Is it possible to have windows 7 on Z790 with i7
- Thread starter HarshPolu
- Start date
NotMeAbhishek
Apprentice
NotMeAbhishek
Apprentice
Using Windows 7 in 2025 and beyond would be highly discouraged. Windows 7 stopped receiving updates a few years ago. Which means if tomorrow there’s a zero-day vulnerability detected, the OS would most likely not get patched. This is very risky if you value your privacy and care about your data.
salman8506
Herald
Exactly this...win 10 is what you should have as a minimum, also win 7 will most likely not be able to take full advantage if latest hardware. Somethings might be amiss.
Titokhan
Galvanizer
Not true; you can't even properly boot an official Windows 7 ISO on modern platforms without slipstreaming necessary low level drivers in the boot.wim.
Moreover, many consumer-grade firmware implementations are UEFI class 3, which means they lack CSM support altogether. Due to the fact that Windows 7's bootloader and kernel - even in x64 UEFI mode - rely on legacy VESA routines with the INT 10H interrupt to function, there is no easy way other than using some kind of shimming to make it work.
True, but NT 6.1 is still eligible for ESU updates till January 2026 (in the form of Server 2008 R2, hence x64 only), so you can keep your instance up-to-date if you know where to look.
This.
While the cozy feelings of using a familiar UI/UX might be a plus, the NT 6.1 kernel is too old to support numerous hardware features that are not not even possible to cover via backporting.
The OS in the heart is software to talk to your hardware. The graphics and controls can be configured to suit your needs. If you are that used to windows 7 in 2025 just get windows 11 and customize it to look like windows 7.
This solution is only for the user-interface and GUI of windows 7. If you care about the kernel and driver level of the OS for windows 7 then I have nothing to say but welcome to the botnet I suppose. There are quite a few free customizations to make windows 11 feel like windows 7.
For free version there is https://winaerotweaker.com which can convert windows versions to windows 7
If you really have to have windows 7 look and feel you will probably have to pay.
www.stardock.com/products/start11/ Around 1k for 1 install
https://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/download Around 3k for 5 active install version.
github.com
Open Shell https://github.com/Open-Shell/Open-Shell-Menu
This is what it would look like if you do it well with icon packs and replacing the shell
Personally I would not do it. And there is no way I am paying 3k+ to make my OS feel like windows 7. Better to let go and learn new things.
This solution is only for the user-interface and GUI of windows 7. If you care about the kernel and driver level of the OS for windows 7 then I have nothing to say but welcome to the botnet I suppose. There are quite a few free customizations to make windows 11 feel like windows 7.
For free version there is https://winaerotweaker.com which can convert windows versions to windows 7
If you really have to have windows 7 look and feel you will probably have to pay.
www.stardock.com/products/start11/ Around 1k for 1 install
https://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/download Around 3k for 5 active install version.
GitHub - valinet/ExplorerPatcher: This project aims to enhance the working environment on Windows
This project aims to enhance the working environment on Windows - valinet/ExplorerPatcher
github.com
This is what it would look like if you do it well with icon packs and replacing the shell
Personally I would not do it. And there is no way I am paying 3k+ to make my OS feel like windows 7. Better to let go and learn new things.
I see, hmm, thank you for suggestions guys 
So basically keeping basic work aside ,after seeing above suggestions , in case want to use win7 for some old games too, playing them offline , would that be supported ? Or like it will be 50-50 chance for that too? ,
Sorry for questions, but eager to know before I get partition created on ssd for windows 10 and windows 7 , which was my plan initially ,but after seeing the above suggestions till now, might change the plan
So basically keeping basic work aside ,after seeing above suggestions , in case want to use win7 for some old games too, playing them offline , would that be supported ? Or like it will be 50-50 chance for that too? ,
Sorry for questions, but eager to know before I get partition created on ssd for windows 10 and windows 7 , which was my plan initially ,but after seeing the above suggestions till now, might change the plan
Most games would have patches to work on newer operating systems as well, especially if these games were purchased legally through platforms such as Steam. You won't even have to do any trickery to make them work in Windows 10/11. Just install and play.I see, hmm, thank you for suggestions guys
So basically keeping basic work aside ,after seeing above suggestions , in case want to use win7 for some old games too, playing them offline , would that be supported ? Or like it will be 50-50 chance for that too? ,
Sorry for questions, but eager to know before I get partition created on ssd for windows 10 and windows 7 , which was my plan initially ,but after seeing the above suggestions till now, might change the plan
If you didn't purchase them legally, well that is a separate discussion altogether.
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I second @kewlboy9. You should update to minimum Windows 10. It isn't just about security, but a lot of software vendors have stopped supporting Windows 7, that means you can't run the latest versions of those software. I would suggest double booting. So, you can have both and you can get used to Windows 10.
You can always run them in compatibility mode. I play Oblivion on Windows 11 all the time, no cracks (I have the original DVD, but have imaged it onto a file for easy access without DVD-ROM). Compatibility mode from application properties is what you need in case it doesn't work out of the box. Same with Deus Ex, but that was a CD ROM that ran on W95 and it runs with no issues on Win 10 and 11, but it does need some patches to make it run on DX10. Most Unreal engine games are fully patched to modern systems and sometimes even the compatibility layer is not needed, but they might need admin mode permissions.
You need to mostly have all the Visual C++ packs (from 2008 onwards) installed, as well as the June 2010 DirectX redist to get most old games to run fine.
Titokhan
Galvanizer
Sorry for diverting from the actual topic.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, unlike most other popular PC games released back in those days, features a bare minimum disc check as the DRM. There is no copy protection on the DVD itself, which is why you can easily rip it to an image without needing any specialized hardware.
However, Windows 10 and 11 won't run games that employ SafeDisc or SecuROM, rendering hundreds of legacy disc-based games from that era potentially unplayable without scene-made "mini-images" or NoCD/NoDVD patches. Not every publisher offers official patches with unprotected binaries, and platforms like Steam and GOG couldn't cover many games due to complex licensing hotchpotch.