May be slightly off on the licensing. To the best of my knowledge, you can actually legally install Windows XP on a Vista machine iff the XP purchased was either a retail copy upgrade or part of a volume licensing agreement. However, if the XP purchased was included as part of the machine (OEM), then that licensing is tied to the original machine.
As to the restore/resource XP CD's, a lot of the Dell ones have the resources specific to the machine they were sent out for. However, I have been able to use the Windows XP piece to do a fresh installation to non-Dell machines (making sure, of course, the license key on the side of the machine matches the type of installation), and downloading the appropriate drivers if I don't have them already on hand. Seems to work just fine. Hope that helps. Regards, Paul >>> "Sean Rector" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 10/30/2008 9:15 AM >>> He's right on the money regarding the downgrade license & the drivers...it's not just a matter of having the XP media. You have to have purchased the downgrade option when the PC was bought. Also, with Dell's, they make their restore & resource CD's specific to the machine and to the OS. Sean Rector, MCSE From: Tim Vander Kooi [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 10:57 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Going back to XP? I use every single program you mention, with the exception of Peachtree, and I can tell you conclusively that they all work just fine with Vista. The benefit does exist...and it is the fact that you have a machine now loaded correctly and working with all the required drivers and settings for your hardware. Once you start rebuilding with XP you no longer know that to be the case. And that doesn't even bring up the question of whether your XP install would be legally licensed as it sounds like you did not buy the downgrade rights when making the purchase. Vista is not perfect, but then again either is XP. TVK From: Evan Brastow [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 9:40 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Going back to XP? Thanks very much to everyone for all of the answers. It feels like I should be able to call Microsoft and downgrade as long as a I have XP media and as long as I check with Dell and be sure all of the hardware on the system has XP drivers available. Thanks again to all J Stephan, as for going back to XP, I think the issues with Vista have been long and well documented in the press and on this list for quite a while. For me personally, I run Vista Ultimate on my laptop at home and cannot stand it. I felt the same - hey, why not try something new and spiffy? But it's eye candy that is unstable and incompatible with certain "old" programs I use for work. IE7 crashes constantly on my laptop and never on my XP workstation at work. But more so than that, it's the fact that I am not your typical "corporate user" that runs a few apps like MS Office and nothing else. I run everything from PowerBuilder to CorelDRAW to Adobe Illustrator to Remote Admin to Crystal Reports to FolderSizes to the Websense management console to iTunes to TrueCrypt to Peachtree. How can I be sure all of those things will run on Vista reliably? Heck, even some games I run on weekends here may not run (now THAT would be a tragedy!) My point is that there is no *benefit* to me having Vista when XP works perfectly for me, and there are many drawbacks, both in the unknowns and the knowns. Evan From: Stefan Jafs [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 9:09 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Going back to XP? Out of curiosity why would you "obviously" want to go back to XP? ___________________________________ Stefan Jafs From: Sean Rector [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 8:58 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Going back to XP? I've been buying my systems this year like this - you have to specify Vista Business with the XP Downgrade option. If you don't, you can't downgrade. Sean Rector, MCSE From: Phil Thompson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 8:51 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Going back to XP? Was this purchased through a business? Dell is still selling XP as a downgrade if you ask for it. I believe you have to have Vista Business or higher to downgrade and it has to be valid XP software, meaning it can't be one you got with another computer. Phil From: Evan Brastow [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 8:47 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: Going back to XP? Because I don't feel anyone on this list has anything better to do than to answer my silly questions... J Just took delivery of my first Dell in years (I've been using HP Workstations for about 6 years but wanted to give Dell a try again.) It's one of their gaming systems, actually, but it will do well for my graphics work. 3GHz Core2 Extreme processor overclocked to 3.67GHz, 4GB of RAM, dual 750GB hard drives, dual 1024MB ATI Radeon graphics cards, etc... etc... Sounds nice, right? Also comes with Windows Vista (there was, of course, no other option when ordering.) Great, so I feel like I bought a new Cadillac and the nav system is a Lite-Brite with dysfunctional pegs. So, what I'd like to do, obviously, is go back to XP. But I'm wondering if there is any legal way to do so? I know I can't transfer an XP license from my old system that had XP on it, and I don't think I can buy XP at stores anymore. Does Microsoft still allow you to "downgrade" (as if going from a Lite Brite with dysfunctional pegs to a working Etch-A-Sketch is a downgrade) from Vista to XP if you call them? Thanks, Evan Information Technology Manager Virginia Opera Association E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Phone: (757) 213-4548 (direct line) {*} This email and any attached files are confidential and intended solely for the intended recipient(s). If you are not the named recipient you should not read, distribute, copy or alter this email. Any views or opinions expressed in this email are those of the author and do not represent those of the Amico Corporation. Warning: Although precautions have been taken to make sure no viruses are present in this email, the company cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage that arise from the use of this email or attachments. ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~ ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~
