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Change the Windows Image to a Higher Edition

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Applies To: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2

Note

This content applies to Windows 7. For Windows 8 content, see Windows Deployment with the Windows ADK.

You can use the Windows® edition-servicing commands to change one edition of Windows® 7 to a higher edition of Windows 7. The edition packages for each potential target edition are staged within the Windows 7 image. This is referred to as an edition-family image. You can use the command-line options to list potential target editions. Because the target editions are staged, you can service a single image, and the updates will be applied appropriately to each edition in the image.

You need a product key to change the Windows edition online. Offline changes do not require a product key. If you change the image to a higher edition using offline servicing, you can add the product key by using one of the following methods:

  • Enter the product key during the out-of-box experience (OOBE).

  • Use an unattended answer file to enter the product key during the specialize configuration pass.

  • Use Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM) and the Windows edition-servicing command-line option /Set-ProductKey after you set the edition offline.

For more information about product keys, see Work with Product Keys and Activation.

To Find the Current Edition

You can find the edition of Windows your image is currently set to by mounting the image and running DISM commands on the mounted image.

  1. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Windows OPK, right-click Windows PE Tools Command Prompt, and then select Run as administrator.

  2. At the command prompt, type the following command to retrieve the name or index number for the image you want to modify.

    Dism /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:C:\test\images

  3. Type the following command to mount the offline Windows image.

    Dism /Mount-WIM /WimFile:C:\test\images /Index:1 /MountDir:C:\test\offline

    An index or name value is required for most operations that specify a WIM file.

  4. Type the following command to find the edition of Windows your image is currently set to.

    Dism /Image:C:\test\offline /Get-CurrentEdition

    Note which edition of Windows your image is currently set to. If the image has already been changed to a higher edition you should not change it a second time. We recommend using the lowest edition as a starting point.

  5. Unmount the image or continue with the next procedure. To unmount your image, type the following command.

    Dism /Unmount-Wim /MountDir:C:\test\offline /Commit

To Change to a Higher Edition of Windows

You can change your Windows image to a higher edition while it is offline by using the DISM commands in the following procedure. You should not use this procedure on an image that has already been changed to a higher edition.

  1. Type the following command to mount the offline Windows image (if it is not already mounted).

    Dism /Mount-Wim /WimFile:C:\test\images /Name:"Windows 7 HomeBasic" /MountDir:C:\test\offline

  2. Type the following command to find the editions of Windows that you can change your image to.

    Dism /Image:C:\test\offline /Get-TargetEditions

    Note the edition-ID for the edition you want to change to.

Note

You cannot set a Windows image to a lower edition. The lowest edition will not appear when you run the /Get-TargetEditions option.

  1. Type the following command specifying the edition-ID to change the Windows image to a higher edition.

    Dism /Image:C:\test\offline /Set-Edition:Ultimate

  2. Type the following command to unmount the image and commit your changes.

    Dism /Unmount-Wim /MountDir:C:\test\offline /Commit

See Also

Concepts

Understanding Servicing Strategies
Windows Edition-Servicing Command-Line Options
Deployment Image Servicing and Management Technical Reference