and your organization.

In this chapter, I will show you the many different features of Windows 10 and then I will describe each edition. I will then show you how to install Windows 10 and also how to do an upgrade from a previous version.

Before you can install Windows 10, you must first make sure your hardware meets the minimum requirements and that your hardware is supported by the operating system. After we install the Windows 10 operating system, I will show you how to get upgrades for the Windows 10 system.

Understanding the Basics

Microsoft Windows 10 is the latest version of Microsoft’s client operating system software. Windows 10 combines the best of Windows 7 and Windows 8, and it also makes it much easier to work within the cloud.

Microsoft has currently released six different versions of the Windows 10 operating system along with the announcement of a seventh:

Windows 10 Home

Windows 10 Professional

Windows 10 Enterprise

Windows 10 Education

Windows 10 Mobility

Windows 10 Mobility Enterprise

Windows 10 Anniversary Edition

At the time this book was written, Windows 10 Anniversary Edition had not been released yet. Microsoft has stated that this version will be released by the end of 2016.

Microsoft also offers a slimmed-down version of some of these operating systems called Windows 10 IoT Core. This version is one of the above Windows 10 versions that doesn’t require a monitor or system. For example, you are building a toy robot and you want to load Windows 10 into his core computer. You can use the IoT versions to run the robot’s functionality.

Windows 10 has been improved in many of the weak areas that plagued Windows 8. Windows 10 has a much faster boot time and shutdown compared to Windows 8. It also brings back the - Start button that we are all so familiar with from previous editions.

The Windows 10 operating system functions are also faster than their previous counterparts. The processes for opening, moving, extracting, compressing, and installing files and folders are more efficient than they were in previous versions of Microsoft’s client operating systems.

Let’s take a look at some of the features of each Windows 10 edition (this is just an overview of some of the benefits to using Windows 10). Table 1.1 shows some of the core experience for each edition.

Two of the versions listed previously, Windows 10 Mobility and Windows 10 Mobility Enterprise, will not be covered in great detail in this book. If you go to Microsoft’s website, you will see both listed and you can see what each offers. But neither of them can be put onto a network, so I don’t cover them in this book unless applies to an exam objective.

TABLE 1.1 Windows 10 core experiences

The information in Table 1.1 and Table 1.2 was taken directly from Microsoft’s website.

Now that we’ve looked at some of the Windows 10 core experiences, let’s take a look at the business side. Table 1.2 shows each edition and what some of the Business Experiences are for those editions.

TABLE 1.2 Windows 10 business experiences

Windows 10 Features

Now that we have seen which editions contain which features, let’s take a look at some of the Windows 10 features in greater detail. This section describes only a few of these features, but all features will be explained throughout this book.

Cortana Integration   Windows 10 comes with Cortana integration. Cortana is your very own personnel assistant. You can type in or ask Cortana a question, and Cortana will seek out the best possible answer based on your question.

Secure Boot   Windows 10 gives you the ability to use hardware-based virtualization that allows Windows 10 to prevent malware from running on your system. Windows 10 Secure Boot also prevents key processes from being tampered with because Windows 10 isolates these processes from the system.

Virtual Smart Cards   Windows 10 has started offering a new way to do two-factor authentication with virtual smart cards. Virtual smart cards help an IT department that doesn’t want to invest in extra hardware and smart cards. Virtual smart cards use Trusted Platform Module (TPM) devices that allow for the same capabilities as physical smart cards with the physical hardware.

Miracast   Windows 10 allows you to project your Windows 10 laptop or mobile device to a projector or television. Miracast allows you to connect to an external device through the use of your mobile wireless display (WiDi) adapter.

Hyper-V   Windows 10 (except Home version) come with Hyper-V built into the operating system. Hyper-V is Microsoft’s version of a virtual server.

Enterprise Data Protection   Windows 10 Enterprise Data Protection (EDP) helps protect corporate data in a world that is increasingly becoming a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) environment. Since many organizations are allowing employees to connect their own devices to their network, the possibility of corporate data being compromised because of non-corporate programs running on these personnel devices is increasing. For example, many third-party apps may put corporate data at risk by accidently disclosing corporate information through the application.

Enterprise Data Protection helps protect information by separating corporate applications and corporate data from being disclosed by personal devices and personal applications.

Device Guard   Because employees can use multiple types of Windows 10 devices (Surface Pros, Windows Phones, and Windows 10 computer systems), Device Guard is a feature that helps guarantee that only trusted applications will run on any of these devices.

