Windows XP Home Instillation

[Michael Neal]

I am currently running Windows 2000 Pro on my system. Due
to a number of problems I was looking to change to Windows
XP. I purchased the full up version as the MS website
indicated this could not be done through an upgrade. When
I attempted to install the Windows XP Home it gave me an
error message that 2000 could not be upgraded. What do I
need to do to install the XP Home version?

 

[Nicholas]

Neither the "upgrade version" or "full version" of XP Home Edition
will upgrade over an existing Windows 2000 installation. Only a
version of XP Pro can upgrade over W2K.

The Windows XP CD is bootable and contains all the tools necessary
to partition and format your drive. Follow this procedure and allow
Windows XP to partition and format your drive:

1. Open your BIOS and set your CD Drive as the first bootable device.
2. Insert your Windows XP CD in the CD Drive and reboot your computer.
3. You'll see a message to boot to the CD....follow the instructions.
4. The setup menu will appear and you should elect to delete all the existing
partitions, then create a new partition, then format the primary
partition (preferably NTFS) and proceed to install Windows XP.

5. Windows XP Clean Install:
http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxp_sg_clean.asp

6. Accessing Motherboard BIOS
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/bios_manufacturer.htm


--
Nicholas

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| I am currently running Windows 2000 Pro on my system. Due
| to a number of problems I was looking to change to Windows
| XP. I purchased the full up version as the MS website
| indicated this could not be done through an upgrade. When
| I attempted to install the Windows XP Home it gave me an
| error message that 2000 could not be upgraded. What do I
| need to do to install the XP Home version?

 

[BobDelaney]

You should not purchase an OEM version (i.e. says "For sale only with a
new PC") when what you want to do is an upgrade operation.
You cannot upgrade from Windows 2000 to Windows XP Home. This upgrade
path is only supported to Windows XP Pro. Windows 98/Me will botyh upgrade
to Windows XP Home.
What you might be able to do is to download from Microsoft a set of boot
disks for Windows 2000, boot to the Recovery Console, and repartition and
reformat the hard disk. Once repartitioned and reformatted, you should be
able to use your OEM CD (if it is compatible with your computer) and install
Windows XP Home.
Note that this will mean the loss of all data on the computer. Be sure to
create a backup of all data files, address books, e-mail files and
configuration settings, and be sure to have on hand all the application
Setup CDs you need, as well as all XP-specific hardware drivers. This is not
a trivial operation, but it will work.