Installing and Upgrading Windows in Software

Encoder Quick Response Code in Software Installing and Upgrading Windows

assembled OS is also tested, it s not possible to test for every possible combination of events Sometimes a piece is simply found to be defective The fix for such a problem is a corrective program called a patch In the past, Microsoft would provide patches for individual problems It would also accumulate patches until they reached some sort of critical mass and then bundle them together as a service pack Microsoft still does this, but it also combines appropriate patches and service packs into updates to make the process easier for you These updates are available at Microsoft s Web site or on CD-ROM Many organizations make the updates available for distribution from network servers Immediately after installing Windows, install the latest updates on the computer 19 covers this process fully

Even if you completed all your preinstallation tasks, you may decide to go with the default drivers that come with Windows and then upgrade them to the latest drivers after the fact This is a good strategy, because installation is a complicated task, and you can simplify it by installing old but adequate drivers Maybe those newest drivers are just a week old waiting until after the Windows install to install new drivers will give you a usable driver to go back to if the new driver turns out to be a lemon

Restoring User Data Files (if Applicable)

Remember when you backed up the user data files before installation You don t Well, check again, because now is the time to restore that data Your method of restoring will depend on how you backed up the files in the first place If you used a third-party backup program, you will need to install it before you can restore those files, but if you used Windows Backup, you are in luck, because it is installed by default in Windows 2000/XP Professional If you did something simpler, like copying to an optical disc or a network location, all you have to do is copy the files back to the local hard disk Good luck!

On the face of it, installing Windows 2000 Professional seems fairly simple You insert the CD-ROM, access the setup routine, and go But that conceptualization does not hold up in practice

The minimum specs represent what Microsoft says you need to install the Windows 2000 Professional OS However, you need to take these specifica-

tions and at least double them if you want to be happy with your system s performance Here are more realistic recommendations for a useful Windows 2000 Professional computer system:

Minimum for a Windows 2000 Professional Computer Recommended for a Windows 2000 Professional Computer

Intel Pentium 133 MHz 64 MB 2 GB with 650 MB of free space None Video adapter and monitor with VGA resolution If you don t have an optical drive, you must use a floppy disk drive or install over a network

Intel Pentium II 350 MHz 128 MB 64 GB with 2 GB of free space Modern network card Video adapter and monitor with SVGA resolution, capable of high-color (16-bit) display If you don t have an optical drive, you must use a floppy disk drive or install over a network

If your test system(s) exceeds the recommended configuration, all the better You can never have too fast a processor or too much hard disk space

You prepare for a Windows XP installation just as you would for installing Windows 2000 Windows XP has a few different aspects to it that are worth considering as separate issues

You can upgrade to Windows XP Professional from all the following versions of Windows:

Windows 98 (all versions) Windows Me Windows NT 40 Workstation (Service Pack 5 and later) Windows 2000 Professional (including service packs) Windows XP Home Edition