Alix
23-08-2002, 10:42
What are the feature differences between XP Professional and Home Edition?
XP Professional and XP Home Edition share the same kernel (the "guts" of the operating system), and this kernel is based on the Windows 2000 operating system. The differences between them are in the level of security they provide, networking capabilities, and advanced features. For business users, Windows XP Professional is very similar to Windows 2000 in its feature set. XP Professional supports multiple processors, multiple monitors (up to 9), Group Policy. Encrypting File System, Dynamic Disks, IIS, a built in backup program, and advanced networking capabilities (such as IPSec.) All of these features are missing from XP Home Edition. Another important distinction between the two versions is that XP Home Edition cannot join a Windows NT/2000 domain. If you wish to network with other PC's in your home or office, you must be part of a workgroup. If you're a "power user" purchasing Windows XP for your personal workstation, Windows XP Professional is a better choice than Home Edition, if you can afford the price difference.
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What are the differences between Windows 2000 Professional and Windows XP Professional?
Not much. Microsoft has added a host of new features to both versions of Windows XP, but nothing that appears to be absolutely compelling for business users. One of the new features called "Fast User Switching" allows to to run two separate logged in sessions at once. This allows a user to do everyday work such as e-mail using a non-privileged user account, and then run an Administrative session at the same time without rebooting or resorting to the "Run As" command. This also allows you to quickly log onto any users workstation and make administrative changes without logging them off. The remote assistance feature of XP can also help reduce support costs by allowing your Help Desk staff to interact with a user's PC over the network. XP's built in ZIP compression support can also save your company a lot of money in licensing fees if you are currently using a third party utility such as WinZIP.
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What does the "XP" stand for?
The official Microsoft answer is that XP stands for "experience", in the sense that they are combining their years of experience creating two very successful desktop operating systems into one really great product. Pundits have come up with their own definitions of XP, including "XPensive" and "eXtra Profits"
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What are the system requirements?
It seems that Microsoft has always configured its Operating Systems for the future generation of hardware, and XP is no exception. Unless you bought a PC recently, you'll probably want to upgrade your desktop PC before you upgrade your OS.
Below is a table of bare minimum and recommended hardware requirements, as well as our "real word" recommendations.
Windows XP system requirements
Component Bare Minimum Recommended "Real World"
CPU 233 Mhz 300 Mhz +600 Mhz
Memory 64Mb 128Mb +256Mb
Free Disk Space 1.5GB 2.0GB +8GB
When considering these system requirements for your workstations, keep in mind that RAM is a larger bottleneck than CPU speed. (i.e. Adding 256Mb of RAM will give you a better performance boost than upgrading your processor speed by 200 - 300 Mhz). XP is also designed to take advantage of Intel's Pentium 4 instruction set (SSE/SSE2), so you'll see slightly better performance on the newer processors. XP Professional supports multiple processors if your doing demanding graphics, AutoCAD, and other CPU intensive computing.
In addition, Microsoft recommends that your BIOS should be newer than January 1, 2000 if you wish to use the hibernation and advanced power management features of Windows XP. You can run a free test on your PC to see if you meet the upgrade requirements, by clicking here
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How much will it cost to upgrade?
Windows XP has a number of pricing schemes, depending on if you intend to upgrade from a previous operating system or if you're installing it on brand new hardware. Windows XP Home Edition will cost $99 for the upgrade version and $199 for the full version. Windows XP Professional will cost $199 for the upgrade version and $299 for the full version.
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What are the upgrade paths for Windows XP?
For Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 2000 Systems:
You can upgrade to Windows XP Professional only.
For Windows 98, 98SE, and Windows Me Systems:
You can upgrade to either Windows XP Home Edition or Windows XP Professional.
For Windows 95 Systems:
There is no upgrade path. You'll need to buy the full version of Windows XP and perform a clean install.
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Is it worth the upgrade?
If you are currently using Windows 95/98/Me or Windows NT 4.0, Windows XP will most likely be a worthwhile upgrade. You'll like the speed, security, and stability of XP, but may have some issues with hardware and software compatibility. The new user interface is well suited for non technical computer users, but seems to drive the ******** computer geeks crazy. (Thankfully you can easily switch it back to the classic Win9x look) Home users may be better off buying a new PC with Windows XP preloaded rather than try to upgrade the hardware and OS on an older system. Businesses and power users that are already running Windows 2000 will probably not see a significant reason to upgrade.
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What about Product Activation?
