XP Upgrade from 98SE

I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade fom W95.
Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.

How to prepare to upgrade Windows 98 or Windows Millennium Edition to
Windows XP:
http://support.microsoft.com/default...;EN-US;Q316639

--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-Windows (IE/OE, Shell/User, Security), Aumha.org VSOP, DTS-L.org

steve r. wrote:
> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade fom
> W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.

MANY PROBLEMS! If the machine is old enough to have run 95, you're
experience with XP will be AWFUL.
Here are some real-world MINIMUM hardware requirements for XP:

- Pentium III 866 MHz CPU
- 384 MB of RAM

If you don't have at LEAST this, forget about it.


--
------------------------------------------
Donny Broome
www.broomeman.com/tech
------------------------------------------




"steve r." <steve r.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:1EF2779A-D5FB-47E3-A13E-494D89D55F25@microsoft.com...
>I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade fom W95.
> Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.

Donny Broome wrote:

> MANY PROBLEMS! If the machine is old enough to have run 95, you're
> experience with XP will be AWFUL.
> Here are some real-world MINIMUM hardware requirements for XP:
>
> - Pentium III 866 MHz CPU
> - 384 MB of RAM
>
> If you don't have at LEAST this, forget about it.


I don't agree at all Windows XP can be run successfully on a *much* lesser
machine than that. I've personally run Windows XP on a PII-400 with 256MB of
RAM. It didn't run fast, but it was far from unusable.


--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup



> "steve r." <steve r.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:1EF2779A-D5FB-47E3-A13E-494D89D55F25@microsoft.com...
>> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade
>> fom W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.

"Ken Blake, MVP" <kblake@this.is.an.invalid.domain> wrote in message
news:%23x%234hVzCGHA.628@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...
> Donny Broome wrote:
>
>> MANY PROBLEMS! If the machine is old enough to have run 95, you're
>> experience with XP will be AWFUL.
>> Here are some real-world MINIMUM hardware requirements for XP:
>>
>> - Pentium III 866 MHz CPU
>> - 384 MB of RAM
>>
>> If you don't have at LEAST this, forget about it.
>
>
> I don't agree at all Windows XP can be run successfully on a *much* lesser
> machine than that. I've personally run Windows XP on a PII-400 with 256MB
> of RAM. It didn't run fast, but it was far from unusable.
>
>
> --
> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
> Please reply to the newsgroup
>
>
>
>> "steve r." <steve r.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:1EF2779A-D5FB-47E3-A13E-494D89D55F25@microsoft.com...
>>> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade
>>> fom W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.
>
>
Ken,
I visit two to three homes per week of our Computer Club's members doing
volunteer House Calls. I have seen many computers of that age with
successful installations of WinXP and I've also seen several where there
were too many hardware components obsoleted due to manufacturers no longer
providing drivers. In these cases, new computers were the answer. You
guessed it, I get to return to install same.

Chuck Davis wrote:

> "Ken Blake, MVP" <kblake@this.is.an.invalid.domain> wrote in message
> news:%23x%234hVzCGHA.628@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...
>> Donny Broome wrote:
>>
>>> MANY PROBLEMS! If the machine is old enough to have run 95, you're
>>> experience with XP will be AWFUL.
>>> Here are some real-world MINIMUM hardware requirements for XP:
>>>
>>> - Pentium III 866 MHz CPU
>>> - 384 MB of RAM
>>>
>>> If you don't have at LEAST this, forget about it.
>>
>>
>> I don't agree at all Windows XP can be run successfully on a *much*
>> lesser machine than that. I've personally run Windows XP on a
>> PII-400 with 256MB of RAM. It didn't run fast, but it was far from
>> unusable. --
>> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
>> Please reply to the newsgroup
>>
>>
>>
>>> "steve r." <steve r.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>>> news:1EF2779A-D5FB-47E3-A13E-494D89D55F25@microsoft.com...
>>>> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade
>>>> fom W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.
>>
>>
> Ken,
> I visit two to three homes per week of our Computer Club's members
> doing volunteer House Calls. I have seen many computers of that age
> with successful installations of WinXP and I've also seen several
> where there were too many hardware components obsoleted due to
> manufacturers no longer providing drivers. In these cases, new
> computers were the answer. You guessed it, I get to return to install
> same.


No argument from me. I'm not claiming that it's desirable to run XP on such
old hardware. There are certainly many potentials for problems, and it may
well be that he *doesn't* have enough computing power for Windows XP. I was
merely pointing out that the claim "Here are some real-world MINIMUM
hardware requirements for XP: - Pentium III 866 MHz CPU - 384 MB of RAM" is
greatly exaggerated.

By the way, we also shouldn't assume that because the original poster used
to run Windows 95 on this computer it is necessarily still the same
computer, with all the same components in it. It is possible that some of
those components could have been upgraded over the years.

--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup

steve r. wrote:
> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade fom W95.
> Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.


Have you made sure that your PC's hardware components are capable
of supporting WinXP? This information will be found at the PC's
manufacturer's web site, and on Microsoft's Windows Catalog:
(http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx) Additionally, run
Microsoft WinXP Upgrade Advisor to see if you have any incompatible
hardware components or applications.

You should, before proceeding, take a few minutes to ensure that
there are WinXP device drivers available for all of the machine's
components. There may not be, if the PC was specifically designed for
Win98/Me. Also bear in mind that PCs designed for, sold and run fine
with Win9x/Me very often do not meet WinXP's much more stringent
hardware quality requirements. This is particularly true of many
models in Compaq's consumer-class Presario product line or HP's
consumer-class Pavilion product line. WinXP, like WinNT and Win2K
before it, is quite sensitive to borderline defective or substandard
hardware (particularly motherboards, RAM and hard drives) that will
still support Win9x.

