Customer Reviews

Microsoft Windows XP Professional UPGRADE with SP2

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

If you're reading this. You want to upgrade, your old computer to Windows XP Professional Edition here are a few things to keep in mind.

First thing is, you can download service pack two for Windows update. So no need to buy it integrated with XP.

These are what I consider the minimum system requirements:

256 MB of RAM. I have found is adequate more equals better.
500 MHz or higher will do.
7200 rpm hard drive will help a lot.

If you're running Windows millennium edition, or 98 upgrade now the stability is vastly improved. Gone are the blue screens of death.

Frequently asked question: is Windows XP Pro better than home edition?

Windows XP Pro has a more high-end networking features that most home users will never miss or would even know were missing. So for most users Windows home edition is fine. They both are based on the same code and are almost identical.

If you're thinking of upgrading from Windows 2000, I did, because I like the GUI interface better. But Windows XP is as stable as Windows 2000. So it's your call.

The plug-and-play ability of Windows XP is totally great! Windows XP will by default find most drivers for video card sound cards, network cards, etc. that is such a bonus gone in the days of having to search for CDs with drivers.

I recommend upgrading to Windows XP be a professional or home edition. It is a great operating system

Have some fun and get it done

I have been running Windows XP since 2001 and to tell you the honest truth it has been stable ever since. With the introduction of SP2 in this minor update of Windows XP, Microsoft has decided to make the product "secure", than it was thought to be in the beginning. But the past few years have been rough on Microsoft, with consistency in attacks on the product with such vulnerabilities as Trojans, buffer overflows, viruses and the most memorable of the all Blaster (August 2003).


Ever since its debut, Windows XP has been causing a lot of headaches and wreaking havoc on corporate networks because of its susceptibility vulnerabilities that were not fixed in its initial release or Service Pack 1. So Microsoft decided to go back to the drawing board and decided to rethink what Windows XP should mean in terms of Security. At first Service Pack 2 was thought out to only be a minor Service Pack update with usual bug fixes, but because of the aforementioned problems Microsoft took new direction and after 1 year of testing we have finally reached a conclusion.

SP2 is really apparent, based on my experience of installing the update, users displayed a welcome screen recommending Automatic Updates be turned on (and I would recommend too), after which the user is presented with the Security Center where you can configure the new and improved Firewall settings, such as which programs can access your PC. You also have the option of configuring your Anti-Virus program, unfortunately I have not been able to do so because my Anti-virus is not supported, although it seems (Norton Anti-virus Corporate Edition 7.6). Security Center is really the big change here and should have been implemented from beginning, but better late than never.

Other great features which I and many users are undoubtedly thankful for include the Pop-Blocker which should have been included in IE 6 from the beginning (better late than never), its not 100 % percent effective but does a decent job so far of blocking most annoying Pop-Ups. I wish the Windows Team allowed users to train it, so if a Pop does succeed, you can tell the pop-up blocker engine that was a pop-up window and you shouldn't let that pass the next time, maybe Microsoft will let it improve over time. Other great improvements to IE in SP2 is the ability approve programs, so drive by downloads have become a thing of the past, anything you decide to download or accidentally clicked on a webpage has to be approved.

Another wish is, better integration of the ActiveX controls with Microsoft's own technologies, I notice that when I had to do a Office Update, the ActiveX API engine on Microsoft's Office website had to be approved before I run the utility that checked for updates for Office products I needed.

Microsoft has also streamlined Windows Update to be more user-friendly, you the user have the option for a Express or Custom install, Express only installs the most critical updates, while Custom allows to install the entire kitchen sink, including stuff some users can do without on Windows, (go with Express). Windows XP SP2 includes minor enhancements such as Windows Media Player 9, but why didn't Microsoft just wait a little longer and included Windows Media Player 10, which is already out? The blue tooth update is also a needed update, it wasn't intuitive right out of the box, but is more user friendly, all this, you can get for free if you are existing XP owner.

Overall, if you haven't upgraded to Windows XP yet from older versions of Windows, this is the time, but if you are an existing Windows XP user, I say skip this and just order the SP2 CD or download it from the Windows XP Website. I highly recommend users running prior versions of XP especially 95, 98, 98 SE, NT 4 and ME, maybe 2000 also move to XP, since Microsoft is planning on porting any of technologies in XP to those older versions of Windows, plus it has some great new features and you will love the Security technologies that provide a better experience for you the user. Most of all, I highly recommend Windows XP users get this update!

