Swap o/s back to XP ?

[Steve B]

Hi all,
I recently bought a new laptop, loaded with Vista.
It highjacked my home wireless network
It is doing my head in !!
Want to swap back to XP
Is it easy to do ?

 

[Malke]

Hi all,
I recently bought a new laptop, loaded with Vista.
It highjacked my home wireless network
It is doing my head in !!
Want to swap back to XP
Is it easy to do ?

General information about replacing Vista with XP:

A. On an OEM (HP, Sony, etc.) computer:

1. Go to the OEM's website and look for XP drivers for your specific model
computer. If there are no XP drivers, then you can't install XP. End of
story. If there are drivers, download them and store on a CD-R or USB
thumbdrive; you'll need them after you install XP.

2. Check with the OEM - either from their tech support website or by calling
them - to see if you will void your warranty if you do this. If you will
void the warranty, you make the decision.

3. If the OEM does support XP on the machine, call them and see if you can
have downgrade rights and have them send you an XP restore disk. This will
be far the easiest and best way of getting XP on the machine.

4. If XP is supported on the machine but the OEM doesn't have an XP restore
disk for you, understand that you'll need to purchase a retail copy of XP
from your favorite online or brick/mortar store.

5. Also understand that you will need to do a clean install of XP so if you
have any data you want, back it up first.

6. If none of the above is applicable to you because you can't run XP on
that machine (see Item #1 above), return the computer and purchase one
running XP instead.

Malke

 

[db.·.. >]

reverting to xp from
vista is referred as
"downgrading" and
there may be a likelihood
that your machine may
not be able to.

you should either
contact the salespeople
from the store you
got it or review the
homesite to your machine
for advice on downgrading
your particular model.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Hi all,
I recently bought a new laptop, loaded with Vista.
It highjacked my home wireless network

That is pretty much meaningless, as phrased. Exactly what is your
problem? If you truly want help, post the necessary specific details of
the problem in the appropriate Vista newsgroup.

It is doing my head in !!

Any new operating system is going to entail a learning curve, but that
generated by a move from WinXP to Vista is relatively gentle.

Want to swap back to XP
Is it easy to do ?

Possible? Maybe. Easy? That depends on many factors, not the least
of which is your technical skill set.

It's your computer, so the choice is, ultimately, yours.

However, there could be a couple possible adverse repercussions of
which you should be aware. First and foremost, if the specific computer
model in question was designed specifically for Vista, there may well be
no WinXP-specific device drivers available to make the computer's
diverse components work properly. Consult the computer's manufacturer
about the availability of device drivers. Secondly, removing an
OEM-installed operating system and replacing it with another will almost
invariably void any and all support agreements and, sometimes, even the
warranty. You would, at the very least, have to re-install Vista before
getting any support from the manufacturer. Again, consult the
computer's manufacturer for specifics. Thirdly, there may be the
additional cost involved in purchasing a WinXP license for this new
computer.

After backing up any data you wish to transfer to the new OS
installation, simply boot from the WinXP installation CD. You'll be
offered the opportunity to delete, create, and format partitions as part
of the installation process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of
boot devices in the PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)

HOW TO Install Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm

Then, assuming you were successful in obtaining WinXP-specific
device drivers so that the computer can be made to work with WinXP, the
backed up data can be restored and applications (those that are
WinXP-compatible, that is) re-installed.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

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