Question

Upgrading from a licensed version of Windows Server 2012 R2 to Windows Server 2016 is cheaper than a clean install. Explain the Pros and Cons of upgrading vs a clean install.
Specify a scenario where you would advocate for upgrading as opposed to a clean install. Then specify a situation where you would avocate for a clean install over an upgrade. Feel free to use other blog posts and personal experiences to make your point.

Answer 1

A clean install refers to installing an Operating system on a computer by wiping off the current operating system or installing on any computer system which does not currently have any OS. An upgrade would be performed if you already had an operating system, and obtained the necessary compatible software to update it to a newer version.The new operating system simply replaces the old one.

	Pros	Cons
Clean install	Easier to troubleshoot installation failures. Predictable With clean install you will have decluttered PC with much better performances	Requires migration of applications Time consuming Required  backing up personal files and formatting of hard disk
Upgrade	Straightforward Less time consuming Does not require formatting of hard disk and due to that fact all settings, programs, and files are preserved.	Harder to troubleshoot installation failures. Unpredictable. With upgrade, elements of the previous system remain, causing performance issues of the new system.

Advocating for upgrading as opposed to a clean install.

The main advantage of an upgrade is that everything is saved while on the other hand with clean install everything is wiped off.

Upgrade does not require formatting of hard disk and due to that fact all settings, programs, and files are preserved. The new operating system simply replaces the old one. Using Windows Update Assistant, the process is pretty much automated. It also allows going back to the previous system version if for any reason you don’t want to keep the new one.

While in Clean install required wiping off the current operating system, formatting hard drive and starting a fresh new installation. It requires more time, backing up personal files as well as making an installation media with Windows installer. It doesn't allows going back to the previous system version if for any reason you don’t want to keep the new one.

Advocating for a clean install over an upgrade

With upgrade Windows tempts to bring everything from the old version to the new one, resulting with accumulation of many old and unused files, registry entries of some uninstalled programs and all other types of junk. This way you end up with a new version of Windows cluttered at the very beginning. Also, some of the programs can be incompatible with the new version or simply uninstalled during the process so you can end up spending time troubleshooting the issues afterward

So a clean install is a great way for a fresh start, especially if you’ve been running the same system version for quite a long time. After performing a clean install, you will need to invest some time to personalize your PC and get all the benefits of the new Windows. But in the end, you will have decluttered PC with much better performances as compare to upgrade