Device Guard uses both hardware and software security features to lock down a device so it can run only trusted and approved applications. This also helps protect against hackers running malicious software on these devices.

Microsoft Passport   Windows 10 allows administrators to replace passwords with other types of authentication on the operating system. Microsoft Passport allows for multifactor authentication by using a combination of an enrolled device and biometric authentication or a personal identification number (PIN).

Microsoft has encompassed the use of your Microsoft account with the use of your corporate account. So with Windows 10, Microsoft Passport can log you into your domain as well as into the cloud and Microsoft websites. The user will be required to verify their Microsoft Passport account, and that account will then be tied into a gesture or PIN, and from that point on, the user will not need to use a password to log in to the device and their protected resources. Because no password will be needed, this helps prevent hackers from using software to hack a password on an account.

Start Menu   Windows 10 has brought back the Start menu that users are familiar with. The Windows 10 Start menu combines the best of both Windows 7 and Windows 8. So the Start menu gives you a menu that we were familiar with in Windows 7 as well as the Live Tiles that users liked in Windows 8.

Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer 11   Windows 10 has introduced a new way to surf the Internet with Microsoft Edge. But Windows 10 also still comes with Internet Explorer 11 in the event that you need to run ActiveX controls or run backward-compatible web services or sites.

Microsoft Edge allows users to start using many new Microsoft features, including Web Note (allows you to annotate, highlight, and call things out directly on web pages), Reading View (allows you to print and save as a PDF for easy reading), and Cortana (personal assistant).

Domain Join and Group Policy   Depending on the version of Windows 10 that you are using, administrators have the ability to join Windows 10 clients to either a corporate version of Active Directory or a cloud-based version of Azure Active Directory.

Windows Store for Business   Microsoft Store has included many applications that allow users to get better functionality and productivity out of their Windows 10 devices. One advantage for corporations is that they can create their own applications and load them into the Microsoft Store for users to download (called sideloading).

Mobile Device Management   Mobile Device Management (MDM) allows administrators to set up Windows 10 policies that can integrate many corporate scenarios, including the ability to control users’ access to the Windows Store and the ability to use the corporate VPN. MDM also allows administrators to manage multiple users who have accounts set up on Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). Windows 10 MDM support is based on the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) Device Management (DM) protocol 1.2.1 specification.

Windows Feature Deprecation

With the release of its newest operating system, Microsoft has decided that some of the features you may be used to are no longer needed. Here are some of the features that have been deprecated:

Windows 7 desktop gadgets will be removed as part of Windows 10.

The Solitaire, Minesweeper, and Hearts games that come preinstalled on Windows 7 will be removed. Microsoft has released versions of Solitaire and Minesweeper called the Microsoft Solitaire Collection and Microsoft Minesweeper.

Mobile Device Management functionality will not be available in Windows 10 Home edition.

Users with floppy drives will need to download the latest driver from Windows Update or from the manufacturer’s website.

Users who have Windows Live Essentials installed on their systems will lose the OneDrive application, which will be replaced with the inbox version of OneDrive.

OneDrive will no longer support placeholder files in Windows 10. Windows 10 users can choose which folders they want to sync from OneDrive settings.

When upgrading Windows 10 from previous versions of Windows operating systems that support Media Center, Windows Media Center will be removed. For a limited time on systems that were upgraded to Windows 10 from one of these versions of Windows, a DVD playback app, Windows DVD Player, will be installed. If the Windows DVD Player does not install immediately, it will be installed after the first successful Windows update.

Windows 10 Architecture

Windows 10 has limited the number of files that load at system startup to help with the core performance of the operating system. Microsoft has also removed many of the fluff items that Windows Vista used, allowing for better performance.

Microsoft offers both a 32-bit version and a 64-bit version of Windows 10. The terms 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the CPU, or processor. The number represents how the data is processed. It is processed either as 2³² or 2⁶⁴. The larger the number, the larger the amount of data that can be processed at any one time.

To get an idea of how 32-bit and 64-bit processors operate, think of a large highway with 32 lanes. Vehicles can travel on those 32 lanes only, so when traffic gets backed up, the result is delays. Now think of how many more vehicles can travel on a 64-lane highway. The problem here is that a 32-lane highway can’t handle the number of vehicles a 64-lane highway can. You need to have the infrastructure to allow for that volume of vehicles. The same is true for computers. Your computer has to be configured to allow you to run a 64-bit processor.

