Upgrade Considerations

If you have used earlier versions of Windows Media Encoder, you’ll be glad to know that upgrading to Windows Media Encoder 9 Series is easy. Simply download the encoder from the Windows Media page at the Microsoft Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmedia), and follow the instructions in the setup wizard.

If Windows Media Encoder 7 or 7.1 is resident on your computer, it will be overwritten during the installation process. Existing configuration files (files with the .wme file name extension) will be preserved.

Configuration files from version 4 of the encoder can be used with Windows Media Encoder 9 Series, but they must be renamed to use the .wme file name extension. (Version 4 files used the .asd file name extension.) You should modify these version 4 configuration files to use HTTP because the MSBD protocol is no longer supported.

All custom profiles will be preserved during the installation process. System profiles that have been updated for Windows Media Encoder 9 Series will replace earlier system profiles; system profiles that were not updated will be left intact. New Windows Media 9 Series screen capture profiles will be installed in the existing %systemroot% Program Files\Windows Media Components\Encoder\Profiles folder. New Windows Media 9 Series system profiles are stored in the %systemroot%Program Files\Windows Media Components\Encoder\Settings folder. All profiles have a .prx extension.