The product activation feature of Windows XP (and Office XP) is designed to discourage casual copying of the software. Once you load Windows XP and type in the Registration Code, it creates a unique ID for your workstation based on your system configuration and prompts you to register that ID with Microsoft within 120 days, or your Operating System will no longer function. Although the process only takes a few moments to complete over the web (and slightly longer over the phone), this requirement has caused a storm of controversy. ( For more information, see Microsoft's Product Activation FAQ) Product Activation is only required on the retail and some OEM versions of Windows XP and not on the volume licensing program that most businesses use. Windows XP upgrade licenses acquired through one of Microsoft’s volume licensing agreements, such as Microsoft Open License, Enterprise Agreement, or Select License, will not require activation. Installations of Windows XP made using volume licensing media and volume license product keys (VLKs) will have no activation, hardware checking, or limitations on installation or imaging.
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What information is transmitted to Microsoft when I activate Windows XP?
The Installation ID created by Product activation is specifically designed to guarantee anonymity and is only used by Microsoft to deter piracy. The Installation ID is comprised of two different pieces of information – the product ID and a hardware hash. The product ID is unique to the installation of Windows and is created from the unique product key used during installation. (The product ID can be found by viewing the Properties of My Computer. The hardware hash is an eight byte value that is created by running 10 different pieces of information from the PC’s hardware components through a one-way mathematical transformation. When you activate your product over the web, the installation ID is submitted to Microsoft, and then a digitally signed certificate is sent back to your PC. Activation is not product registration. The only information required to activate is an Installation ID created by the software and, for Office XP and Visio 2002, the country in which the software is being installed. No personally identifiable information is required to activate. For more information see "Technical Details on Microsoft Product Activation for Windows XP"
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Can Product Activation be bypassed?
Within a few days of its launch on October 25, 2001, hackers released a "*****" that disables XP's product activation feature. This "*****" is being passed around the Internet contains a set of instructions for setting a registry key that disables activation. Microsoft made the existence of this registry key public to its technical beta testers telling them where it was and how to set it to disable activation, and included it as a testing tool. Some users who are suspicious of the product activation feature have decided to use this tool, but it is likely that Microsoft could release an update that counteracts it so I wouldn't recommended. Business can be eligible for volume licensing (which doesn't require activation) for as little as 10 licenses. Which means if you have 5 PC's running Windows XP and Office XP, you qualify for the program. Check with your Microsoft rep for details..
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XP Professional and XP Home Edition share the same kernel (the "guts" of the operating system), and this kernel is based on the Windows 2000 operating system. The differences between them are in the level of security they provide, networking capabilities, and advanced features. For business users, Windows XP Professional is very similar to Windows 2000 in its feature set. XP Professional supports multiple processors, multiple monitors (up to 9), Group Policy. Encrypting File System, Dynamic Disks, IIS, a built in backup program, and advanced networking capabilities (such as IPSec.) All of these features are missing from XP Home Edition. Another important distinction between the two versions is that XP Home Edition cannot join a Windows NT/2000 domain. If you wish to network with other PC's in your home or office, you must be part of a workgroup. If you're a "power user" purchasing Windows XP for your personal workstation, Windows XP Professional is a better choice than Home Edition, if you can afford the price difference.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are the differences between Windows 2000 Professional and Windows XP Professional?
Not much. Microsoft has added a host of new features to both versions of Windows XP, but nothing that appears to be absolutely compelling for business users. One of the new features called "Fast User Switching" allows to to run two separate logged in sessions at once. This allows a user to do everyday work such as e-mail using a non-privileged user account, and then run an Administrative session at the same time without rebooting or resorting to the "Run As" command. This also allows you to quickly log onto any users workstation and make administrative changes without logging them off. The remote assistance feature of XP can also help reduce support costs by allowing your Help Desk staff to interact with a user's PC over the network. XP's built in ZIP compression support can also save your company a lot of money in licensing fees if you are currently using a third party utility such as WinZIP.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What does the "XP" stand for?
The official Microsoft answer is that XP stands for "experience", in the sense that they are combining their years of experience creating two very successful desktop operating systems into one really great product. Pundits have come up with their own definitions of XP, including "XPensive" and "eXtra Profits"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are the system requirements?
It seems that Microsoft has always configured its Operating Systems for the future generation of hardware, and XP is no exception. Unless you bought a PC recently, you'll probably want to upgrade your desktop PC before you upgrade your OS.
Below is a table of bare minimum and recommended hardware requirements, as well as our "real word" recommendations.
