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Upgrading Home Ed. to Pro

  • 09-11-2005 12:02am
    #1
    randomfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 728 ✭✭✭


    Having a few problems.
    Trying to boot from cd but its not working.
    I've got a dell precision m60 with Home Edition installed.
    So i've gone into setup and put the cd at the top ahead of the hard drive and usb device. So its first preference to boot from. I've tried disabling the hard drive but it wouldn't allow me.
    It then goes to an all black screen but then goes back to booting from the hard drive.

    I've been googling this for a while trying to find a solution but can't.
    Can anybody give me a hand?


Comments

  • #2
    tonyj
    Closed Accounts Posts: 172 ✭✭tonyj


    randomfella wrote:
    Having a few problems.
    Trying to boot from cd but its not working.
    I've got a dell precision m60 with Home Edition installed.
    So i've gone into setup and put the cd at the top ahead of the hard drive and usb device. So its first preference to boot from. I've tried disabling the hard drive but it wouldn't allow me.
    It then goes to an all black screen but then goes back to booting from the hard drive.

    I've been googling this for a while trying to find a solution but can't.
    Can anybody give me a hand?
    Don't think you're supposed to boot from the xp CD....

    Just boot up XP as normal, put the CD in the drive, let it autoplay, and follow the instructions.


  • #3
    Aquos76
    Moderators, Regional South East Moderators Posts: 9,045 Mod ✭✭✭✭Aquos76


    Did you try inserting the disc when xp has fully booted up/ When I upgraded to pro, all i did was insert the disc and a msg came up asking if i wanted to upgrade to pro.


  • #4
    randomfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 728 ✭✭✭randomfella


    I tried just puttting the cd in. It autoplayed alright but when i clicked install it said that

    "Setup cannot continue because the version of Windows on your computer is newer than the version on the CD.

    Warning: If you decide to delete the newer version of Windows that is currently installed on your computer, the files and settings cannot be recovered"


  • #5
    tonyj
    Closed Accounts Posts: 172 ✭✭tonyj


    You're getting that error because the version installed on your PC is XP Home SP2, and the version you're trying to install is XP Pro (not SP2).


  • #6
    Karoma
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 19,396 ✭✭✭✭Karoma


    Tell you what, contact MS for help. *G* (it is a legit copy..isn't it? ahem)
    do you have a FDD?


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  • #7
    Laguna
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,639 ✭✭✭Laguna


    tonyj wrote:
    You're getting that error because the version installed on your PC is XP Home SP2, and the version you're trying to install is XP Pro (not SP2).

    That's your problem right there. Format the disk and then put in the cd at boot-time to install an older version of XP.


  • #8
    Karoma
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 19,396 ✭✭✭✭Karoma


    Laguna wrote:
    That's your problem right there. Format the disk and then put in the cd at boot-time to install an older version of XP.
    Provided it is a bootable copy of XP,and not a dodgy copy.. :D


  • #9
    HomunQlus
    Closed Accounts Posts: 210 ✭✭HomunQlus


    Get this file from my server:

    <SNIP> - Please don't put links to untrusted apps that could break EULA /CM


    Unpack it, start it up, choose Convert To: Professional.

    Then reboot. This conversion cannot be reversed.

    Enjoy.


  • #10
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 92,385 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    There are similar Registry changes to covert Workstation into Server going back to NT4 - But none of them give you the extra files that a clean install would - also M$ have historically configured the next service pack so that it could not be used.

    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/06/03/xp_hack/
    German computer magazine C'T claims that by changing only 2 bytes ... users can get access to certain functions only avalaible in Windows XP Professional, such as Remote Desktop, User management and enhanced security features.

    There is one big drawback, though. Users won't be able to install Service Pack 2, unless they integrate SP2 in the installation CD. And that's probably too much trouble for most users, who of course are better off buying a legal version anyway. It is expected that Microsoft will change the setup files soon to prevent this hack.

    You could try installing XP pro in a different folder, eg: C:\WinPro to get a dual boot , you'd have to reinstall all your apps again but they may inherit setting from the program files folder.

    Or you could borrow an XP SP2 CD to do the upgrade from - but they are very rare since most versions of windows are OEM. As pointed out before if you have a valid licence you should be entitled to support.


  • #11
    randomfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 728 ✭✭✭randomfella


    Thanks a lot lads, you've all been really helpful!

    I think I've got it sorted now. Thanks again.


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  • #12
    Stephen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 18,484 ✭✭✭✭Stephen


    As far as I know, MS don't have any official upgrade path from home to pro, so you're left with these options:

    1) reinstall with pro
    2) try one of the aforementioned hacks to "convert" it to pro

    If you have a legit copy of XP Pro, I would just bite the bullet and do the reinstall, having first backed up all your documents and stuff. Then just reinstall your apps/drivers as needed.


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