So what does all of this mean to the common user or administrator? It’s all about random access memory, or RAM. A 32-bit operating system can handle up to 4 GB of RAM, and a 64-bit processor can handle up to 16 exabytes of RAM. None of this is new. Although 64-bit processors are just starting to get accepted with Windows systems, other operating systems, such as Apple, have been using 64-bit processors for many years.

Computer processors are typically rated by speed. The speed of the processor, or central processing unit (CPU), is rated by the number of clock cycles that can be performed in 1 second. This measurement is typically expressed in gigahertz (GHz). One GHz is one billion cycles per second. Keep in mind that processor architecture must also be taken into account when considering processor speed. A processor with a more efficient pipeline will be faster than a processor with a less-efficient pipeline at the same CPU speed.

Now that you have seen the new features of Windows 10, let’s look at how to prepare the machine to install Windows 10.

Preparing to Install Windows 10

Installing Windows 10 can be relatively simple because of the installation wizard. The installation wizard will walk you through the entire installation of the operating system.

The most difficult part of installing Windows 10 is preparing and planning for the installation. One thing I often say to IT professionals is, An hour of planning will save you days of work. Planning a Windows 10 rollout is one of the hardest and most important tasks that you will perform when installing Windows 10.

There are many decisions that should be made before you install Windows 10. The first decision is which version of Windows 10 you want to install. As mentioned previously, Microsoft has six different versions of the Windows 10 operating system. This allows an administrator to custom-fit a user’s hardware and job function to the appropriate version of Windows 10. Many times, Microsoft releases multiple editions of the operating system contained within the same Windows 10 media disk. You can choose to unlock the one you want based on the product key you have. Let’s take a closer look at the different versions of Windows 10.

In this book, we will not talk much about Windows 10 Education. Windows 10 Education is the counterpart to Windows 10 Enterprise, but it is a volume-licensed version of Windows 10 that is specifically priced for educational institutions. Educational institutions receive the same Enterprise functionality, but they pay much less than a corporation.

Windows 10 Home

Windows 10 Home is the main operating system for home users. Windows 10 Home offers many features, including these:

Broad application and device compatibility with unlimited concurrent applications

A safe, reliable, and supported operating system

Microsoft Passport

HomeGroup, which allows a user to easily share media, documents, and printers across multiple PCs in homes or offices without the need of a domain

Improved Taskbar and Jump Lists (Jump Lists is a feature in Windows 10 that allows you to quickly access files that you have been working on.)

Live thumbnail previews and an enhanced visual experience

Advanced networking support (ad hoc wireless networks and Internet connection sharing)

View Available Networks (VAN) (Windows 10 by default has the ability, when you use a wireless network adapter, to choose the wireless network that you want to connect to by using the wireless network adapter properties.)

Device Encryption

Easy networking and sharing across all your PCs and devices

Windows Update

Multitouch

Improved handwriting recognition

Windows 10 Professional

Windows 10 Professional is designed for small-business owners. Microsoft designed Windows 10 Professional for users to get more done and safeguard their data. Professional offers the following features:

Broad application and device compatibility with unlimited concurrent applications

A safe, reliable, and supported operating system

Microsoft Passport

Domain Join

Improved Taskbar and Jump Lists

Enterprise Mode Internet Explorer (EMIE)

Advanced networking support (ad hoc wireless networks and Internet connection sharing)

View Available Networks (VAN) (Windows 10 by default has the ability, when you use a wireless network adapter, to choose the wireless network that you want to connect to by using the wireless network adapter properties.)

Mobility Center

Action Center, which makes it easier to resolve many IT issues yourself

Easy networking and sharing across all your PCs and devices

Group Policy Management

Windows Update and Windows Update for Business

Multitouch

Improved handwriting recognition

Domain Join, which enables simple and secure server networking

BitLocker, which protects data on removable devices

Device Encryption

Encrypting File System, which protects data

Client Hyper-V

Location Aware Printing, which helps find the right printer when moving between the office and home

Start menu that includes Live Tiles

Windows 10 Enterprise

Windows 10 Enterprise is the version designed for midsize and large organizations. This operating system has the most features and security options of all Windows 10 versions. Here are some of the features:

Broad application and device compatibility with unlimited concurrent applications

A safe, reliable, and supported operating system

Microsoft Passport

Enterprise Mode Internet Explorer (EMIE)

Group Policy Management

Windows Update and Windows Update for Business

Advanced networking support (ad hoc wireless networks and Internet connection sharing)

View Available Networks (VAN) (Windows 10 by default has the ability, when you use a wireless network adapter, to choose the wireless network that you want to connect to by using the wireless network adapter properties.)

