Datasheet

12 Chapter 1
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Installing Windows 7
Hardware Requirements
Before you can install the operating system, you must make sure the machine’s hardware
can handle the Windows 7 operating system.
To install Windows 7 successfully, your system must meet or exceed certain hardware
requirements. Table 1.2 lists the minimum requirements for a Windows 7-capable PC.
TABLE 1.2 Hardware requirements
Component Requirements
CPU (processor) 1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor
Memory (RAM) 1 GB of system memory (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
Hard disk 16 GB of available disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
Video adapter Support for DirectX 9 graphics with 128 MB memory
(to enable the Aero theme)
Optional drive DVD-R/W drive
Network device Compatible network interface card
The hardware requirements listed in Table 1.2 are those specified at the
time this book was written. Always check Microsoft’s website for the most
current information.
The Windows 7-capable PC must meet or exceed the basic requirements to deliver the
core functionality of the Windows 7 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 7. You need to decide on the new computers’ specifi cations for processor,
memory, and disk space.
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