Installing Windows Vista
As of this writing, Windows 7 is the most current Windows version available and the one you will likely install in new situations. However, you may still need to install Windows Vista if, for example, it needs to be reinstalled on a machine or used as an upgrade over an older operating system. You can install Windows Vista on a machine as a clean install or upgrade the existing operating system to Vista.
Clean Install
There are two methods of running a clean installation. Clean installing Vista over a previous operating system results in the user’s data being moved to a folder call WINDOWS.OLD. The first option is to start the computer with the bootable Windows Vista DVD (CDs were available if you needed them) and begin the installation.
The second method—the one Microsoft recommends—is to run Setup from the DVD within your current Windows version. Once the DVD is inserted, the Setup program should automatically begin. If it does not, setup.exe can be manually run from the root folder and the menu will appear. On the menu, choose Install Now and then select Custom (Advanced) when the Which Type Of Installation Do You Want? screen appears. Answer the prompts to walk through and complete the installation.
If booting from the DVD, you will get the message Press any key to boot from CD or DVD upon startup, and at this point you simply press a key and then begin the installation.
Upgrading to Windows Vista
Whereas installation can typically be done over any existing OS, upgrading can only be done from an OS that is generally compatible with the one to which you’re upgrading. In other words, the current operating system you are using determines which version of Windows Vista you can upgrade to, if any. Table 15-3 lists the upgrade paths for each Windows Vista 32-bit version based on the existing operating system. Those listed as No must be clean installations.
Table 15-3: Windows Vista upgrade options
Note that Windows Vista Enterprise does not appear in the table because it is typically installed as a clean install. It can only be installed as an “upgrade” to Windows Vista Business. Note that where N/A appears in the table, an upgrade is not possible, However a repair installation or clean installation can still be performed.
To begin the upgrade, insert the DVD. The Setup program should automatically begin (if it does not, run setup.exe from the root folder) and a menu will appear. On the menu, choose Install Now and then select Upgrade when the Which Type Of Installation Do You Want? screen appears. Answer the prompts to walk through the upgrade. On a standard, default installation, the /boot directory holds the boot file configuration for Windows Vista.
Booting from the DVD is also possible but recommended only if the method just described does not work. When you boot, you will get a Press any key to boot from CD or DVD message upon startup, and at this point you simply press a key and begin the upgrade.
Transferring to Windows Vista
The User State Migration Tool (USMT) can be downloaded from Microsoft. It is intended to be used by administrators and requires a client computer connected to a Windows Server–based domain controller. It allows you to migrate user file settings related to applications, desktop configuration, and accounts for USMT 2.6 (USMT 3.0 does not require domain controller access except to transfer domain accounts). More information on USMT can be found at the following location:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc722032(WS.10).aspx
Windows Easy Transfer is also available for transferring items to Windows Vista (Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Windows Easy Transfer). This tool is intended for the one-time transfer of user settings, as well as applications and files, to Vista whereas USMT is meant for wide-scale migrations. A key difference is that USMT allows transfers to be scripted whereas WET uses a GUI that requires user interaction.