Windows XP Professional Upgrade Paths for Client Operating Systems in Visual C#.NET

Making QR Code in Visual C#.NET Windows XP Professional Upgrade Paths for Client Operating Systems

Upgrade To Windows NT 4.0 Workstation first, and then upgrade to Windows XP Professional Windows 98 first, and then upgrade to Windows XP Professional Windows XP Professional Windows XP Professional Windows XP Professional Windows XP Professional Windows XP Professional

Upgrade From Windows NT 3.1, 3.5, or 3.51 Windows 95 Windows 98 Windows Me Windows NT Workstation 4.0 with Service Pack 6 or later Windows 2000 Professional Windows XP Home Edition

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Microsoft provides a number of upgrade paths to Windows XP Professional even from operating systems as old as Windows 95. However, although upgrades from these operating systems are supported, it is unlikely that the computer hardware running the older operating systems will support Windows XP Professional. Even if the hardware and applications on the computers prove compatible with Windows XP Professional, it is not likely that the computers will run Windows XP Professional or any modern applications with acceptable performance.

Before you upgrade a client computer to Windows XP Professional, ensure that it meets the minimum hardware requirements by using the Windows XP Compatibility tool to generate a hardware and software compatibility report. This tool runs automatically during the actual upgrade process, but running it before beginning the upgrade should identify any hardware and software problems and allow you to fix compatibility problems ahead of time.

To run the Windows XP Compatibility tool and generate a compatibility report, perform the following steps: 1. Insert the Windows XP Professional CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive. 2. From the Start menu, select Run. 3. In the Run dialog box, type d:\i386\winnt32 /checkupgradeonly (where d is the drive letter of your CD-ROM drive) and click OK.

Generating the upgrade report can take several minutes. The tool checks only for compatible hardware and software, and generates a report that you can analyze to determine the system components that are compatible with Windows XP Professional.

The winnt32 /checkupgradeonly command generates a report that appears as a text document, which you can view from within the Compatibility tool or save as a text file and view with any text editor. The report documents the system hardware and software that are incompatible with Windows XP Professional. It also specifies whether you need to obtain an upgrade pack for software installed on the system and recommends additional system changes or modifications to maintain functionality in Windows XP Professional.

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For client computers running Windows 98 that test as compatible with Windows XP Professional, you can upgrade using a setup wizard or by running Winnt32.exe to complete the upgrade. To upgrade a computer running Windows 98 to Windows XP Professional using Winnt32.exe, complete the following steps: 1. Insert the Windows XP Professional CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive. 2. The Autorun program on the Windows XP Professional CD-ROM displays the Welcome To Microsoft Windows XP screen.

Note If you do not want to use any switches with Winnt32.exe, click Install Windows XP and follow the prompts on your screen. These steps are the same as Exercise 1 in Lesson 2, Installing Windows XP Professional from a CD-ROM.

3. Open the Command Prompt window, type d:\i386\winnt32.exe with any appropriate switches, and press ENTER. 4. Accept the license agreement. 5. If the computer is already a member of a domain, create a computer account in that domain. Windows 98 clients do not require a computer account, but Windows XP Professional clients do. 6. Provide upgrade packs for applications that need them. Upgrade packs update the software to work with Windows XP Professional. These packs are available from the software vendor. 7. Upgrade to NTFS when prompted. Select the upgrade if you do not plan to set up the client computer to dual boot. 8. Continue with the upgrade if the Windows XP Professional Compatibility tool generates a report showing that the computer is compatible with Windows XP Professional. The upgrade finishes without further intervention, and adds your computer to a domain or workgroup. If the report shows that the computer is incompatible with Windows XP Professional, terminate the upgrade process, and then upgrade your hardware or software.