This is the third in a series of experiences upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7 (here are the first and second). In this example I upgraded my wife's Windows Vista (32-bit) notebook to Windows 7 Home Premium (32-bit). This time it was a relatively new computer (less than one year old). Should be simple, right? Well - it worked in the end but still required tech expertise to get there.

I started as with the other computers by running the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor from Microsoft. The Advisor - as was the case with my other two computers - advised me of steps I needed to perform before proceeding with the upgrade. Here is the key recommendation:

I had to update the device driver for the multi-media card reader in the computer. That involved scouring the manufacturer's website, identifying the correct driver, downloading and installing (and, of course, rebooting). I re-ran the Advisor and received the same message... hmmm... it appears the Advisor's advice is generic and didn't actually check if the installed device driver was the latest (just that this particular device is one that might need updating).

I decided to proceed with the upgrade and started the Windows 7 installer. As with other upgrades the first step involved waiting 5-10 minutes and then being told to reboot and re-run the installer. After the reboot I was additionally warned about devices drivers for Keyboard Filters - and that they might not work after the upgrade. Here is the message from the installer:

Not being familiar with what a Keyboard Filter is I decided to use my support.com subscription and was educated by one of support.com's Solutions Engineers. Because this capability is primarily used for Accessibility features I chose to ignore the warning and hope for the best (kids - if you try this at home just remember - you break it, you own it!)

I re-ran the Windows 7 installer and ignored the warning. It took over an hour and multiple reboots (automatic) but eventually Windows 7 burst into life. As with my other upgrades it was pretty smooth once the Windows 7 installer got past the compatiblity checks and any required manual updates that.

What about that Keyboard Filter warning? Well, looking in the Device Manager there is new Unspecified device clumsily named "Keyboard_Filter_0 1"...

...which I've decided to ignore (since it isn't causing a problem right now)

The moral of all these stories is be ready for some expert help getting the Windows 7 upgrade process going.