How to UPGRADE from Vista to Windows XP on an Acer laptop

Step 3 XP Installation

Pop in your XP CD and install like normal. My Acer had three partitions (10MB, 90GB, and 90GB); I killed them all and created a single one. The Recovery CD's we made -should- put everything back as it was, if we ever need it. After formatting my 200GB drive it's 186GB. Being on really new hardware it won't autodetect everything, but Don't Panic. We have all the drivers we need, thanks to our forethought in making that disc / thumb drive / whatever.

Comments

[yazzy]

Hi, I did the same to change the vista to XP but I installed the XP 64 Bit edition... but cannot find the wireless driver that works. In the device manager this are the three devices missing :
Mass Storage Controller
Network Controller
Video Controller

This is my first time rebooting so maybe I'm doing something wrong... can you help me PLEASE!!!!! :(

[nodbek]

This is where I'm stuck. The laptop wont run setup as it says I have a later versino of windows already installed on it. only way I can think of now is to wipe out the hdd. Is this my only option? is there any free utility that does that? I have a 5420 with visa home premium installed. please help!

[Mosh]

Only issue (otherwise a superb Instructible) - getting hold of an XP CD with a code that's not previously been used *sigh*. It's getting harder and harder to obtain with many stores only stocking *spit* Vista.

However... if the machine is replacing an older one and therefore that license is "free", you can often just get very angry at the MS person on the phone when you move the OS from the old system to the new one. Everyone I know who's gone off the handle (not rudely - just been very upset and annoyed) with the MS rep who's trying to tell them that they can't transfer the license from PC to PC has been given an "OK, just this once" reply and a replacement key.

After all, your machine dies and it's three years old. You can't replace the hardware like-for-like (which XP requires to maintain the license) and all your current software/hardware will only run on XP. Vista is (more) useless.

Sorry. That turned into a rant ;)

[CharredPC]

If you already have the XP cd and only need a code, hunt around the web for unused XP COA's. I've seen places sell Dell-branded stickers for under $50. Keep in mind this is not the 'official and proper' way to purchase XP, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a whole brand new package, and the key works just as well. <br/><br/>A few quick search results (you can probably find cheaper with some effort): <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.ioffer.com/offer_transactions/show/1585497">$48 shipped for XP Pro COA</a>, and <a rel="nofollow" href="http://cgi.ebay.com/Windows-XP-Home-Full-version-WITH-PRODUCT-KEY_W0QQitemZ260201677173QQihZ016QQcategoryZ41887QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">$52 shipped for XP Home COA</a>. Or just buy the whole package online, though expect to pay between $75 and $90.<br/>

[Mosh]

Cheers, Charred. I used to buy the OEM version which you're only meant to get with a new "system". However, a local supplier spotted a loophole in the license so they could legally sell it with *any* hardware purchase. Such as a £3 optical mouse! Still £60 ($120) or so though, so $50 isn't a bad price. And better than having Vista *spit*.