Member Avatar for Jim_16

I've been having a problem trying to install Windows 7 on a Windows Vista computer. Vista was running fine but wanted to upgrade it, which should be simple. I've done the same thing countless times on other comuters without a problem. So I put the Win 7 install disk in the optical drive and the install fails while windows was "installing files". Ran all the system checks to make sure there was no problem with the optical drive, memory, etc., and the install still stops mid stream telling me there was an I/O error. I can only think it's beause of the [EMS ENABLED] note on the "boot from disk" screen. Research tells me the EMS designation has to do with a machine that's set up as a server...which this one was not, and I haven't yet figured out how to change that. Is it in BIOS? If so, where, and how do I get to it?

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Short primer: the "[EMS ENABLED]" text refers to Windows Emergency Management Services (a serial-console / bootloader redirection feature) and is controlled in the Windows Boot Configuration Data (BCD), not a generic "server mode" BIOS setting. EMS lets a boot entry redirect its console to a serial port for headless or remote debugging; it does not normally stop a PC from booting installation media. (learn.microsoft.com)

If you want to check or turn EMS off from the working Vista install, open an elevated Command Prompt and run the commands below. Use the GUID shown by bcdedit /enum or {current} for the running OS entry.

bcdedit /enum
bcdedit /ems {current} off

To change global serial settings use bcdedit /emssettings ... (BIOS vs COM-port/baud options are available). Note: you may need to suspend BitLocker or Secure Boot before changing BCD. (learn.microsoft.com)

Practical note and checklist: EMS is worth checking but is unlikely to be the root cause of an I/O error during a DVD boot. More common causes are bad media, a flaky optical drive, BIOS settings (virtualization/SVM, SATA mode), or an outdated BIOS. Useful steps: try the USB installer, burn media again at low speed, toggle virtualization/SVM in BIOS (as suggested), or run Setup from inside Windows (what helped ). If setup gets to the point it hangs, Shift+F10 to inspect setup logs under X:\Windows\Panther can point to the I/O culprit. (learn.microsoft.com)

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Member Avatar for rproffitt

I'll defer EMS to Dr. Google.

OK, I don't have a make and model here so I'll share a recent install that was a HP dv6910us running Vista. Nothing would appear to let it run Windows 7 or beyond, 32 or 64 bit. I had a break and came back to revisit this since the laptop was in otherwise great condition.

So here's what it was. In the BIOS there was a VM setting for the CPU. It may have been VT but the CPU was an older AMD that if you google you learn about VM woes. That was my clue to try it with this disabled in the BIOS. Once that was done, the Windows 7 DVD booted and installed.

Later we (it's an office laptop) used a W7 license then upgraded to W10 64 bit and it ran without any search for drivers. It will live out its days doing web searches and office work.

TL;DR. The make and model matters. Sometimes you have to google a lot and try things.

Member Avatar for Jim_16

, thanks for your reply. This is an HP Desktop, model a6207c with a 2.3GHz AMD Athlon 64x2 Dual Core Processor, 2.0GB RAM and a 500GB Hard Drive that started life as a 32Bit Windows Vista Home Premium machine. Since my original post I did find a work-around to get my 32 Bit Windows 7 Home Premium installed. Booting from the install disk just wouldn't work, so I tried booting the old Vista, putting the install disk in the drive, then clicking on it to run it in from My Computer. Wouldn't you know, it worked perfectly! I installed the new OS over the old one, and I don't have a clue why or how it worked, but there's no trace of the old [EMS ENABLED] left, during boot or anyplace else. I'm still curious to know "why" I couldn't boot from the disk, but at least I've got my new operating system. I'll be checking with Dr. Google to see what I can learn when time allows. Thanks so much for your interest and help!

Member Avatar for JenniferArden

Compys sure can be temperamental sometimes :|
The other day it was attempted to install Win7 Ultimate x64 on a PC that had Win7 on previously, however re-installing Win7 turned out to be a big obstacle.
Maybe it had something to do with EMS, who knows, however I found a solution on the internet where the Shift+F10 combination saved the install by allowing one to edit the registry and perform a succesful install.

Edited by JenniferArden
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