Downgrade from Vista to XP on Dell Laptop

Forums › Microsoft Windows › Downgrade from Vista to XP on Dell Laptop

Karynk9999

1 post

Wannabe Geek

Topic # 17435 27-Nov-2007 09:08

Hello, I am new to this forum so please forgive my, 'newness'.
I have read all over the web including this forum that you can downgrade from Vista to XP.
However, here is my issue. My 81 year old father bought a Dell laptop with Vista on it. He is use to ME and is REALLY struggling with this. Note: It may not all be realted to Vista if you know what I mean.
Anyhow, does anyone know if Microsoft is doing anything for people who want to downgrade, like say, I don't know....provide XP for free? I know, pick yourself off the ground from laughing.
In all seriousness, can someone suggest the best solution for me to help my 81 yr. old father who lives out of state from me?
I was thinking of calling a service to go to his house and do it for him. If I do that, what should my father have readily available?
Thank you so much!

Reon

69 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 1

Reply # 97108 27-Nov-2007 11:23

Officially you can only downgrade Vista Ultimate and Vista Business OEM editions to XP Professional.

Then you must provide your own XP Pro install media and use the same product key that it came with.

Once installed activating via the internet will fail so you must ring Microsoft and explain that you have used an existing product key and that you are downgrading a Vista license.

rhysb

431 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 7

Trusted

Reply # 98697 7-Dec-2007 09:00

If he is used to the way that Windows ME looks and feels, why dont you just change it to the Classic theme and Classic Start Menu. That way you don't have to hassle around with re-installing a new OS, finding the right drivers etc.

muppet

2079 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 884

Trusted

Reply # 99221 10-Dec-2007 11:53

I bought a Dell laptop with Vista and it has been quite a hassle to downgrade to XP because Dell don't support XP on it very well, so it's hard to get drivers. There's many threads by other XPS owners who also wanted to downgrade, so I managed to find a few posts with links to all the right drivers in the one place.

It was also a pain because I had to pirate XP. I emailed MS and asked to trade my Vista license for an XP one but they wouldn't do it.

I would agree with the above post, put Vista back into Classic Mode and it's quite similar in its look. Though it can be hard to find some of the settings.

Downgrading was the best thing I could have done on my laptop though, the amount of extra free memory I have is nice and the reduced bootup time is good too. But the hassle of finding all the drivers makes it a not-for-the-faint-hearted ordeal.