Getting Ready for Installation

Windows XP Professional provides you with two different types of installation: attended and unattended. In an attended installation of Windows XP Professional, you “attend” to the computer as installation is taking place. In this situation, you can use a CD-ROM to install Windows XP, or you can install Windows XP over the network from a network share. In either case, you physically run the installation and answer installation prompts as they occur. You can also install Windows XP Professional in several “unattended” ways, which you can learn more about later in this chapter. In an unattended installation, you use an automated method to install Windows XP so that installation occurs automatically without user input.

As with previous versions of Windows, particularly Windows 2000 Professional, the key to a successful Windows XP Professional installation is to plan carefully beforehand. Through proper planning, you can avoid problems before they occur and you can make sure your computer and applications are ready to meet the demands of Windows XP Professional. If you are armed with the correct information, installation is typically anticlimactic because you solve potential problems before they occur. In the following sections, you’ll explore the important planning steps you should take before installing Windows XP Professional.

Minimum Hardware Requirements

Sure, you’ve heard this before, but the simple fact remains: Your computer must be able to handle the hardware demands of Windows XP; otherwise, your installation will either fail or result in a system that is so pitifully slow that it is of no practical value. Before installing Windows XP Professional, you need to check out the computer’s hardware and make sure it’s powerful enough to handle the demands of Windows XP. Table 1-1 gives you the minimum as well as the recommended hardware requirements for Windows XP. As you might expect, the base, or minimum, hardware requirements are just that—what you need to install Windows XP Professional and to ensure that it will actually run. However, if you want good performance from the machine, you should meet the recommended hardware requirements, and preferably exceed them.

Table 1-1: Windows XP Professional Installation Requirements

Component

Minimum Requirement

Recommended Requirement

Processor

233 MHz Pentium

300 MHz or higher—the faster the processor, the better performance you are likely to see. Windows XP Professional also supports two processor systems.

RAM

64MB

128+MB recommended—4GB maximum

Hard disk space

2GB partition with at least 640MB free

4+GB

Monitor

VGA monitor

SVGA monitor

Mouse

Windows-compatible

Windows-compatible

CD-ROM

Windows-compatible CD or DVD-ROM drive

Windows-compatible CD or DVD-ROM drive

Network card

Compatible network card and cable if over-the-network installation is desired

Compatible network card and cable if over-the-network installation is desired

During setup, Windows XP Professional will check the computer’s hardware as well as software applications to determine whether there are incompatibilities. However, your best bet is to check these items first so you can avoid problems during installation. You should also take inventory of the computer’s hardware, such as the sound card, video card, modem, and related components, and check the Windows XP Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) found at www.microsoft.com/hcl. Hardware that is not explicitly listed on the HCL is not recognized as compatible; however, this does not mean that the hardware will not work—it just has not been tested by Microsoft. If you have some questionable hardware, you should check the hardware manufacturer’s web site for more information and possible driver updates or upgrade packs. You should acquire the new drivers or updates before starting the installation of Windows XP Professional.

Network Connections

If your Windows XP Professional computer will be a part of a network, then you will need to gather some information from an appropriate network administrator. If the computer is not connected to a network or is not connected to a Windows domain, you can simply choose the “workgroup” option during setup. You’ll need to enter the name of your workgroup (or the name of a new workgroup if you are creating one with this installation).

Let’s make sure your terminology is up to speed here. A domain is a logical grouping of users and computers on a Microsoft network. The domain is designed to be an administrative unit that is controlled by network administrators via Windows 2000/.NET servers. The domain is an effective way to partition a large network into manageable “chunks.” The domain model has been around since the days of Windows NT, but it has been greatly simplified and made less restrictive since the days of Windows 2000. The domain model is recommended on networks with more than 10 computers (but is not required).

A workgroup, on the other hand, is a collection of local computers that function together in order to share data. There is no domain controller, or a computer in charge of the network, and each user typically manages his or her own computer on the network. The workgroup model does not have the overhead of a domain, but it can be more difficult to manage as it grows since it is not centrally controlled. If the computer will become a member of a domain, Windows XP Professional can join the domain during the installation of XP, but there is some information you might need to know during setup, which is described in the following bullet list:

  • The name of your computer and the name of the domain.

  • An appropriate IP address and subnet mask. In order for a computer to communicate on any TCP/IP network, the computer must be configured with an IP address and subnet mask that is appropriate for the particular subnet. In most Windows networks, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server handles this task automatically. The DHCP server automatically assigns IP addresses and subnet masks to client computers, ensuring that they have both an appropriate address and one that is unique on the network. If DHCP is not used on the network, then you’ll need a unique IP address and subnet mask in order for network connectivity to work. See Chapter 10 to learn more about networking.

  • Domain controller and DNS server. During the installation, at least one domain controller and DNS server must be online on the network in order for you to join the domain. The computer must have a computer account in the Active Directory (configured by a domain administrator), or your user account must have the permission to create a computer account.

  • Hardware. The computer must be outfitted with a network adapter card and it must be physically connected to the network. See Chapter 5 to learn more about hardware.

