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How to remove Windows 7 there are 2 of them. How to remove a second Windows operating system from a computer. Removing from the download list

It happens that users install two operating systems on their computer at the same time. But over time, one of them ceases to be needed. And then the question arises of how to remove the second operating system Windows 7, XP or another version. For example, you can find out how to remove Windows 7 from a laptop by following this link. Well, now let's return to the process of removing the second operating system.

Editing boot.ini

The boot.ini file is responsible for loading the OS. It contains information about windows settings, boot timeouts, and much more. If you edit this file, you can remove the unnecessary operating system from the boot menu.

In order to do this, you need to go into the OS that you are going to leave. Next, find the My Computer icon. You need to point at it and right-click. From the drop-down list, select Properties. In the window that opens, we need the Advanced tab. Now select Download and setup, and click on the Options button.

After this, a new dialog box appears in front of the user. In it you need to select the Edit item. Now boot.ini opens in front of us. It will appear in the Notepad application. First, let’s save a backup copy of this file by clicking Save As and renaming it to Boot.old. Close the resulting document and re-open boot.ini following the steps described above.

Now you need to remove the line that contains information so that two systems to choose from appear in the boot menu. Next, save the changes. To do this, click Save As. We leave the original name. Now close all windows and restart the computer. After this, there should be only one system in the menu at boot.

How to remove windows xp

Each version of the operating system has its own characteristics. Therefore, how to remove a second Windows 8 operating system will differ from manipulations with XP. Let's take a closer look at how to perform this operation in Windows XP. In case you need it again, then .

So, we boot into the OS that we want to leave on the computer. Next, you will need to change the settings so that the operating system that we will still have will load. To do this, right-click on My Computer. In the menu, click Properties. As for previous manipulations, we go to Advanced - Parameters. Here we mark the desired operating system and click OK.

Now we go to the directory of the partition where the operating system that is planned to be removed is installed. Here you need to delete the Windows folder. In addition, select Program Files and Documents and Settings, and press Delete. In this case, a warning may appear several times stating that the files are system files, are open only for reading, etc. If you still decide to get rid of the second operating system, then feel free to delete them. Problems can arise if you select the wrong partition, but they are easily fixed. To ensure that the name of the remote OS no longer appears in the menu when booting, edit boot.ini as indicated above.

As you can see, how to remove a second Windows xp operating system is not as difficult as it seems. Please note that sometimes users accidentally mark the OS that they deleted in the boot parameters. Accordingly, it will not be possible to enter the remaining one in the usual way. In this case, you will need to resort to a boot disk. You can read about how to create a boot disk yourself. You can also use any file manager. Don’t forget to edit boot.ini after you boot the system. After you finish all the manipulations, you should definitely restart the computer, only after this the changes will be saved in the settings.

Professional users of personal computers believe that before installing a new version of the operating system, it is always necessary to completely fragment the disk. This will allow you to delete absolutely all information stored on your computer’s hard drive, as well as get rid of many problems, for example, removing another OS from the boot list. If two versions of the operating system were installed on the computer, then the last installed one will be loaded (if you don’t choose it yourself, but wait a few seconds). In addition, another operating system on the computer will take up quite a lot of space on the hard drive, and the performance of the PC may also suffer. If several versions of the OS are installed on your computer, you can get rid of them using simple manipulations.

First option

After the computer turns on and boots, you need to press the Win + R key combination on the computer keyboard. A special “Run” window will appear, where you need to enter the msconfig command and confirm the action. A special Windows configuration window will open, which allows you to manage the system. You need to go to the “Download” tab and find the desired version of the operating system that you want to disable. It is worth noting that these actions will not affect the current OS, where the procedure itself is carried out. After confirming the procedure, the user will be prompted to restart the computer. This is necessary for the changes to take effect. After a reboot, the second version of the operating system will not be shown. This option does not involve completely removing the OS from the user’s computer. With its help you can only remove the second Windows from the boot screen.

Second option

There is another option for solving the pressing problem, with the help of which the second operating system will be completely removed from the personal computer. The user will also need to open the Run menu, only now they need to enter the %windir% command. After this simple manipulation, the Windows working folder will open, the path and name of which you need to remember. Using the operating system explorer, you need to find another Windows folder that was not specified as a result of the previous steps and delete it. Next, the user must find “My Computer” and, after right-clicking on the shortcut, select “Properties” and go to the “Advanced” tab. In the “Download and Recovery” field, you need to go to the settings, after which the “Download and Recovery” window will appear. In the “Load operating system” group, click the “Edit” button. A editable version of the Boot.ini file will open. Here the line corresponding to the version of the remote OS is deleted, for example, it can look like: multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS.0="Microsoft Windows" /fastdetect. This completes the procedure for removing the second operating system.

