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G'Day, long time no post ;) anyhooow
- I have a brand new box that I won't be upgrading for a while hardware wise.
- It has a retail version of Windows XP Pro on it.
- I want to upgrade it to Vista Ultimate and don't want to reformat and reinstall.
So am I right in saying that if I get a Vista Ultimate OEM that would be the cheapest way to get to Vista? And that there are no issues with using the OEM to upgrade the XP Pro install?
cheers
:)
I haven't tried it mate................best call your local Microsoft office.
My take would be that as it is a new computer, you can legally use an OEM version, but I strongly suspect that you will have problems when it detects the existing OS.
The cheapest solution would be the upgrade, but then you forfeit the right to use XP Pro...................which you say is a retail version?
I would just format the drive and do a clean OEM install of Vista.
I know there is at least one of "workaround" but they are all illegal. If you are going to pay for the stuff, at least make sure that you are as pure as the driven snow when it comes to the next Microsoft DRM balls up ;)............ and it will..........just like the CMOS battery one with XP:eek:
You haven't given any details, but I would seriously question if you have a true retail version of XP Pro............ mostly you get OEM or a castrated version of that if it is a brand name box?
I'd say going for the upgrade version would be the cheapest. As far as your Windows XP Professional goes, an in-place upgrade should be easy, if not always the best way. However, just remember that with an upgrade disc, a system crash (such as a hard disk failure) will mean that you cannot easily install Vista on a clean system (i.e., on a hard disk with no pre-existing OS). There are workarounds available, but you'd have to install Vista twice :rolleyes: Look around for the workaround if you're truly interested.
Cheers,
cgkanchi
The upgrade would be the cheapest way to go. However, there are reports that once you do upgrade to vista, the installer invalidates your XP key.
So, you won't be able to use your XP license. If you wanted to run XP in a virtual machine on top of vista, you'd need to purchase a license for XP.
The method Nihil is talking about is a way to install the upgrade version without having an OS on the hard drive to start. It basically is a way to turn the upgrade version into a retail version. It just so happens that that specific work around does not invalidate your XP key, so if you wanted to use XP in a virtual session for stubborn incompatible apps... you can do so.
Legally though... I suppose the full version would be the way to go.
Although... I know I would be tempted to use the upgrade version with the workaround. According to m$, this is a violation of the license agreement. Not sure how microsoft would track that down since you're not really cracking anything... you're simply not following the install instructions and installing twice. I'm not a lawyer and I didn't read the license agreement.