Upgrade Question

[Apache -=CW=-]

I've got Vista home premium upgrade and XP Pro. I haven't tried very hard
but I can only start setup from within XP. I'd like to do a clean
install.I've had it installed already, and even
though I choose not to save my old XP stuff it does it anyway. Then when I
try to access or even delete files that are left over from XP, I get the
access denied thing, which makes sense since
XP Pro encrypts everything. But it's annoying too.

Ideally I would like to install Vista on my other PC rather than have them
dual boot. But I've already activated it on this one. Is there a work around
for that or am I stuck using it on only
this PC? I've had some major issues with Vista, and I'm starting to think
Vista is nothing more than another Millenium.

I have 4 other versions of XP, all legit, 1 other Pro and 3 home. Can I
upgrade a home version?

 

[Rick Rogers]

Hi,

I've got Vista home premium upgrade and XP Pro. I haven't tried very hard
but I can only start setup from within XP.

This is the intent of the upgrade version. When you use an upgrade key it
will only allow for setup to initialize from within an existing, qualifying
product installation. However, you can't upgrade XP Pro with Vista Home
Premium. XP Pro can only upgrade to Vista Business or Ultimate.

I'd like to do a clean install.

This is actually provided for by choosing the custom option. It will allow
for a clean install. There is also the known workaround of installing twice.
The first time you boot from the Vista disk and do not enter the product
key, but rather simply click next and choose the appropriate version (it is
important that you choose the correct one for your key). Once installation
completes, you simply reinstall as an in-place upgrade, this time using the
key.

I've had it installed already, and even
though I choose not to save my old XP stuff it does it anyway.

Another default behavior of the upgrade is to move the current installation
to a windows.old folder in case you want to access/save any of the data from
it. It can be removed by disk cleanup or by taking ownership of it and
deleting it.

Then when I try to access or even delete files that are left over from XP,
I get the access denied thing, which makes sense since
XP Pro encrypts everything. But it's annoying too.

XP Pro only encrypts things if you explicitly tell it to. It's much more
likely that you are running into permissions issues. If they are encrypted,
you will never be able to access them without an encryption certificate
exported from the original installation. With permissions, it's simply a
matter of taking ownership with the advanced options on the security tab of
the target folder's properties.

Ideally I would like to install Vista on my other PC rather than have them
dual boot. But I've already activated it on this one. Is there a work
around for that or am I stuck using it on only this PC?

A retail version of Vista, either full or upgrade, can be migrated to a
different machine without issue. Activation will likely require a phone call
(it's free).

I've had some major issues with Vista, and I'm starting to think Vista is
nothing more than another Millenium.

There are those that would agree with you, but I'm not one of them. I rather
like Vista, but it needs to be installed to hardware it was designed for.
The vast majority of issues stem from having it installed on an older
machine with low-spec hardware, use of a device that doesn't have drivers
for Vista, or by those trying to install older software that is not
compatible with it.

I have 4 other versions of XP, all legit, 1 other Pro and 3 home. Can I
upgrade a home version?

Absolutely.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com

 

[Apache -=CW=-]

Rick,

Thank you for taking the time and your suggestions.

I think I am going to do the clean install on another PC and activate over
the phone.
It's a shame but this PC has a lot more horsepower than the target. (Raid,
huge amount of ram, monster video card, faster CPU ect..)

I just tried installing it on another drive in this PC and it refuses to
install. It wants to install on my Raid array but I won't let it. I want it
to install on a spare 120 gig drive using a single PATA channel. I keep
getting an error that there are no suitable disks found unless I tell
give it access to my windows partition on my Raid array.

Maybe I'm thinking too hard, I'm about ready to just shelve this copy and
not think about it anymore...place it next to all the previous
copies of windows I have bought over the years. Maybe windows 7 will be the
one.

I do like Vista, but it gave me such a rash with things. Of course I can
wait for the official release of SP2, maybe that will do it.

But thanks again.

Regards,
Apache

 

[Martin Descartes]

Rick,

Thank you for taking the time and your suggestions.

I think I am going to do the clean install on another PC and activate over
the phone.
It's a shame but this PC has a lot more horsepower than the target. (Raid,
huge amount of ram, monster video card, faster CPU ect..)

I just tried installing it on another drive in this PC and it refuses to
install. It wants to install on my Raid array but I won't let it. I want it
to install on a spare 120 gig drive using a single PATA channel. I keep
getting an error that there are no suitable disks found unless I tell
give it access to my windows partition on my Raid array.

Disconnect the RAID array and that problem will go away.

 

[Mick Murphy]

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/get/upgrade-your-pc-options.aspx

XP Pro to Vista home Premium is not an upgrade path.
It has to be a clean install.

http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_upgrade_clean.asp

The above link is the workaround for clean install using Upgrade disk