> I'm certainly glad I asked before starting the install. Looks like I can
> format C to wipe out XP and do the Vista install twice for a clean
> install.
>
> Thanks for everyone's input. Great feedback!
>
> "Rock" wrote:
>
>> "Walt" wrote
>> > I'm planning an XP Home>Vista Home Premium upgrade and I'd like to
>> > verify
>> > my
>> > upgrade plan. I verified my PC meets Vista upgrade requirements.
>> >
>> > XP is currently installed on C: with all other programs and My
>> > Documents
>> > installed on E:
>> >
>> > After I back up any IE and Outlook data, I want to format my C drive,
>> > make
>> > my CD drive rebootable, insert the Vista upgrade, reboot, insert my XP
>> > CD
>> > to
>> > verify I have a licensed version of XP, then install Vista to C from my
>> > CD
>> > drive and re-install any programs, which I'll delete and reinstall on
>> > E.
>> >
>> > Does it look like I've covered all the steps and is this an acceptable
>> > way
>> > to upgrade to Vista? I want to accomplish a clean install.
>>
>> No, the upgrade process in Vista is different than that for XP. Vista
>> does
>> not do a shiny media check to verify ownership of a qualifying OS. The
>> upgrade is designed to be started from the desktop of the installed
>> qualifying OS. In this case from the XP desktop you would insert the
>> Vista
>> DVD and run the installation.
>>
>> There is a way around this, to do a clean install onto a bare drive from
>> an
>> upgrade version of Vista. It requires two installs in a row. In the
>> first
>> you don't provide a product key, then you do an upgrade of that Vista
>> install with the same CD and provide the product key. See this link:
>>
>>
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=5932