I'm planning to rebuild my PC and will be reusing my graphics card (a 3090ti) and my M.2 SSD that currently has Windows 10 installed. I think it might be a good idea to upgrade to Windows 11, but I'm unsure if I can just install it over the existing Windows 10 setup on my SSD. Should I perform a clean install by deleting all existing partitions instead? I don't need to save any files from the drive and would prefer to start fresh, downloading everything as I need it.
5 Answers
Since Windows 10 is reaching its end of life, definitely go for a fresh install of Windows 11, especially since you don’t care about keeping apps or files.
Before you wipe your drive, make sure to grab your Windows license key! Any Windows 10 key can upgrade for free to 11, but remember that not all licenses are transferable, like those from prebuilt systems. Get your key saved before formatting everything; you can find it on a sticker or use a tool like ShadowKey. Then, prepare your recovery media for Windows 11 using a flash drive. Just format the entire drive to start fresh!
I always opt for a fresh install, especially with major hardware swaps like this. I’m kind of seasoned in knowing that issues can pop up from way back in the Windows 98/Xp days! Also, take this chance to set up a good backup strategy—maybe to an external drive or something cloud-based. It's wise to protect your important data.
Just wipe everything on the drive, including all partitions. A fresh install is the way to go for sure!
I recommend doing a fresh install of Windows 11 and deleting all the existing partitions in the process. It just helps to start from scratch with any significant hardware changes.
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