Mobility Center

Easy networking and sharing across all your PCs and devices

Multitouch

Start menu that includes Live Tiles

Improved handwriting recognition

Domain Join, which enables simple and secure server networking

Device Encryption

Encrypting File System, which protects data

Location Aware Printing, which helps find the right printer when you are moving between the office and home

Client Hyper-V

Credential Guard

Device Guard

BitLocker, which protects data on removable devices

DirectAccess, which links users to corporate resources from the road without a virtual private network (VPN)

BranchCache, which makes it faster to open files and web pages from a branch office

AppLocker, which restricts unauthorized software and also enables greater security hardware requirements

Before you can install the operating system, you must make sure the machine’s hardware can handle the Windows 10 operating system.

To install Windows 10 successfully, your system must meet or exceed certain hardware requirements. Table 1.3 lists the minimum requirements for a Windows 10–capable PC.

TABLE 1.3 Hardware requirements

The hardware requirements listed in Table 1.3 are those specified at the time this book was written. Always check the Microsoft website for the most current information.

The Windows 10–capable PC must meet or exceed the basic requirements to deliver the core functionality of the Windows 10 operating system. These requirements are based on the assumption that you are installing only the operating system, without any premium functionality. For example, you may be able to get by with the minimum requirements if you are installing the operating system just to learn the basics of the software. Remember, the better the hardware, the better the performance.

Deciding on Minimum Hardware Requirements

The company you work for has decided that everyone will have their own laptop running Windows 10. You need to decide on the new computers’ specifications for processor, memory, and disk space.

The first step is to determine which applications will be used. Typically, most users will work with an email program, a word processor, a spreadsheet application, presentation software, and maybe a drawing or graphics program. Additionally, an antivirus application will probably be used. Under these demands, a 1 GHz Celeron processor and 1 GB of RAM will make for a very slow-running machine. So for this usage, you can assume that the minimum baseline configuration would be higher than a 1 GHz processor with at least 2 GB of RAM.

Based on your choice of baseline configuration, you should then fit a test computer with the applications that will be used on it and test the configuration in a lab environment simulating normal use. This will give you an idea of whether the RAM and processor calculations you have made for your environment are going to provide a suitable response.

Today’s disk drives have become capable of much larger capacity while dropping drastically in price. So for disk space, the rule of thumb is to buy whatever is the current standard. At the time this book was written, 500 GB drives were commonplace, which is sufficient for most users. If users plan to store substantial graphics or video files, you may need to consider buying larger-than-standard drives.

Also consider what the business requirements will be over the next 12 to 18 months. If you will be implementing applications that are memory or processor intensive, you may want to spec out the computers with hardware sufficient to support upcoming needs to avoid costly upgrades in the near future.

The requirements for the graphics card depend on the resolution at which you want to run. The required amount of memory is as follows:

64 MB is required for a single monitor at a resolution of 1,310,720 pixels or less, which is equivalent to a 1280×1024 resolution.

128 MB is required for a single monitor at a resolution of 2,304,000 pixels or less, which is equivalent to a 1920×1200 resolution.

256 MB is required for a single monitor at a resolution larger than 2,304,000 pixels.

Measurement Used for Disk Space and Memory

Hard disks are commonly rated by capacity. The following measurements are used for disk space and memory capacity:

1 MB (megabyte) = 1,024 KB (kilobytes)

1 GB (gigabyte) = 1,024 MB

1 TB (terabyte) = 1,024 GB

1 PB (petabyte) = 1,024 TB

1 EB (exabyte) = 1,024 PB

If you are not sure if your machine meets the minimum requirements, Microsoft includes some tools that can help you determine if a machine is Windows 10 compatible, which we will look at in the following sections.

The Hardware Compatibility List

Along with meeting the minimum requirements, whenever possible your hardware should appear on the Hardware Compatibility List (HCL). The HCL is an extensive list of computers and peripheral hardware that have been tested with the Windows 10 operating system. To determine if your computer and peripherals are on the HCL, check the most up-to-date list at https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/ dn922588(v=vs.85).aspx.

The Windows 10 operating system requires control of the hardware for stability, efficiency, and security. The hardware and supported drivers on the HCL have been put through rigorous tests to ensure their compatibility with Windows 10. Microsoft guarantees that the items on the list meet the requirements for Windows 10 and do not have any incompatibilities that could affect the stability of the operating system.