Note 

As you are installing Windows XP Professional, keep in mind that you can always join a workgroup or domain once the installation is finished, if it is more convenient for you to do so at that time. Active Directory users have the default right to add up to 10 computer accounts to a domain, unless the network administrator has restricted the default right.

Hard Disk Configuration

If you are installing Windows XP Professional on a computer that has no existing operating system, and XP is the only operating system you want to use, there is nothing you need to do. The setup routine will format the drive for you and allow you to select a file system of your choice (FAT, FAT32, or NTFS). Windows XP is optimized for the NTFS file system, which provides file-level security and a number of additional security features that are not available under FAT or FAT32, such as:

  • Encryption  NTFS drives under Windows XP support encryption. You can seamlessly encrypt user data so that only you can view it, but you can use that data without having to decrypt and reencrypt every time you want to use it.

  • Compression  NTFS drives under Windows XP natively support compression. You can compress a drive or folder in order to save disk space, but you can continue to use the compressed drive normally.

  • Quotas  On NTFS volumes, you can configure how much space a user is allowed to access for data storage. This feature is particularly helpful on systems where a Windows XP Professional computer is functioning as a file server.

The most important difference, however, is file- and folder-level security, which is the backbone of a Windows network. Although FAT and FAT32 are useful in some respects, they do not contain advanced management features, and for this reason, Windows XP is optimized for NTFS.

If an operating system currently exists on your computer, Windows XP can either upgrade the existing operating system or install a clean copy of Windows XP, which installs Windows XP in a different folder. Alternatively, you can install Windows XP Professional in a separate partition for a dual-boot scenario. A dual-boot scenario enables you to boot more than one operating system on the same computer. For example, you could have a system that will boot Windows 2000 Server and Windows XP Professional, or you could have a system that will boot Windows Me or Windows XP Professional. Each operating system resides in its own partition, and during boot, you are given a boot menu that enables you to choose which operating system you want to boot. Across the board, dual-boot configurations are easy to configure, but it is important to keep in mind that only Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows NT 4.0 with service pack 4.0 and higher can read NTFS partitions. Windows 9x, Me, and 95 can read only FAT or FAT32 drives. So, if you want the down-level operating system to read the Windows XP partition, you’ll need to use FAT or FAT32 as the file system instead of NTFS.

If your computer has more than one partition, or you are working with a new computer for which you want to have more than one partition, you can use Windows XP’s Disk Administrator tool to create new partitions as needed. If you are working with a computer that has no current operating system, you can create partitions using FDISK or a third-party tool, such as Partition Magic, or you can create the partitions during Windows XP setup. If you are partitioning a disk for installation, make sure that the partition you will use for Windows XP meets the minimum storage requirements as described in the previous section.

Though dual-boot scenarios and partitioning options are beyond the scope of this book, it is a good idea to get familiar with them, preferably by trying practice configurations on a test machine. You can learn more about dual booting by performing a search at Microsoft.com (try Knowledge Base articles Q153762 and Q306559) or any Internet search engine.

Service Packs

Microsoft occasionally releases service packs that contain system updates and fixes to problems. Services packs are available on CD-ROM or downloadable from Microsoft.com or the Windows Update web site. Also, check the Windows Update web site for any hotfixes, which are software fixes for Windows XP, that are available and install them as well. Once you install Windows XP Professional, you should also install any current service packs that may be available for the operating system.

Performing a Backup

The best action you can take before installing Windows XP Professional as an upgrade is to back up the previous operating system and all of your data. In the event that something goes wrong during installation, you can always recover from backup. If you are installing a clean copy of Windows XP Professional or installing XP on a new computer with no operating system, such a backup is unnecessary. In an upgrade scenario, however, it is very important to protect your data by backing it up. Depending on the operating system you are currently using, your backup options may vary—you can even use third-party backup tools, so you’ll need to check your current operating system for backup instructions.

Application Compatibility

Before installing Windows XP Professional, you should take a look at the applications that you want to use with the operating system. If you are moving from some earlier version of Windows, such as Windows 98, you may have applications that are not compatible with Windows XP. If you are moving from Windows 2000, you are not likely to experience any problems. The good news is that Windows XP Professional contains an application compatibility tool that will often enable you to run applications designed for previous versions of Windows. See Chapter 5 to learn more about the Program Compatibility tool.

Finally, before you begin installation, you need to check a few last minute items:

  • Uninstall any antivirus programs. Setup needs full access to your computer’s hard drive, and antivirus programs may interfere.

  • You cannot install Windows XP Professional on any drives that are compressed. Decompress affected drives before running the installation.

  • Remove any disk management software, as these programs may interfere with installation.

  • This is a good time to do housecleaning; remove any programs that you no longer use, that are incompatible with Windows XP, or that are outdated.




A+ Technician's on the Job Guide to Windows XP
A+ Technician's on the Job Guide to Windows XP
ISBN: 72226900
EAN: N/A
Year: 2003
Pages: 164

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