First of all, Microsoft needs to come down on their prices (Not that this will ever happen). I build computers for a living, and I'd say that 9 times out of 10 Windows is the single most expensive piece of any PC I build. That being said, XP has come a long way. Service pack 2 has done wonders for security. I also found it is the most stable version of Windows I've used to date. That's not to say it doesn't have it's flaws. It still lets in it's share of "germs", stops responding from time to time (hangs), and it's very slow to shut down. The built-in CD writing software is TERRIBLE and Remote Desktop is not always a pleasure to use either. However, the biggest problem I've had so far is with product activation. As a PC technician, I'm always testing new parts. The most annoying problem I've had is that after you make a certain number of hardware changes (let's say you replace a video card, a hard drive and add some memory) all within a certain period of time (180 days maybe?) Windows makes you reactivate. This becomes a problem when you have to reactivate twice within this period of time. It makes you call Microsoft, where you have to convince the representitive that you're not trying to steal from them. Then you have to read them a long number (I think 41 digits) and then they'll read another long number back to you that you need to type in. It's driven me to the point of using Windows 2000 again to test my parts, even though this isn't always practical for testing XP compatibility.
Overall, I feel that I paid too much for this operating system.

No idea why people are trashing SP2, since it introduces a lot of stability and security enhancements. In the latter dept. it's still not robust yet; you need a firewall (e.g., a router or ZoneAlarm software) and a free anti-virus program (AVG, from grisoft.com) to beef up your security. But in many other aspects SP2 fixes stability and security holes and it installed seamlessly on my PCs and has made things soemwhat better.

This XP Pro upgrade is for people who have XP Home installed. The added advantages of XP Pro include 1) the ability to encrypt files and folders at the OS level; 2) the ability to control read/write/access rights of individual files and folders; 3) enhanced networking support; 4) dual-processor support; 5) and more. I chose XP Pro over Home for the first two reasons, as I'm paranoid about people snooping on my PC when I take a shower or dump.

I agree, Windows could improve thier products but I'm not going to jump on the Linux bandwagon just yet. You can get this product Academic for 84.00 on the web. I own several copies for my home computers. If you network and use wireless this is the program to use. I use both Unix and Windows at work and the Unix is far more stable. Compatibility issues are what kills Unix/Linux for now and Linux is not user friendly. In the future Apple and Linux will have some of the same issues as Windows to deal with as they become more popular. Windows dominates for a reason. Also, when you upgrade select full install and not the upgrade. You will need a full version copy of Windows 98, Windows Me, or Windows 2000 to accomplish this. Registering your software with Microsoft is virtually painless, even if you need a new key. You can load Windows five times before your key expires. At that point you can call them for a new one.
I'd buy this product again and Amazon is a great company to deal with- FIVE STARS to them!!!

At the same time that Microsoft is discontinuing sales for Windows XP, they continue to charge $199 to upgrade XP Home to XP Pro. There is not much additional functionality provided except for the networking support required to allow a computer to join a Domain. Hence companies of any size that require this must pay an artifically-inflated price because they have no option. It is also somewhat buggy in that the upgrade can disable some functions as documented by Microsoft Knowledgebase entries.

I work for a small business, and have need of 6 pc's logging onto my computer. We have Windows XP Home edition currently, but Home edition would only allow 5 pc's at a time to log on to my pc. We purchased the upgrade from Amazon.com, and shortly recieved the package. I backed up our data, just in case something went wrong. In the middle of the installation, the setup program was unable to read one of the files on the disc, and caused an error that could not be averted. It would not let me move forward in the installation, nor would it let me return to Windows Home edition. So, in short, I'm stuck until I get another disc in here. The company I purchased it from was very un-helpful (Tech for less) in helping me to find a replacement disc. This setback caused us many problems for us for about 3 weeks, which is an eternity for a small business.
I don't know how functional this upgrade is, as I never got it installed, but I highly recommend that if you purchase this upgrade, you have a spare readily available or at least a back-up plan in case it fails.

Cheers

What can you say its software....its was priced OK, shipping was free and it arrived when promised....no worries, Mon!! Revived an HP laptop that fried its hard drive.

CONS; Count 'em 107 updates were required upon installation.....yes you read it right that is 107 updates....took longer to download and install the updates via a wireless connection that it did to install op sys and all the required drivers in the first place. LOVE Windows!!

I was a little nervous to attempt an upgrade from Windows 98 to XP because of some of the problems I've read that individuals had doing so. When I began the upgrade, there was a option to select that would test your PC to see if it was upgradeable and it told me that mine was not. However, when I restarted my PC with the upgrade DISC already installed, the upgrade began it's process. There's an option to print out instructions during the installation, I suggest that one do this so that you can have a paper copy of what to do next. Once I picked the correct options, the upgrade proceded without a hitch. Make sure you have at least 128MB of RAM and free hardrive memory space before you begin. The XP installation was a success and now it's like I have a new PC. I love it.

I do not why the others had these problems with Windows XP. I have run this program since it came out 2001? Except for the danger of attack by viruses, I have had no trouble as long as enough RAM is installed. A minimum of 500-750 is essential. With the addition of antivirus software and service pack 2, I feel fairly secure.