[bogged]

Hello. I want to upgrade a win98se computer to XP home edition. Is it as simple as buying the xp disk and just running it?

I want to keep the data/programs that are already on the hard drive.

I've been led to believe there is 2 types of xp disk, and that I need an UPGRADE disk. Can someone confirm/deny this for me please. Better still, what disk precisely do I ask the shopkeeper for?
The computer is pentium 3.

My computer knowledge is poor.

Thanks for any help people.

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Have you checked that the PC meets the system requirements for XP

Some older programmes will only run in compatibility mode, or not at all

If you can back up the data, clean installs are better than upgrade installs

[Retired Tech]

Have you checked that the PC meets the system requirements for XP

Some older programmes will only run in compatibility mode, or not at all

If you can back up the data, clean installs are better than upgrade installs

[bogged]

Thanks for your help Keith. Much appreciated.
Do you have a link to the system requirements?

The bloke at the computer store said he backs up all the data, formats the harddrive, puts xp on, and then puts the old data back on. Does this sound right?

Though his price for doing this is getting close to the cost of a whole new bottom end tower.

I'll take your advice on board that a clean install is better than an upgrade.

So...if I went for the clean install, and the system requirements are ok to do so, I would just buy a standard xp home edition disk, format the harddrive and load the xp disk?

[Retired Tech]

This is for XP SP2 but the requirements are the same

http://www.microsoft...p2/sysreqs.mspx

Have you got a CD or DVD Writer drive

If yes, you can back up the data yourself and do the install

The shop are essentially doing a clean install of XP by formatting then adding the data back

[fleamailman]

just to add that there is a little more to this than the above, if you are going to do a clean install then you will need to have all you drivers just in case one of them is not recognized under XP, you will need to have copies of all you programs on CD(for example office) because you cannot just transfer programs(they must be reinstalled) you will need to transfer your data off the computer since it will be wiped in the clean install. Oh and just in case the actual upgrade doesn't take(driver problems) it is better to have a copy of your windows98se CD ready too but a lot of cases one can find the missing drivers under XP on the Internet from the maker's site but that is not always the case(hence the fallback plan)

to be honest with you will only be upgrading to a system that in turn is out dated and unless microsoft changes its mind and doesn't stop selling XP end of 2008, so you have to buy XP and then buy officeworks and probably some protection like Norton, a lot of money for a windows 98se machine I feel

because of the above needs I suggest just trying a free liveCD of linux, which will not touch your system since it boots up on the ram first(it runs slow on the ram but it is only a test of system something one cannot do with windows) and if you see that it recognizes everything and that you like what you see then go for the install itself, many linux distros to choose from but if you do try linux, always become a member of the forum that goes with the distro, for example puppy linux would need the puppy linux forum(because everybody always has questions at first) anyway if you are not happy with what you have under the live CD test, you can simply turn off the computer taking out the live CD and it boots back exactly as if it had never been there.

Edited by fleamailman, 04 September 2007 - 03:48 AM.