Six screens stand between the bootable USB and Windows copying its files. Two of them decide your licence and your data — this page walks all six in the order they appear, and says what each choice really does.
Setup does not explain itself. The product key screen looks compulsory but is not, the edition screen looks harmless but controls activation, and the drive screen looks technical but is really asking one question — what may I erase? Here is each screen, in order, with the honest answer for each.
If you are reinstalling Windows, skip this step and Windows will activate automatically when you go online.
Product key: XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX (example)
[ I don't have a product key ]
The product key screen. The masked key is an example — and for a reinstall, the skip link at the bottom is usually the right choice.
The first screen asks three things: the language to install, the time and currency format, and the keyboard layout. Set the language you want Windows itself to speak, the format for your country, and your physical keyboard type. The defaults the screen suggests are right for most people. Click Next, then Install now on the screen that follows.
This screen has one big button and one small link in the corner, and they do opposite jobs. Install now starts a fresh installation — that is this guide. Repair your computer opens the recovery tools (Startup Repair, System Restore, Command Prompt) for fixing an existing Windows without erasing it. Picking the wrong one costs nothing yet, but know which door you are walking through.
If you bought a key, type it here. If this PC ran an activated Windows before, click I don't have a product key instead. That is not a loophole: the PC's licence is registered against its hardware, and Windows checks it online after the install and activates by itself. The catch comes on the next screen — skipping the key means you must pick the right edition, because no key is there to pick it for you.
Choose the edition this PC was activated with — Home or Pro. This choice matters more than any other on these screens: install Pro on a Home-licensed PC and it will not activate until a Pro key is bought. Install the same edition and activation is automatic. Then read or scroll the licence terms, tick the accept box and continue.
Upgrade installs over your current Windows and tries to keep files, apps and settings. It is greyed out when you booted from USB on many systems, and even when available it keeps old problems along with old files. Custom: Install Windows only is the clean route this guide follows: you choose a drive, that drive is erased, and Windows starts fresh. If you arrived here to fix a sick PC, Custom is almost always the honest answer.
Setup then creates the partitions it needs (EFI system, MSR and recovery) by itself. Honest warning: if a second drive holds your backups or data, leave its partitions completely alone — deleting is instant and final.
The full setup — bootable USB, every install screen and the first sign in — shown live, step by step.
▶️ Watch Full VideoUpgrade installs over your current Windows and keeps files, apps and settings. Custom is a clean install: you pick a drive and that drive is erased. Pick Custom for a fresh start or to repair a badly broken system.
Yes. On a UEFI PC, Setup creates an EFI system partition, an MSR partition and a recovery partition automatically alongside the main Windows partition. Leave them all exactly as they are after the install.
An empty drive list usually means the storage driver is missing — common on newer Intel laptops with VMD mode enabled. Load the storage driver from the laptop maker's support page using the Load driver button on the drive screen, or check the storage setting in BIOS.