XP Upgrade CD

[Larry]

I upgraded my OS from Win '98 to XP (home) a while back,
converted to NTFS and got rid of my Windows '98 discs.
Last week, my hard drive crashed. Can I use my XP home
upgrade CD to format a new hard drive?

 

[Rifleman]

I upgraded my OS from Win '98 to XP (home) a while back,
converted to NTFS and got rid of my Windows '98 discs.
Last week, my hard drive crashed. Can I use my XP home
upgrade CD to format a new hard drive?

Not without a qualifying OS, no.

 

[Haus]

Hello
yes you can use it but you will need a copy of a qualifying operating system
ie:98,98SE,ME then you can boot from the XP CD and do a format and install
at one point during the install you will be instructed to put the CD in just
to prove you owned a previous version you can get one of them from ebay
cheaper then getting the full install of XP, upgrades and restore disk will
not work all this is legal as long as you have license for both

 

[Larry]

So, what to do now? Purchase a full version of XP?
Purchase a license for Win '98 and upgrade again?

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Since you only have an "Upgrade License", you cannot perform a
"clean install" without the qualifying upgrade CD (Win 98). You'll
need a "Full Version" of Windows XP which gives you a "Full License".

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

 

[Steve C. Ray]

You can use a Win 95, 98, or ME CD as a qualifying disk. If you have one of
these set your BIOS to have the CD drive as the first boot device, boot from
the XP Upgrade disk, partition and format your drive and install XP,
inserting the qualifying CD when prompted.

 

[Rifleman]

So, what to do now? Purchase a full version of XP?
Purchase a license for Win '98 and upgrade again?

Try Ebay - I'm sure you'll find a copy of W98 for peanuts.....

 

[R. C. White]

Hi, Larry.

Your question was specifically whether you can use your "upgrade CD to
format a new hard drive?", and the answer is Yes, because WinXP Setup will
not even look for Win98 until long after the formatting is done. Just abort
Setup after the formatting is complete.

I suspect, though, that you really meant to ask the question that the others
have answered, and they are correct: you will need to show WinXP Setup some
evidence that you own a product that qualifies for the Upgrade pricing.

RC