Many end users prefer XP over Vista, but new laptops often come with Vista. Switching to XP involves finding the correct device drivers and transferring them to an XP installation CD. Troubleshooting may be required, but help is available online. The laptop hard drive must be reformatted to install XP.
Since its release in 2006, the Microsoft Vista operating system (OS), successor to XP, has probably received a lukewarm reception. Whether due to the widely reported criticisms of Vista or simply the popularity of XP, many end users have made it clear that they prefer to stick with XP, at least for now. The problem is that many new laptops are only offered with Vista. So what does switching that laptop from Vista to XP involve?
While not a task for someone new to computers, for those with a little experience, motivation, and patience, moving from Vista to XP just takes time. If there are problems to solve, it may only take an evening or even a few evenings. It’s a good idea to have a secondary computer handy with internet connectivity in case you need more files or answers.
Simply put, the Vista to XP migration process involves finding the correct XP device drivers for your laptop and transferring them to an XP installation CD. If drivers are not slipstreamed and loaded manually, problems can occur unless they are installed in a particular order. This can take a lot of trial and error, so it’s generally easier to let XP do it.
The first task is to identify the internal hardware in the laptop as the hardware will require XP device drivers. If you already own the laptop and it’s running Vista, you can use any system diagnostic program to report the hardware and print the list. If you don’t own the laptop yet, look up its technical specifications online and print them out.
It would be smart at this point to google your “+XP” laptop model to see if anyone has already upgraded from Vista to XP. They may have useful information about specific drivers or problems you can avoid.
The next step would be to go to the manufacturer’s website for the laptop and access the drivers for that specific model. Search for XP drivers and download them to a folder of your choice. Check the hardware list to make sure the drivers are for your specific laptop. The same laptop model can have different hardware configurations, such as different chipsets or graphics controllers.
Before embarking on the task of upgrading from Vista to XP it is important to note that 20-30 device drivers can be required for a laptop. You may also come across unique situations, depending on the model. In the case of the Dell Vostro 1400, for example, XP does not recognize the ICH8 chipset for the SATA hard drive controller. If this XP device driver is not loaded first, XP cannot see the hard drive. The sound, network controller, wireless card, modem, touchpad, Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, Firewire port, and card slot will also have their own drivers, as will a card reader, webcams and other hardware.
Once the device drivers have been collected for upgrading from Vista to XP, you’ll want to transfer them to a bootable CD. This should be done in conjunction with the XP installation files from a genuine Microsoft XP CD. An easy way to do this is to use a freeware program like nLite. You can also add any hotfixes or patches to the slipstreaming process so that your installation doesn’t need to be updated later.
Now that your new XP CD has everything you need, the installation process should go smoothly. However, please note that some troubleshooting may be required. Save the XP CD for any future installs that may be needed on the laptop, and if there are any unrelated issues, note how they were resolved and include the note with the CD.
At this point the laptop hard drive can be reformatted to make way for XP. This process removes all data, including Vista. To go back to Vista after wiping the drive, you need to download all the drivers again, this time for Vista, and reinstall your operating system.
There are a lot of people switching from Vista to XP, so help should be easily found with the right search string. It’s best, however, to research the task ahead of time so you can be prepared and navigate through the migration easily.
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