Vista Licence question

[Rob]

I have a notebook that came with Vista Business (32bit) preinstalled and I
wanted to downgrade to Vista Home Premium as the features in Business are
trivial for my use and I also found some features in Home Premium more suited
to me needs. Unfortunately, I didn't have the option of selecting the version
of Vista my notebook would come with.

I didn't want to go to Ultimate, and I was thinking the change from Business
to Home Premium should be free or at least reasonably priced as it is a
downgrade somewhat.

I searched everywhere for such info but no luck.

Anyone know if it's possible to do what I want and how to do it?

Thanks in advance,

Rob

PS. I have the Vista installation disk which, based on my understanding, has
every version of Vista 32bit on it.

 

[AJR]

Rob - although the DVD contains all "versions" of Vista, the product key
determines which version is installed - there is no option to select any
other version.
Capability found in Home Premium and not Business are limited to Multi-media
functions, however Business includes Media Player 11.

Three important (my view) items found in the Business version and not Home
Premium are: Windows Shadow copy, Complete PC Backup and Device Driver
control.

 

[churin]

If you have installation DVD which includes Vista Home Premium x86 then
go ahead and install it. You need to let the system boot from the DVD
and let the present installation deleted and install Vista Home Premium
there. Just respond to the screen dialogues.

 

[Patrick Keenan]

I have a notebook that came with Vista Business (32bit) preinstalled and I
wanted to downgrade to Vista Home Premium as the features in Business are
trivial for my use and I also found some features in Home Premium more
suited
to me needs. Unfortunately, I didn't have the option of selecting the
version
of Vista my notebook would come with.

I didn't want to go to Ultimate, and I was thinking the change from
Business
to Home Premium should be free or at least reasonably priced as it is a
downgrade somewhat.

It's a nice thought, but I've never seen that in practice.

Keep in mind that as it is a downgrade, you may wind up having to wipe the
drive and install clean, as Vista Business is probably regarded as an
upgrade from any version with Home in the name. So, be sure to back
up...

I searched everywhere for such info but no luck.

Anyone know if it's possible to do what I want and how to do it?

If it is, it would be via the original vendor who sold you the OS license.
That would be your starting point.

However, you may be stuck with the "best option" of using one of the
"reduced cost" Vista Ultimate packages. I've seen it here for around
CDN$200.

 

[Rob]

Thanks for the replies.

I contacted MSFT and they said there is no way to do it. I also contacted
Sony (my notebook is a Vaio) and they said that my particular model laptop
only has Vista Business as an option.

I find it hard to believe that I cannot downgrade to a different edition. I
know the pros and cons of both editions (business and home premium) and I
guess I should have researched it a little better before purchasing, but I
know now that home premium is what I want. All of the Business extras are not
useful to me at all.

I have no issues with wiping clean my drive and start over but my licence is
tied to Business edition so what I was hoping for was for MSFT to void my
current one and give me a new one that's for Home Premium.

Oh well, I may have to bite the bullet and do an upgrade to Ultimate which
is what MSFT wants me to do seeing how difficult they are making it for a
simple edition downgrade.

 

[Mike Hall - MVP]

Thanks for the replies.

I contacted MSFT and they said there is no way to do it. I also contacted
Sony (my notebook is a Vaio) and they said that my particular model laptop
only has Vista Business as an option.

I find it hard to believe that I cannot downgrade to a different edition.
I
know the pros and cons of both editions (business and home premium) and I
guess I should have researched it a little better before purchasing, but I
know now that home premium is what I want. All of the Business extras are
not
useful to me at all.

I have no issues with wiping clean my drive and start over but my licence
is
tied to Business edition so what I was hoping for was for MSFT to void my
current one and give me a new one that's for Home Premium.

Oh well, I may have to bite the bullet and do an upgrade to Ultimate which
is what MSFT wants me to do seeing how difficult they are making it for a
simple edition downgrade.

Microsoft are not responsible for the version you have on your Sony. It is
OEM which means that Sony support it. Your sales contract was not with
Microsoft..