Compact HTPC Part 4 – OS Installation
In my previous article Compact HTPC Part 3 – Unboxing the Revo, I posted the unboxing pictures of the Acer Aspire Revo R3600L that forms the basis of my new HTPC.
The first thing that you need on your HTPC hardware is an operating system of some kind. There are lots of options available including the pre-installed LINUX, but in my case I’ve decided to opt for Windows 7 Home Premium partially because I got it for only £45 on a pre-order from Amazon, but also because I like to have the full functionality of Windows on my HTPC, and it integrates well with the rest of my setup. I also like the new Windows 7 Home Group functionality that makes it much simpler to share documents, media and printers between your home PC’s.
So, having purchased a Revo R3600L running LINUX, my challenge was to get Windows 7 installed and working on it.
The version of Windows 7 I purchased came, of course, on a DVD, but the Revo has no DVD drive, and I don’t have a USB DVD-ROM that I can use, so I had to install Windows 7 via a USB memory stick.
Fortunately, I’m not the first person to have done this – Paul Thurrot’s excellent Supersite for Windows has an article that explains exactly how to copy your Windows 7 install DVD onto a USB key:
Windows 7 Upgrade Scenarios: Scenario 3 – Upgrade a Netbook from Windows XP to Windows 7
[NOTE: I tried other methods, such as using xcopy to copy the install media from the DVD to the USB key, but found that the Revo would not boot from the USB with this approach.]
Having followed these instructions, I now have a USB key ready for Windows 7 installation.
The steps to install Windows 7 now are quite straightforward:-
- Make sure the Revo is turned off
- Insert the USB memory stick with Windows 7 on it into one of the USB ports on the Revo
- Turn-on the Revo
- Hold-down the F12 key until the boot device menu is displayed
- Select the USB memory stick from the menu and press RETURN.
- Follow the prompts to install Windows 7
For my setup I decided to erase all the partitions from the Revo hard disk before installing. This is a personal preference and removes the pre-installed LINUX and RevoBoot configuration, so I suggest using this option with care.
On a normal Windows installation I would normally split the hard drive into a C: and D: drive, C: for the operating system and program files, and D: for data. As the hard disk is “only” 160GB on the Revo, and all my media files are stored on my NAS box I’ve chosen not to do so on this occasion.
After about 20 minutes Windows 7 is installed and the Revo can reboot and come-up normally.
Once installed and booted, the next steps were to:-
- Ensure the Revo was connecting to the internet OK – initially I used the built-in WiFi adapter for ease of use, but later will switch to a cabled LAN connection directly to my router and NAS box to ensure the smoothest possible media playback.
- Run Microsoft Update (until all updates are installed). This will update several of the Revo specific hardware drivers, and requires a few reboots.
- Once fully updated, install Microsoft Security Essentials, Microsoft’s new, excellent and free Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware product, ensuring it’s fully updated.
Once all of this is done you should have a fully functional and safe Windows 7 installation on which to continue your HTPC installation.
In the next installment I shall talk about installation and configuration of my chosen HTPC software.
Filed under: HTPC