Good afternoon friends. I think every user has noticed that after he installed a new operating system, this OS begins to work like a well-oiled clock. Everything loads quickly and correctly. It's a pleasure to work with such a system.

But time passes, and the system begins to slow down. There is a long loading time when turned on, and the system also takes a very long time to turn off. The same thing happens with programs installed on this system. They take a long time to load and do not work correctly.

Of course, the best way is to clean the system. I have written more than once about cleaning the system in my articles. I even wrote two free books about this: - “ How to speed up your computer? And " How to properly clean Windows?».

But let’s say the user has already decided to remove this system and install a new one. Although, we delete systems not only because of failures. Quite often this happens when a new OS is released. When the user simply wanted to install a new system. In both of these cases, the old system will have to be removed.

Also, the system is often removed when there is another parallel one, and the second one becomes simply unnecessary for us. So how to do it right? Today we will look at three ways to completely remove Windows 7 from your computer, although this applies not only to Windows 7, but also to other operating systems.

How to remove Windows 7 from your computer - replace it with a new system

We will do this by using the installation disk, which we will load from the BIOS. To do this, during system boot, select the BIOS settings. So, the boot disk is in your drive. As soon as you click to turn on the computer, immediately press F2. Moreover, you need to do this before loading the Microsoft logo.

You will enter the BIOS settings, from where you can select the boot order of the disks on your PC. We enter the Boot section.

To do this, click on CDROM and set the priority.

Then press F10 to save the settings. Now we can remove our system by installing another operating system on it, the one you decided to install. At the same time, you can remove a system from the BIOS using other third-party software, for example, Acronis Disk Director, but we will still consider removal by installing a new one on the old system.

This is the most common and convenient method. I will not talk about all the nuances of installing the system, especially since I already have an article on the topic of installing the system. I’ll just explain that if you already have a system installed and you decide to install another one on it, then during the installation of the system, before choosing the partition where you will install the new system, the old one must be formatted.

To do this, being in the window for selecting a disk for installing the system, you need to click on the line at the bottom of the “Disk Settings” window.

Then, we will have a warning about deleting all information from this section. Which is exactly what we need.

Our disk has been formatted. Then, all you have to do is continue installing the new operating system.

To speed up your Windows installation, I recommend:- Computer accelerator.

How to remove a second Windows from a computer First method

Many users have two systems. We will consider the case when both of them are on the Hard Disk, but in different partitions (often people put the second system on a virtual disk in the same partition).

So, to do this, right-click on the “Computer” shortcut and select properties. A window will open with our disk partitions. Select "Advanced options" in the left column.

The “System Properties” window appears. In the “Advanced” menu, select “Options” above the “Boot and Recovery” line.

Then the most important thing begins. In the window that opens, you need to select the system that you want to leave, from which the download will occur. If you make a mistake, the system simply won't boot.

Click OK. Also, this method is suitable if you just want to remove the second Windows from the boot menu.

We need this action to eliminate surprises. For example, if the default boot is the system that you want to remove, and you do not change the system, the computer will simply not start working.

Now, close all open windows, click on the “Computer” shortcut with the left mouse button. In the window that opens, select the disk on which there is a parallel system that we want to delete. In my case, this is drive D. To do this, right-click on the drive and select “Format”.

In the window that opens, select “Start”. We get a warning about the consequences of formatting. Click OK and the disk with our second system is completely formatted.

How to remove parallel Windows from your computer Second method

This method is much simpler. To do this, just enter “System Configuration” into the command line or msconfig and open the program. Select the “Download” menu. In the window that opens, we will have information about our operating systems. Since I currently have only one system, the program shows one system.

Then, select the system that needs to be removed and delete it by clicking on the “Delete” button.

After completing the procedures, it is advisable to clean the registry. The task is completed, the second system is deleted!

You now know how to completely remove Windows 7 from your computer and you shouldn’t have any problems with this. Also, I’m interested in your opinion on this issue in the comments! Good luck!

Friends, after removing Windows from your computer, I suggest you install it not on a regular HDD, but on an SSD, as I did. Disks on a page range from 120 to 960 GB, i.e., actually 1 TB. You can purchase it from the link... on AliExpress. Judging by the description, the disk is suitable for both Computers and (laptops).

From the screenshot you can see the disk volumes. If you need to install the system, it is enough to purchase a disk with a capacity of 120 GB. If it’s a full-fledged hard drive, then, at your discretion, from 480 to 960 GB. Why do I recommend installing Windows on a solid-state hard drive? Your system will boot in seconds! If you purchase a 1TB disk, all your programs will work!

