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Dual Boot-WinXP Home and WinXP pro


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#1
PeachesCA

PeachesCA

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A new company I started with this week requires our laptops to run XP Pro, and I have Home Edition. I have discs for XP Pro, but I do not want to do a clean install (I have the straight version, not an upgrade) because there are certain things I want to keep on my laptop--factory default restore feature, etc. So then I thought what about doing a dual boot? But then I started reading that if I only have one partition, I'll have to reformat anyway, which I do not want to do.

Any suggestions? If I can do it without having to format my HD, how do I do it? I tried installing the XP Pro disc and it says the version of windows I'm using is newer than the disc and it won't let me do anything.

My coworker let me wipe her laptop and do a clean install (just have to install drivers, etc. now), but I definitely don't want to do a clean install.

I need to get this done ASAP so I can have access to the company network and software. Need this ASAP.

Thanks!
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#2
Neil Jones

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If the CDs you have are OEM, these can't be used for dual-booting, they'll insist on wiping the machine. A dual-boot system is possible between Home and Pro, but it can't be done with OEM copies.

If your company has given you an upgrade edition of XP Pro, just use that to upgrade your Home copy and things should work as they do now (you should, where possible, use the built-in tools to copy your recovery partition to a CD/DVD and keep them safe), though your recovery software probably won't work anymore.
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