Dell XPS 410 and X64 Windows 7

I am entertaining the idea of installing the 64 bit version Windows 7 on my Dell XPS 410.  I know which programs are compatible and those that are not.  However, I am concerned about the hardware built into this machine.  I would not anticipate any problem doing a full (clean) install of Win 7.  However, I would be curious to get any feedback from others who have this same system.  Have you noticed any problems whatsoever using Win 7 on the XPS 410?  By looking at Device Manager, did all of the drivers install correctly?  Obviously, we all have our own separate peripherals such as printers, external harddrives, etc, etc, so I know there can be variations even within the same Dell model.  However, I am just trying to get a general sense of how the OS performs on the XPS410.  I am currently running Vista. Any feedback from Dell XPS 410 users would be appreciated.

I have an almost identical system to yours.   Tell me if I'm wrong, but from checking the Dell Support Application software, this system maxes out at 4 GB RAM.  I was also considering upgrading from Vista 32-bit to Win7 64-bit on my machine, but have decided just to go with the 32-bit Win7 on this machine.  I have an older HP multi-function device (printer / scanner / fax) and other hardware that don't yet have 64-bit drivers.  I've had this setup for over 2 years.

It is true that the XPS 410 will only handle a maximum of 4GB of RAM. Isn't that enough to run the 64 bit version of Windows 7? I'd like to do the same as "gwsmith". I have an XPS 410 with Vista Business 32 bit, 4GB ram. I'd like to upgrade to Win 7 64 bit. I am trying to figure out if the XPS 410 can handle 64 bit. Can't seem to find definitive answer.

By the way, I have been running the windows 7 RC in a virtual machine on my XPS 410 and it works just fine!

I/ve just finished installing Windows 7 PRO 64 bit on my XPS410, coming from VISTA Ultimate 32 bit.  The OS installed in just under 20 minutes with no problems whatsoever.  I ran Windows Easy Transfer on my VISTA install before the clean Win 7 install.  The only problem I encountered with WET was my contacts did not transfer to Windows Live Mail.  Fortunately, I had a True Image image file on my external drive, and recovered my contacts from that.  Perhaps if I had downloaded and installed Windows Live Mail before running WET on the Windows 7 install the contacts would have been restored (I ran WET a second time after installing Live Mail).  Next time I do this I will export emails, contacts, and IE to individual files, and then run WET also.  I did not have to load any drivers at all.  I had them on my external drive in case, but Windows 7 apparently found everything.  It even updated the Intel 825xx Gigabit LAN Network driver to a later version than on the Dell site.

Reloading my programs was a pain, and I did run into a problem with Office Pro 2007.  My disc was an upgrade version, and the qualifying upgrade product I had at the time was Microsoft Works that came preloaded on my Dell.  When I originally installed Office Pro, I wiped out Microsoft Works.  Imagine my surprise when Office Pro demanded a qualifying upgrade product disc before it would install.  I borrowed a friend's Office 2003 disc, and Office Pro 2007 accepted that, thank God.

I got the PRO version because I wanted XP Mode.  I have an old DOS program called Managing Your Money version 12 that I have used since the 80s, and will never give it up.  From everything I read, it seemed that 16 bit programs would work in XP Mode, but I haven't been able to get this to work.  Finally installed DOSBox, and MYM12 works just fine, but I will continue researching XP Mode.

I currently have 4BG of RAM, but I know for a fact (99.9%) that the XPS410 will handle 8GB.  I just didn't see the need for it.  If you search the Dell forums and Google, you will find several discussions on this, many saying that 4GB is max, but several people report running with 8GB with no problems.  If you need it, buy two 2GB modules first, and if they work (and they should), buy two more.

All in all, my clean install experience was painless, and my machine just breezes along.  I even noticed substantially faster download speeds; I'm getting 1MB/sec (that's mega BYTE, not bits) routinely.

Regards

Walt

Walt -

Thank you so much for your detailed explanation. I will now install Windows 7 Pro 64 bit on my XPS.

Is it possible that different 410's have different RAM max's? Mine is a Core 2 Duo 6400. I saw an entry in these forums where someone was running 6GB on a 410 but had a Core 2 Duo 6600.

I do see other hits in the forums but I guess the only way to find out is to try it. I probably should update the BIOS first. Scares me to do that however since this is my main computer.

I am late getting back to this board but wanted to share my experience.  Like Walt, I just recently finished installing Windows 7 on my XPS 410.  I went from Vista Home Premium (64 bit) to Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit).  The OS installed on my pc in about 25 minutes with no installation problems.  I ran all of my programs before using Windows Easy Transfer (WET).  I then used WET and all of my data and settings transferred over with no problems whatsoever. 

I 'did' discover one issue on my computer.  I went to Device Manager and noticed I had an 'Other Device' folder.  Now any of you that know much about Device Manager know that is not a good sign.  It usually means there's a device that Windows didn't recognize or correctly install the needed driver.  Since my video card, sound card, printer, and all other obvious devices seemed to be working great (and no issues with them in Device Manager), I wasn't sure what to do.  Long story short, I ended up calling MS and they had me update a system device, which I thought fixed the issue but it did not.

Going to Control Panel, then clicking on 'Trouble Shooting Devices' (using large Icon view), I learned the Dell XPS 410 has an ACPI power setting issue with the 64 bit operating system.  Unfortunately, Dell has not released an updated BIOS for the Dell XPS 410.  This problem apparently was known in X64 Vista under the XPS 410 and I have experienced this issue on X64 Windows 7.  The specific text from trouble shooting in Control Panel is as follows:

Quote: "Address a problem with Away Mode System
This problem was caused by a compatibility issue between your computer's Away Mode System and your 64-bit version of Windows. The Away Mode System is only compatible with 32-bit versions of Windows.

This problem is not critical, but you can prevent it from occurring again by disabling the Away Mode System in your computer's BIOS. Refer to the instructions that came with your computer that explain how to access the BIOS and turn off Away Mode System support.

Note
Changing BIOS settings requires moderate to advanced computer skills. If you are not experienced at changing BIOS settings, consider asking someone with more advanced skills to help you.

What do 32-bit and 64-bit mean?

The terms 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the way your computer's central processing unit (CPU) handles information. The 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows are designed for use in computers with 32-bit or 64-bit processors, respectively.

For more information, read this Windows 7 Help article online:

32-bit and 64-bit Windows: frequently asked questions

What is the BIOS?

The basic input/output system (BIOS) is software built into a computer that is run when the computer is first turned on. Among other things, this software starts the operating system and supports the transfer of information between hardware devices (such as the keyboard and the monitor).".....End QUOTE

I agree with Walt in that reloading programs is always a pain.  More than anything it is very time consuming.  However, I did not run into any problems with it.

Other than one issue in Device Manager, my clean install experience went fine.  However, that issue in Device Manager was a pain in the butt to determine.  If I cannot fix it, at least now I know it doesn't seem to be anything critical. 

Scott

 P.S. Short of me finding out how to edit the BIOS for this issue, I guess I'll have to ignore the bang in Device Manager. 

See my other thread about the Dell XPS 410 and memory upgrades.  This model 'can' be upgraded to 8 GB as I learned from others.