will programs be lost after upgrade?

[quy nguyen]

Hi,
I want to make sure that if I upgrade windows XP home to Windows XP professional all applications and files are still remain or lost?
Thanks

 

[John Waller]

Apps and files will remain after an upgrade install but the usual
recommendation for best results is to do a clean install.

 

[PD]

Apps and files will remain after an upgrade install

As long as nothing goes wrong during the upgrade. Best approach would
be to have a backup ready just in case.

but the usual recommendation for best results is to do a clean install.

Sez who?

 

[quy nguyen]

Thank you. Does it also apply with repair from CD?
Hi,
I want to make sure that if I upgrade windows XP home to Windows XP professional all applications and files are still remain or lost?
Thanks

 

[John Waller]

but the usual recommendation for best results is to do a clean install.

Most online articles and Windows professionals.

http://www.theeldergeek.com/clean_installation_of_windows_xp.htm

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Hi,
I want to make sure that if I upgrade windows XP home to Windows XP professional all applications and files are still remain or lost?
Thanks

WinXP is designed to install and upgrade the existing operating
system while simultaneously preserving your applications and data, and
translating as many personalized settings as possible. The process is
designed to be, and normally is, quite painless. That said, things can
go wrong, in a small number of cases. If your data is at all important
to you, back it up before proceeding.

Normally, the upgrade from WinXP Home to WinXP Pro, in particular,
almost always goes smoothly, as both operating systems use the same kernel.


--

Bruce Chambers

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They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Snipped.... but the usual
recommendation for best results is to do a clean install.

That's not at all true.

Granted, some people will blindly recommend that one always perform a
clean installation, rather than upgrade over an earlier OS. For the most
part, I feel that these people, while usually well-meaning, are living
in the past, and are either basing their recommendation on their
experiences with older operating systems, or are simply inexperienced
and uninformed.

Certainly, there are times when an in-place upgrade is
contra-indicated:

1) When the underlying hardware isn't certified as being fully
compatible with the newer OS, and/or updated device drivers are not
available from the device's manufacturer. Of course, this condition also
causes problems with clean installations.

2) When the original OS is corrupt, damaged, and/or virus/malware
infested. I've also seen simple, straight-forward upgrades from WinXP
Home to WinXP Pro fail because the computer owner had let the system
become malware-infested. Upgrading over a problematic OS isn't normally
a wise course to establishing a stable installation.

3) When the new OS isn't designed to properly, correctly, and safely
perform an upgrade.

A properly prepared and maintained PC can almost always be
successfully upgraded by a knowledgeable and competent individual. I've
lost count of the systems I've seen that have been upgraded from Win95
to Win98 to Win2K to WinXP (usually with incremental hardware upgrades
over the same time period), without the need for a clean installation,
and that are still operating without any problems attributable to upgrades.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I want to make sure that if I upgrade windows XP home
to Windows XP professional all applications and files
are still remain or lost?

By definition, an "upgrade" (as opposed to a clean installation) means
that all data, programs, etc. are kept intact.

However there are no guarantees that it always works perfectly.
However unlikely, it's always possible that something might go wrong.
For that reason it's prudent to be sure you have a backup of anything
you can't afford to lose before beginning.

Are you sure you want to do this? Are you aware that XP Home and
Professional are identical except that Professional includes a few
features (mostly related to security and networking) missing from
Home? Most home users don't need and would never use these extra
features and will see no benefits by upgrading.

For details go to

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

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/whichxp.asp>

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/home/howtobuy/choosing2.asp

Also note another point, not included in any of the above:
Professional allows ten concurrent network connections, and Home only
five.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Apps and files will remain after an upgrade install

Right.


but the usual
recommendation for best results is to do a clean install.

I completely disagree. Most upgrades to Windows XP work just fine, and
especially the upgrade from XP Home to Professional, since so little
has to be changed.

My recommendation is to at least try the upgrade, since it's much
easier than a clean installation. You can always change your mind and
reinstall cleanly if problems develop.

 

[PD]

Most online articles and Windows professionals.

Then they're fulla shit.