Windows XP system requirements
Component Bare Minimum Recommended "Real World"
CPU 233 Mhz 300 Mhz +600 Mhz
Memory 64Mb 128Mb +256Mb
Free Disk Space 1.5GB 2.0GB +8GB
When considering these system requirements for your workstations, keep in mind that RAM is a larger bottleneck than CPU speed. (i.e. Adding 256Mb of RAM will give you a better performance boost than upgrading your processor speed by 200 - 300 Mhz). XP is also designed to take advantage of Intel's Pentium 4 instruction set (SSE/SSE2), so you'll see slightly better performance on the newer processors. XP Professional supports multiple processors if your doing demanding graphics, AutoCAD, and other CPU intensive computing.
In addition, Microsoft recommends that your BIOS should be newer than January 1, 2000 if you wish to use the hibernation and advanced power management features of Windows XP. You can run a free test on your PC to see if you meet the upgrade requirements, by clicking here
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How much will it cost to upgrade?
Windows XP has a number of pricing schemes, depending on if you intend to upgrade from a previous operating system or if you're installing it on brand new hardware. Windows XP Home Edition will cost $99 for the upgrade version and $199 for the full version. Windows XP Professional will cost $199 for the upgrade version and $299 for the full version.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are the upgrade paths for Windows XP?
For Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 2000 Systems:
You can upgrade to Windows XP Professional only.
For Windows 98, 98SE, and Windows Me Systems:
You can upgrade to either Windows XP Home Edition or Windows XP Professional.
For Windows 95 Systems:
There is no upgrade path. You'll need to buy the full version of Windows XP and perform a clean install.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is it worth the upgrade?
If you are currently using Windows 95/98/Me or Windows NT 4.0, Windows XP will most likely be a worthwhile upgrade. You'll like the speed, security, and stability of XP, but may have some issues with hardware and software compatibility. The new user interface is well suited for non technical computer users, but seems to drive the ******** computer geeks crazy. (Thankfully you can easily switch it back to the classic Win9x look) Home users may be better off buying a new PC with Windows XP preloaded rather than try to upgrade the hardware and OS on an older system. Businesses and power users that are already running Windows 2000 will probably not see a significant reason to upgrade.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What about Product Activation?
The product activation feature of Windows XP (and Office XP) is designed to discourage casual copying of the software. Once you load Windows XP and type in the Registration Code, it creates a unique ID for your workstation based on your system configuration and prompts you to register that ID with Microsoft within 120 days, or your Operating System will no longer function. Although the process only takes a few moments to complete over the web (and slightly longer over the phone), this requirement has caused a storm of controversy. ( For more information, see Microsoft's Product Activation FAQ) Product Activation is only required on the retail and some OEM versions of Windows XP and not on the volume licensing program that most businesses use. Windows XP upgrade licenses acquired through one of Microsoft’s volume licensing agreements, such as Microsoft Open License, Enterprise Agreement, or Select License, will not require activation. Installations of Windows XP made using volume licensing media and volume license product keys (VLKs) will have no activation, hardware checking, or limitations on installation or imaging.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What information is transmitted to Microsoft when I activate Windows XP?
The Installation ID created by Product activation is specifically designed to guarantee anonymity and is only used by Microsoft to deter piracy. The Installation ID is comprised of two different pieces of information – the product ID and a hardware hash. The product ID is unique to the installation of Windows and is created from the unique product key used during installation. (The product ID can be found by viewing the Properties of My Computer. The hardware hash is an eight byte value that is created by running 10 different pieces of information from the PC’s hardware components through a one-way mathematical transformation. When you activate your product over the web, the installation ID is submitted to Microsoft, and then a digitally signed certificate is sent back to your PC. Activation is not product registration. The only information required to activate is an Installation ID created by the software and, for Office XP and Visio 2002, the country in which the software is being installed. No personally identifiable information is required to activate. For more information see "Technical Details on Microsoft Product Activation for Windows XP"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Can Product Activation be bypassed?
Within a few days of its launch on October 25, 2001, hackers released a "*****" that disables XP's product activation feature. This "*****" is being passed around the Internet contains a set of instructions for setting a registry key that disables activation. Microsoft made the existence of this registry key public to its technical beta testers telling them where it was and how to set it to disable activation, and included it as a testing tool. Some users who are suspicious of the product activation feature have decided to use this tool, but it is likely that Microsoft could release an update that counteracts it so I wouldn't recommended. Business can be eligible for volume licensing (which doesn't require activation) for as little as 10 licenses. Which means if you have 5 PC's running Windows XP and Office XP, you qualify for the program. Check with your Microsoft rep for details..
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