If you installed a new Windows operating system (any version), now when you try to turn on your computer, you probably first see a menu with the choice of the desired OS. This occurs if the hard drive has not been formatted. To prevent this from happening again, just remove the unnecessary version and only one version of Windows will remain on your computer.

Formatting a partition is the simplest and most obvious way

This is an easy way to remove a second operating system that you no longer need. The point of the procedure is to format the partition containing the extra operating system on the hard drive.

Before starting any actions, download information that is important to you onto removable media or one of your hard drives.


How do you know which Windows folder to leave and which to keep? For these purposes, go to the Start menu and select “Run” there. You need to enter the following command into the line - %windir%. Now click "Ok". As a result of your actions, a folder will appear. You need to remember it - this is exactly the folder that cannot be deleted. It may look like this: “C: Windows”. This working folder cannot be deleted or moved to other partitions, otherwise the operation of the entire system will be disrupted and you will have to roll back.

Reboot the system and make sure that the second OS is no longer there. If, when trying to format a disk, the system gives an error, then you can try using additional utilities for such operations, for example, the Acronis Disc Director program. It needs to be downloaded, installed and launched. It will delete everything itself, and then automatically reboot the system.

How to remove unnecessary OS from boot

This instruction is suitable if you have seven or eight installed. It happens that the second operating system, namely its files, no longer exists, but it appears in downloads. To remove Windows from boot, follow these steps:



Now the download will begin with the version of Windows that you decided to keep.

How to remove seven or eight if you upgraded to ten

If you decide to upgrade to the latest version of Windows, then at the same time you need to clear the disk space. But do this only if you are completely satisfied with the new version of the OS and do not intend to return to older versions.

Usually, a standard utility for deleting old (temporary or junk) files is sufficient for these purposes. For example, CCleaner. But if the previous version is still taking up space, then follow the steps that will remove the remnants of the old OS completely.

  1. Go to the taskbar and search for “Disk Cleanup”. Select the desired shortcut.
  2. In the tab, mark all temporary data and enable the clearing function.
  3. To delete data from the previous system, click on the “Clean up system files” option. It is located at the bottom left.
  4. You will need to select the disk on which the old operating system is located.
  5. When you see all the files you need to delete, there will be a “Previous Windows installations” item. This is the item you need to select.
  6. Clean and reboot the computer.

After these steps, it is already very difficult to roll back to the previous version of Windows, so make sure that you decide to permanently leave Windows 10.

How to remove old Windows without programs

Let's say you have Windows XP, and you are happy with it, but Windows 7 is interfering. Maybe it’s the other way around - we’re happy with Seven, but we don’t like XP. In any case, how to remove an old, unnecessary operating system?

This method will allow you to remove the old version without using programs - manually.



After this, Windows.old will be deleted as a regular file folder.

How to edit boot.ini

If we are not talking about Windows Vista or seven, then loading the operating system begins with the boot.ini file. It is written in it:
  • wait information when download option is selected;
  • information about the operating system that is turned on first by default if the user does not make a choice:
  • Extra options.
Thus, one of the ways to remove the old operating system is to change the boot.ini file.

As always, we start by loading into the version of the operating system that should remain the only one on the computer.

  1. Find “My Computer” on the desktop and click to open the characteristics.
  2. Select “Properties” - look for the “Advanced” option.
  3. Next we find “Download and Recovery”. Click on “Parameters”.
  4. In the new window, select “Edit”. The boot.ini file will open using Notepad. It is very advisable at this stage to save a copy of this file just in case and put it on one of the disks. Don't forget to rename it - Boot.old. Now you can forget about the copy and return to the boot.ini file for editing.
  5. Find a line in the file indicating that the menu displays two operating systems to choose from. It needs to be removed.
  6. Now we save the changes we just made. Click “Save As”, keeping the name as it was originally.
Close all tabs and restart your computer. Now there will be only one operating system.

How to remove unnecessary Windows XP?

Windows XP has its own characteristics, which must be taken into account when uninstalling.

We boot into the operating system that we plan to keep.

  1. On the “My Computer” icon, look for the “Properties” option using the right mouse button.
  2. Now find “Advanced”. There will be a “Options” function.
  3. We mark the operating system that we plan to remove and confirm our actions.
  4. Let's go to the section where the old Windows is located.
  5. We delete the Windows folder, editing with program files and Documents and Settings. You will see pop-up warnings indicating that these are system files and that they are read-only. You can safely ignore them and continue deleting.
Now all that remains is to edit the boot.ini file, because when you boot your computer you may still see two operating systems to choose from.

