Vista Upgrade question

honkymcgoo

Ok, so right now Im running XP with service pack 3 installed, x86 version. Or 32bit if you prefer. I just bought a copy of Vista Ultimate x64. I really dont want to do a clean install, but the upgrade option cant be done from 32bit xp to 64 bit vista. Now Ive been looking around the internet and all the literature on what can be upgraded to vista64 is pretty confusing. My question is this: My parents have a version of 32bit vista, which I could install and just not activate. If I do this, would I then be able to use my Vista64 dvd to just upgrade? I basically dont want to have to deal with reinstalling/ putting files back on there, but unless I can find some way to just upgrade to vista64 I have to do a clean install. Ideas?

Dehumanized

you must reformat to move from x86 to x64. it's a completely different architecture, and there's simply no way to patch through to it. gotta get a clean slate.

wunderbar

even if you could, upgrading windows sucks, badly. There are always problems, something breaks, and it's slower than it would be with a clean install.

Just suck it up with the clean install. You'll be happier in the end.

Dehumanized

also, vista CDs and keys are both universal as far as they can go. So, your x86 disc contains all versions of vista, and your ultimate key will work for both x86 or x64 installations of vista. Thus, if you want to move to vista but really don't want to reformat, you can upgrade to ultimate x86 with your parent's disc, then use your new key to activate it.

EDIT: But yeah, you probably should just go forth and reformat. Make meticulous backups and keep them updated. It's good practice in case of a hardware failure down the line, anyways.

honkymcgoo

Dehumanized wrote: »

also, vista CDs and keys are both universal as far as they can go. So, your x86 disc contains all versions of vista, and your ultimate key will work for both x86 or x64 installations of vista. Thus, if you want to move to vista but really don't want to reformat, you can upgrade to ultimate x86 with your parent's disc, then use your new key to activate it.

EDIT: But yeah, you probably should just go forth and reformat. Make meticulous backups and keep them updated. It's good practice in case of a hardware failure down the line, anyways.

Yeah, I was worried about that. The only issue is that I have 180gigs of TV rips I dont have any room for on an external right now. And it will be another paycheck(2 weeks) before I can afford to buy a new one. But I guess Ill just wait and back up all the new stuff then do a clean install.

Dehumanized

I usually find it nice to have two drives on my computer, one purely with software/OS and the other with media so reformatting isn't a pain due to lots of media. A project to think about for the future, eh?

honkymcgoo

Dehumanized wrote: »

I usually find it nice to have two drives on my computer, one purely with software/OS and the other with media so reformatting isn't a pain due to lots of media. A project to think about for the future, eh?

Indeed. I was planning on several upgrades soon since my new job pays much much more than the old one, so that will probably be one of them. Especially with 500gigs going for less than a hundred bucks these days.