RIP Windows 7 - January 14th 2020

[nytebyte]

We should be sure that's the problem first.

Run the Disk Management tool on Windows and check the boot drive to see what partitions are on it.
You can do this by pressing Windowskey+R and then type diskmgmt.msc in the box and hit enter.
Take a screenshot and post it here.

 

[GTPpower]

Here's what I got.

 

[nytebyte]

Ok, it looks like you're missing the recovery partition. There should be three partitions there and you're showing only two, however, this can be normal for some Win 7 installs.
Your partitions are arranged in such a way that Windows 10 should automatically be able to create the recovery partition on install, so it might be something else. Screwing with the partitions manually is not something you necessarily want to do, unless it's a last resort, so it's a good idea to exhaust other options.

Do you still have your Windows 7 installation disc? If so, boot from that and select "Repair computer" and see if it finds anything.
If you don't have the Windows 7 media, you can create a repair disc to boot from by going to the Start menu and typing "backup". Choose Backup and Restore and then Create Repair disc. Then boot the disc and select "Repair computer".

 

[GTPpower]

Ok, I created a disc, then booted from the disc and ran system repair. It says there were no problems detected.

 

[nytebyte]

Try this next: Do Winkey+R and run msconfig. Go to the boot tab and disable all startup items.
Also disable any antivirus programs you are running since you may not be able to disable them in msconfig.
Try to run the upgrade again.

If that doesn't work, go back into disk management and under disk 0, on the big C: partition, right click and select "Shrink partition" and then shrink it by 1GB, then try the upgrade again. This will give the Win 10 installer room on the disk to create its recovery partition.

I know this is a pain in the ass and frustrating. If neither of the above work, there are more advanced methods we can try, but you might want to consider doing a clean install.

 

[GTPpower]

nytebyte

Just wanted to say thanks for the help. I figured this out a couple months ago. It wouldn't install Windows 10 because I have a USB wireless adapter. So when prompted to unplug that, I lost internet. I eventually just took the PC upstairs so I could wire it directly to the router. No problems then.