If you call Microsoft for support, the first thing a Microsoft support engineer will ask about is your configuration. If you have any hardware that is not on the HCL, you may not be able to get support from Microsoft.

BIOS Compatibility

Before you install Windows 10, you should verify that your computer has the most current BIOS. This is especially important if your current BIOS does not include support for Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) functionality. ACPI functionality is required for Windows 10 to function properly. Check the computer vendor’s website for the latest BIOS version information.

Driver Requirements

To successfully install Windows 10, you must have the critical device drivers for your computer, such as the hard drive device driver. The Windows 10 media come with an extensive list of drivers. If your computer’s device drivers are not on the Windows 10 installation media, you should check the device manufacturer’s website.

New Install or Upgrade?

Once you’ve determined that your hardware meets the minimum requirements, you need to decide whether you want to do an upgrade or a clean install. An upgrade allows you to retain your existing operating system’s applications, settings, and files. If you currently have a computer with Windows Vista, you are eligible to use an upgrade copy of Windows 10.

The bad news is that if you are moving from Windows Vista, Windows XP, or earlier versions of Windows to Windows 10, you must perform a clean install. (You can, however, use a third-party tool like the Laplink utility to migrate files and settings from Windows XP to Windows 10 on the same computer.)

You can perform an upgrade to Windows 10 if the following conditions are true:

You are running Windows 7 or Windows 8.

You want to keep your existing applications and preferences.

You want to preserve any local users and groups you’ve created.

You must perform a clean install of Windows 10 if any of the following conditions are true:

There is no operating system currently installed.

You have an operating system installed that does not support an in-place upgrade to Windows 10 (such as DOS, Windows 9x, Windows NT, Windows Me, Windows 2000 Professional, Windows Vista, or Windows XP).

You want to start from scratch, without keeping any existing preferences.

You want to be able to dual-boot between Windows 10 and your previous operating system.

Table 1.4 shows each operating system that can be upgraded and the minimum edition of Windows 10 to which it should be upgraded.

TABLE 1.4 Windows 7 and Windows 8 upgrade options

Upgrade Considerations

Almost all Windows 7 and Windows 8 applications should run with the Windows 10 operating system. However, possible exceptions to this statement include the following:

Applications that use file-system filters, such as antivirus software, may not be compatible.

Custom power-management tools may not be supported.

Before upgrading to Windows 10, be sure to stop any antivirus scanners, network services, or other client software. These software packages may see the Windows 10 install as a virus and cause installation issues.

If you are performing a clean install to the same partition as an existing version of Windows, the contents of the existing Users (or Documents and Settings), Program Files, and Windows directories will be placed in a directory named Windows.old, and the old operating system will no longer be available.

Hardware Compatibility Issues

You need to ensure that you have Windows 10 device drivers for your hardware. If you have a video driver without a Windows 10–compatible driver, the Windows 10 upgrade will install the Standard VGA driver, which will display the video with an 800×600 resolution. Once you get the Windows 10 driver for your video, you can install it and adjust video properties accordingly.

Application Compatibility Issues

Not all applications that were written for earlier versions of Windows will work with Windows 10. After the upgrade, if you have application problems, you can address the problems in any of the following ways:

If the application is compatible with Windows 10, reinstall the application after the upgrade is complete.

If the application uses dynamic-link libraries (DLLs) and there are migration DLLs for the application, apply the migration DLLs.

Use the Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) to determine the compatibility of your current applications with Windows 10. ACT will determine which applications are installed, identify any applications that may be affected by Windows updates, and identify any potential compatibility problems with User Account Control and Internet Explorer. Reports can be exported for detailed analysis.

If applications were written for earlier versions of Windows but are incompatible with Windows 10, use the Windows 10 Program Compatibility Wizard. From the Control Panel, click the Programs icon, and then click the Run Programs From Previous Versions link to start the Program Compatibility Wizard. If the application is not compatible with Windows 10, upgrade your application to a Windows 10–compliant version.

An Upgrade Checklist

Once you have made the decision to upgrade, you should develop a plan of attack. The following upgrade checklist (valid for upgrading from Windows 7 or Windows 8) will help you plan and implement a successful upgrade strategy:

Verify that your computer meets the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 10.

Be sure your hardware is on the HCL.

Make sure you have the Windows 10 drivers for the hardware. You can verify this with the hardware manufacturer.

To audit the current configuration and status of your computer, run the Get Windows 10 App tool from the Microsoft website, which also includes documentation on using the utility. It will generate a report of any known hardware or software compatibility issues based on your configuration. You should resolve any reported issues before you upgrade to Windows 10.

