Detecting Vista Editions

[Guest]

We need our desktop application to determine the Windows Vista's edition,
e.g. whether application is installed on Ultimate, Home Premium, etc..

We have located this registry key in the Vista installation.

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\ProductName]

1) Will like to know what is the final product name that will be feedback on
this key for the 6 editions that Vista is going to have?

2) If this isn't a reliable way to obtain this information, please kindly
advise.

Regards,
Fred

 

[droid]

I cannot answer this question but I would advice this: Home users who got XP
Pro OEM installed in their computer can only upgrade to Business or
Ultimate. Thus if you differentiate currently between XP and 2000/2003
users, the XP Pro users switching to Business (since MS doesn't allow update
to Home Premium) could be locked out of using your program in their home
computers.

I know several programs that are likely to run into this issue with
upgraders if they differentiate their versions between Vista Home/Business
editions. They would need to add a check that if the user has upraded from
XP Pro to Business then it would still be treated as before, not as if the
user was using a 2000/2003 Server.

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

There is something I'm missing here. Vista is still Vista, whether Home
Premium, Business, or Ultimate. It is Windows Server 2007/8 that is the
upgrade from 2003, not Vista.

I cannot answer this question but I would advice this: Home users who got
XP Pro OEM installed in their computer can only upgrade to Business or
Ultimate. Thus if you differentiate currently between XP and 2000/2003
users, the XP Pro users switching to Business (since MS doesn't allow
update to Home Premium) could be locked out of using your program in their
home computers.

I know several programs that are likely to run into this issue with
upgraders if they differentiate their versions between Vista Home/Business
editions. They would need to add a check that if the user has upraded from
XP Pro to Business then it would still be treated as before, not as if the
user was using a 2000/2003 Server.

We need our desktop application to determine the Windows Vista's edition,
e.g. whether application is installed on Ultimate, Home Premium, etc..

We have located this registry key in the Vista installation.

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\ProductName]

1) Will like to know what is the final product name that will be feedback
on
this key for the 6 editions that Vista is going to have?

2) If this isn't a reliable way to obtain this information, please kindly
advise.

Regards,
Fred