Windows.old removal video

If you still have any questions about deleting this impressively sized folder, watch the video.


As you can see, the old interfering operating system, if it is no longer needed, can be removed. Depending on which OS is installed, the removal operation has its own characteristics, but in general, almost all methods are suitable. You just need to understand the nuances and carefully follow all the steps. After rebooting, you will successfully get rid of the problem.

Sooner or later there comes a time when the user needs to remove his operating system. The reason for this may be that it has started to lag or is outdated and you need to install a newer OS that meets the latest trends. Let's see how you can remove Windows 7 from your PC using various methods.

The choice of a specific removal method primarily depends on how many operating systems are installed on your PC: one or more. In the first case, in order to achieve the goal, it is best to use formatting of the partition on which the system is installed. In the second, you can use an internal Windows tool called "System configuration" to remove another OS. Next, we will look in detail at how to demolish the system using both of the above methods.

Method 1: Format the partition

The good thing about the partition formatting method is that it allows you to remove the old operating system without leaving a trace. This ensures that when installing a new OS, old bugs will not return to it. At the same time, you need to remember that when using this method, all information located in the formatted volume will be destroyed, and therefore, if necessary, important files must be transferred to another medium.

  1. Removing Windows 7 by formatting can be done using an installation flash drive or disk. But first you need to configure the BIOS so that booting is done from the desired device. To do this, restart the PC and when you turn it on again, immediately after the acoustic signal, hold down the button to go to BIOS. It may differ from one computer to another (most often Del or F2), but you can see its name at the bottom of the screen when the system boots.
  2. After the BIOS interface is opened, you need to move to the section where you select the boot device. Most often, this section contains the word "Boot", but other options are also possible.
  3. In the section that opens, you need to assign the first position in the boot list to CD-ROM or USB, depending on what exactly you will use - the installation disk or flash drive. After the necessary settings have been determined, insert the Windows distribution disk into the drive or connect the USB flash drive to the USB connector. Next, to exit the BIOS and save the adjustments made to the parameters of this system software, click F10.
  4. After this, the computer will reboot and start from the bootable media on which the Windows distribution is installed. First of all, a window will open where you need to select the language, keyboard layout and time format. Set the optimal parameters for yourself and press "Further".
  5. In the next window, click on the button "Install".
  6. Next, a window with a license agreement opens. If you simply want to remove Windows 7 without subsequently installing this operating system, then familiarization with it is not necessary. Just check the checkbox and click "Further".
  7. In the next window, choose from the two proposed action options "Full installation".
  8. Next, a shell will open where you need to select the HDD partition with the OS you want to remove. Opposite the name of this volume there must be a parameter "System" in the column "Type". Click on the inscription "Disk Setup".
  9. In the settings window that opens, select the same section again and click on the inscription "Format".
  10. A dialog box will open, which will provide information that all data that the selected section contains will be permanently deleted. You should confirm your actions by clicking "OK".
  11. The formatting process will start. After its completion, the selected partition will be completely cleared of information, including the operating system installed on it. Then, if you wish, you can either continue installing the new OS, or exit the installation environment if your goal was only to remove Windows 7.

Method 2: "System Configuration"

You can also remove Windows 7 using a built-in tool such as "System configuration". However, you need to take into account that this method is only suitable if you have several OS installed on your PC. In this case, the system you want to delete should not be active at the moment. That is, it is imperative to start the computer under a different OS, otherwise nothing will work.

  1. Click "Start" and go to "Control Panel".
  2. Next, enter the area "System and safety".
  3. Open "Administration".
  4. Find the name in the list of utilities "System configuration" and click on it.

    You can also launch this tool through the window "Run". Dial Win+R and enter the command into the field that opens:

    Then press "OK".

  5. A window will open "System Configurations". Navigate to a section by clicking on the appropriate tab.
  6. A window will open with a list of installed operating systems on this PC. You need to select the OS that you want to remove, and then press the buttons sequentially "Delete", "Apply" And "OK". It should be noted that the system with which you are currently working with the computer cannot be demolished, since the corresponding button will not be active.
  7. After this, a dialog box will open asking you to restart the system. Close all active documents and applications, and then tap .
  8. After restarting the PC, the selected operating system will be removed from it.

The choice of a specific method for removing Windows 7 depends primarily on how many operating systems are installed on your PC. If there is only one OS, then the easiest way to remove it is using the installation disk. If there are several of them, there is an even simpler uninstallation option, which involves using a system tool "System configuration".



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