HOW TO Prepare to Upgrade Win98 or WinMe
http://support.microsoft.com/default...;en-us;Q316639

Upgrading to Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpupgrad.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
both at once. - RAH

Thanx. The upgrade will be going on Dell Latitude CPxJ, 20 GB HD, 1.86 GHz
PIII, 256 MB RAM.. Everything checks out on the upgrade advisor. Just need
to get the BIOS updated.

"Ken Blake, MVP" wrote:

> Dixonian69 wrote:
>
>
> > Hope you bought a full version and not upgrade!!
> >
> > waste of time to upgrade over 95/98. probably can't do it anyway!!
>
>
> There are three things wrong in this brief message, above:
>
> 1. Upgrading from Windows 98 is not at all a waste of time. Although many
> people will tell you that formatting and installing cleanly is the best way
> to go, I disagree. Unlike with previous versions of Windows, an upgrade to
> XP replaces almost everything, and usually works very well.
>
> My recommendation is to at least try the upgrade, since it's much easier
> than a clean installation. You can always change your mind and reinstall
> cleanly if problems develop.
>
> However, don't assume that doing an upgrade relieves you of the need to
> backup your data, etc. before beginning. Before starting to upgrade, it's
> always prudent to recognize that things like a sudden power loss can occur
> in the middle of it and cause the loss of everything. For that reason you
> should make sure you have backups and anything else you need to reinstall if
> the worst happens.
>
> 2. You *can* upgrade from Windows 98, but not from WIndows 95 (but you can
> use Windows 95 as a previous qualifying version when doing a clean
> installation with an Upgrade version--see below).
>
> 3. If he owns Windows 98, I hope he bought an *Upgrade* version, since it
> contains exactly the same software, he qualifies to use it, and it's
> considerably cheaper than the Full version. Buying a Full version when you
> qualify for the Upgrade is simply a waste of money. And note that an Upgrade
> version can do a clean installation, just as the Full version can.
>
> The requirement to use an upgrade version is to *own* a previous qualifying
> version's installation CD, not to have it installed. When setup doesn't find
> a previous qualifying version installed, it will prompt you to insert its CD
> as proof of ownership. Just insert the previous version's CD, and follow the
> prompts. Everything proceeds quite normally and quite legitimately.
>
> --
> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
> Please reply to the newsgroup
>
>
>
> > "steve r." wrote:
> >
> >> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade
> >> fom W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.
>
>
>

Not of the OS XP installation itself. 3rd party programs, especially MS DOS
type may be problematic after the install.

If you aren't taking anything with you from 98, do a clean install of XP.
Backing up your personal files and settings is your responsibility.

--
Jonny
"steve r." <steve r.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:1EF2779A-D5FB-47E3-A13E-494D89D55F25@microsoft.com...
> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade fom
W95.
> Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.

steve r. wrote:

> Thanx.


You're welcome. Glad to help.


> The upgrade will be going on Dell Latitude CPxJ, 20 GB HD,
> 1.86 GHz PIII, 256 MB RAM.. Everything checks out on the upgrade
> advisor. Just need to get the BIOS updated.


Why do you think you need to upgrade your BIOS?

Certainly don't do it just because it's X years old and there are upgrades
available. Although a BIOS upgrade normally goes well, it is not without
danger. If something goes wrong while the upgrade is an progress (for
example, a lapse in power) you can be left with no BIOS at all, and an
unbootable computer.

Do a BIOS upgrade if you need to--because you are having a problem that the
new version is known to fix--not just because one is available.

--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup


> "Ken Blake, MVP" wrote:
>
>> Dixonian69 wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Hope you bought a full version and not upgrade!!
>>>
>>> waste of time to upgrade over 95/98. probably can't do it anyway!!
>>
>>
>> There are three things wrong in this brief message, above:
>>
>> 1. Upgrading from Windows 98 is not at all a waste of time. Although
>> many people will tell you that formatting and installing cleanly is
>> the best way to go, I disagree. Unlike with previous versions of
>> Windows, an upgrade to XP replaces almost everything, and usually
>> works very well.
>>
>> My recommendation is to at least try the upgrade, since it's much
>> easier than a clean installation. You can always change your mind
>> and reinstall cleanly if problems develop.
>>
>> However, don't assume that doing an upgrade relieves you of the need
>> to backup your data, etc. before beginning. Before starting to
>> upgrade, it's always prudent to recognize that things like a sudden
>> power loss can occur in the middle of it and cause the loss of
>> everything. For that reason you should make sure you have backups
>> and anything else you need to reinstall if the worst happens.
>>
>> 2. You *can* upgrade from Windows 98, but not from WIndows 95 (but
>> you can use Windows 95 as a previous qualifying version when doing a
>> clean installation with an Upgrade version--see below).
>>
>> 3. If he owns Windows 98, I hope he bought an *Upgrade* version,
>> since it contains exactly the same software, he qualifies to use it,
>> and it's considerably cheaper than the Full version. Buying a Full
>> version when you qualify for the Upgrade is simply a waste of money.
>> And note that an Upgrade version can do a clean installation, just
>> as the Full version can.
>>
>> The requirement to use an upgrade version is to *own* a previous
>> qualifying version's installation CD, not to have it installed. When
>> setup doesn't find a previous qualifying version installed, it will
>> prompt you to insert its CD as proof of ownership. Just insert the
>> previous version's CD, and follow the prompts. Everything proceeds
>> quite normally and quite legitimately.
>>
>> --
>> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
>> Please reply to the newsgroup
>>
>>
>>
>>> "steve r." wrote:
>>>
>>>> I plan to upgrade to XP Pro from 98 SE was installed as an upgrade
>>>> fom W95. Should I expect any unusual problems? Thanks.