Make sure your BIOS is current. Windows 10 requires that your computer has the most current BIOS. If it does not, it may not be able to use advanced power-management features or device-configuration features. In addition, your computer may cease to function during or after the upgrade. Use caution when performing BIOS updates because installing the incorrect BIOS can cause your computer to fail to boot.

Take an inventory of your current configuration. This inventory should include documentation of your current network configuration, the applications that are installed, the hardware items and their configuration, the services that are running, and any profile and policy settings.

Back up your data and configuration files. Before you make any major changes to your computer’s configuration, you should back up your data and configuration files and then verify that you can successfully restore your backup. Chances are, if you have a valid backup, you won’t have any problems. Likewise, if you don’t have a valid backup, you will likely have problems.

Delete any unnecessary files or applications, and clean up any program groups or program items you don’t use. Theoretically, you want to delete all the junk on your computer before you upgrade. Think of this as the spring-cleaning step.

Verify that there are no existing problems with your hard drive prior to the upgrade. Perform a disk scan, a current virus scan, and defragmentation. These too are spring-cleaning chores. This step just prepares your hard drive for the upgrade.

Perform the upgrade. In this step, you upgrade from the Windows 7 or Windows 8 operating system to Windows 10.

Verify your configuration. After Windows 10 has been installed, use the inventory to compare and test each element that was inventoried prior to the upgrade to verify that the upgrade was successful.

Handling an Upgrade Failure

Before you upgrade, you should have a contingency plan in place. Your plan should assume the worst-case scenario. For example, what happens if you upgrade and the computer doesn’t work anymore? It is possible that, after checking your upgrade list and verifying that everything should work, your attempt at the actual upgrade may not work. If this happens, you may want to return your computer to the original, working configuration.

Indeed, I have made these plans, created my backups (two, just in case), verified them, and then had a failed upgrade anyway—only to discover that I had no clue where to find the original operating system CD. A day later, with the missing CD located, I was able to get up and running again. My problem was an older BIOS, and the manufacturer of my computer did not have an updated BIOS.

Disk Partitioning

Disk partitioning is the act of taking the physical hard drive and creating logical partitions. A logical drive is how space is allocated to the drive’s primary and logical partitions. For example, if you have a 500 GB hard drive, you might partition it into three logical drives:

C: drive, which might be 200 GB

D: drive, which might be 150 GB

E: drive, which might be 150 GB

The following sections detail some of the major considerations for disk partitioning:

Partition Size   One important consideration in your disk-partitioning scheme is determining the partition size. You need to consider the amount of space taken up by your operating system, the applications that will be installed, and the amount of stored data. It is also important to consider the amount of space required in the future.

Microsoft recommends that you allocate at least 16 GB of disk space for Windows 10. This allows room for the operating system files and for future growth in terms of upgrades and installation files that are placed with the operating system files.

The System and Boot Partitions   When you install Windows 10, files will be stored in two locations: the system partition and the boot partition. The system partition and the boot partition can be the same partition.

The system partition contains the files needed to boot the Windows 10 operating system. The system partition contains the Master Boot Record (MBR) and boot sector of the active drive partition. It is often the first physical hard drive in the computer and normally contains the necessary files to boot the computer. The files stored on the system partition do not take any significant disk space. The active partition is the system partition that is used to start your computer. The C: drive is usually the active partition.

The boot partition contains the Windows 10 operating system files. By default, the Windows operating system files are located in a folder named Windows.

Disk Partition Configuration Utilities   If you are partitioning your disk prior to installation, you can use several utilities, such as the DOS or Windows FDISK program, or a third-party utility, such as Norton’s Partition Magic. You can also configure the disks during the installation of the Windows 10 operating system.

You might want to create only the first partition where Windows 10 will be installed. You can then use the Disk Management utility in Windows 10 to create any other partitions you need. The Windows 10 Disk Management utility is covered in Chapter 3, Configuring Devices and Drivers.

Language and Locale

Language and locale settings determine the language the computer will use. Windows 10 supports many languages for the operating system interface and utilities.

Locale settings are for configuring the format for items such as numbers, currencies, times, and dates. For example, English for the United States specifies a short date as mm/dd/yyyy (month/day/year), while English for South Africa specifies a short date as yyyy/mm/dd (year/month/day).

It is very important to only choose the locales that this machine will need to use. The reason for this is that for every locale you choose, your system will get updates for all chosen locales that you set up.

Installing Windows 10