QUESTION: I have noticed that you seem to be quite a fan of Windows XP and at work we now use Windows XP and it seems to give very little trouble so I have pretty well decided to upgrade my own personal PC at home to Windows XP. It would be so much easier for me if I could just upgrade from my current Windows 98SE operating system but my brother-in-law says that I really should go for a clean install and he says that you say that too. Why if Windows XP is labelled as an upgrade edition should I go for a clean, full install? What are the advantages?

ANSWER: Well, your brother-in-law is mostly correct. I do favour clean installations of Windows XP over upgrades.

The reason the clean install is better is that even a very careful user cannot guard against all the incorrect Registry entries and changes, miscellaneous files, partially uninstalled programs and particularly old drivers that eventually accumulate in a system during normal use. If you can gather together all your precious data, e-mails, documents etc. that are currently on your computer and keep them in the interim safely off the computer in a backup format of some sort then, yes, I do think that a clean install on XP is far preferable.

In order to do a clean install, and that means on a newly formatted hard drive, you have to prepare. I don't want to cover the same ground every week in these columns so if I seem to be skipping over important stages in the process, such as how to format a drive, and even what the minimum requirements of XP are, it is only because these have been specifically covered here before. All the previous columns and topics for the last year, can be found at computerworksbermuda.com in printable PDF format.

Minimum requirements

Although a clean install of Windows XP is a very straightforward process you still have to make sure that your computer meets the minimum hardware requirements which are written on the side of the XP box and also that the rest of the bits and pieces which make up your computer, collectively known as the hardware, will be acceptable to XP. If you follow this link it will show you a hardware compatibility list where you can see how your components stack up - http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx - but honestly it's a bit labyrinthine.

If something is not compatible it doesn't mean you have to replace it. It probably just means that you have to go to the original manufacturers site and download the appropriate XP or even Windows 2000 driver. They'll probably work fine.

There are so many sites available on the Internet that will take you through the upgrade step-by-step with illustrations that I won't repeat the process here. Today we are just trying to cover why a clean install is more desirable than an upgrade.

Out with the FAT32 and in with the NTFS

No matter how many times I refer to it in this column I am still regularly asked which file system should be chosen when the question comes up as part of the XP upgrade process. The choices are FAT 32 vs. NTFS; my choice is NTFS which has security features and stability that you won't achieve with the older FAT 32 file system. If your new clean installation is being done from an upgrade CD, at an early point you will be asked to insert in the drive any earlier Windows 98 or Windows ME CD to allow a verification routine needed to establish that you are eligible for the upgrade. Microsoft seems to think that if you already purchased a Windows operating system, which you now intend to upgrade to XP, you shouldn't have to pay the same price as if you were starting with no previous Windows product installed. Although Windows XP is available in either a full install or an upgrade package, the end result once you have completed the installation seems to be the same except that the full install costs about $100 more but does not require you to produce evidence of an earlier installation.

You should be aware that soon after the verification point the computer will reboot and you will see a message inviting you to `press any key to boot from CD' but don't, this is that they are for when you're using the CD to repay error or make changes to your XP operating system, just let it go by continuing the installation/boot up process automatically.

Why so long? Sometimes I'm asked why it takes so many hours to complete a Windows XP upgrade and the answer is that simply installing XP, the operating system, is not all there is to it. There are many features available on XP that I think are helpful, almost essential, for my customers to have easy access to. It can be very helpful to have an icon on the desktop leading directly to, for example, the Windows Update Site, System Restore, Defrag and backup, if that option has been installed as well. It is also necessary to set up an Internet connection, this is absolutely essential because Windows must be activated online within 30 days of the installation taking place. At this point I also install anti-virus software and possibly even a third party firewall.

The Windows CD you have purchased is just the starting point, it is also very desirable, especially from a security point of view, to go out to the Windows Update Site and download all the appropriate Service Packs, Critical XP Updates, and the latest drivers, and following the process dictated by the Windows Update page, apply them to the machine. There can be as many as 40 available upgrades, several of which after download require the machine to be restarted.

It is only when all the anti-virus software has been installed, registered, updated and run and the option to automatically check for available future updates has been set as well, plus all the needed applications/programs such as Word and Excel etc, that I consider the job to be done.

It's very time-consuming, but quite enjoyable and the clean, glitch free finished product is like having a new modern computer and is well worth it.

@EDITRULE:

James W. Lapsley is the founder of ComputerWorks, specialising in PC repairs, upgrades and advice for the home and small office user. ComputerWorks welcomes your questions and comments. Send your PC questions by e-mail to computerworkslogic.bm or by phone to 293-0992.