Clean reinstall of full OEM VBE

[Guest]

I have a full OEM version of Windows Vista Business installed on a new
computer I built myself. I would like to do a clean reinstall and don’t need
to back up any programs or files outside of those already stored on a second
drive.

My thought was to boot from CD, do a custom install, reformat the RAID 0
drive and install the operating system. I am not given that option but told
I must access the CD from within windows.
I can get to the option that sounds like a virtual clean install with some
old files backed up in a folder. Is the drive formatted in any way or all
other programs and files just deleted?
I suppose I could reinstall XP and then reinstall Vista but isn’t there an
easier way to reformat and do a clean install? Will I have an issue
activating the product again since it is an OEM version?

Finally, if I purchase an upgrade anytime to Ultimate is my copy now
considered retail?

 

[Paul Randall]

I have a full OEM version of Windows Vista Business installed on a new
computer I built myself. I would like to do a clean reinstall and don't
need
to back up any programs or files outside of those already stored on a
second
drive.

My thought was to boot from CD, do a custom install, reformat the RAID 0
drive and install the operating system. I am not given that option but
told
I must access the CD from within windows.
I can get to the option that sounds like a virtual clean install with some
old files backed up in a folder. Is the drive formatted in any way or all
other programs and files just deleted?
I suppose I could reinstall XP and then reinstall Vista but isn't there an
easier way to reformat and do a clean install? Will I have an issue
activating the product again since it is an OEM version?

Finally, if I purchase an upgrade anytime to Ultimate is my copy now
considered retail?

Why not install it the same way you did the original install when you built
the "new" computer? Was the hard drive new? Did you boot from the OEM DVD
to start the installation?

-Paul Randall

 

[Guest]

I built a new computer just before Vista was released. The copy of XP Pro
included an upgrade coupon and the full version of Vista allowed me to boot
from the CD, reformat the hard drive and perform a clean install. I haven’t
been able to figure out how to do a reinstall now that Vista is installed.

 

[Paul Randall]

I think you are seeing one drawback to using an upgrade. If you follow the
EULA to the letter, reinstalling the software means installing the chain of
the original software and all upgrades in the chain. You get a discount on
the upgrade (free in your case), but get the pain of installing previous
versions so that you can upgrade again. 'Free' has different meanings to
different people.

There is a way to do a clean install with an upgrade DVD:
http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_upgrade_clean.asp
This should work for you, but Microsoft may have plans to close this
loophole; months or years from now the Genuine program may flag this type of
installation as NOT genuine, according to the rumor.

-Paul Randall

 

[Guest]

The "Upgrade Coupon" provided an equivalant Vista DVD to the XP Pro I
purchased at the time. I have a Full OEM Vista Business DVD, not the upgrade
version

 

[Paul Randall]

You said earlier that you did your first install of Vista like this:
Then you said you tried to do a clean install again:
Now I think your question is how to do a clean install of Vista Business
Full Version with RAID 0. I don't know whether there are any differences
between Vista Business and Vista Ultimate that affect setting up a RAID 0
system, but here is a tutorial for doing the ultimate setup:

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/454/1/

Hopefully this will help guide you to achieve your goals.

-Paul Randall