Solved: Upgrading to XP Professional from XP Starter Edition

[ChessPlayerRM]

Hi guys,

I've been using Windows XP Professional for several years and am quite happy with it. My roomate has a desktop that she bought some years ago and it came with Windows XP Starter Edition installed. Lately I've been trying to help her upgrade from her XP SE to XP Pro but before doing this I have some questions:

1. Is Windows XP SE at all upgradable to XP Pro? The reason I ask this is because:

1.1 I accessed "How to install or upgrade to Windows XP" on http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316941, but it does not mention Windows XP Starter Edition as one of the options of OS to be upgraded (only mentions Win98, Windows ME and Windows 2000 Pro
1.2 I also accessed http://www.comztek.com/Admin/ProdManager/dbview1.asp?name=228 and it says "You may not upgrade to Windows XP Professional from Windows XP Starter Edition,. as this goes against Microsoft’s End User License Agreement (EULA)"... is this true??​

2. In case Windows XP SE can in fact be upgraded to XP Pro, I have 2 questions:

2.1 To start the installation should I simply boot the desktop normally and then insert the Win XP CD on the CD-ROM unit and choose the option "upgrade"?​

2.2 Will files in the desktop and installed programs be preserved? Or will my roomate need to install all the program she uses again? What about local files of Outlook Express and the MSN Messenger emoticons? Will these be lost?​

Any other recommendations??

My roomate already bought Win XP so I really hope she will make use of it and don't waste her money!

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Hughv]

The EULA seems to be quite clear:You can't do it, at least not legally.
You may be able to install a version of XP without upgrading, but that would depend on the specs of the machine.

 

[Frank4d]

It depends on what you mean by "upgrading". If your friend bought the XP Pro full retail version, she can install it, but not using the option to upgrade from any previous version of Windows. It must be a fresh install and she will have to reinstall all other programs. The same goes for XP Pro OEM (which has no upgrade option).

If she bought XP Pro Uprade version, hopefully the box has not been opened amd she can return it.

 

[ChessPlayerRM]

Thank you, Frank4d and Hughv for your replies. I checked and fortunately she purchased a Win XP Pro package for fresh install. So I understand that legally there is no problem - right? That is, no EULA violation.

Now, from a technical perspective, I understand this means that she will need to install from scratch meaning she will likely lose all currently installed programs - let me know if I got this wrong.

Last concern from a technical perspective is related to Hughv's response "You may be able to install a version of XP without upgrading, but that would depend on the specs of the machine".... hmmmm... she has an LG computer with 256 Mb RAM and 40 GB hard disk. Not much but seems enough for an XP Pro install - do you agree?

 

[Frank4d]

Correct, no EULA problem. She will need to reinstall all programs. However pictures, music, documents, favorites, saved email, etc... can all be backed up and copied to the new installation.

I would upgrade RAM to 512MB or 1GB if it is in the budget. There is a very noticeable difference in performance between 256MB vs. 512MB RAM.

 

[Hughv]

Frank is right, and the 1 GB option is best, if she can afford it.