Summary

To successfully install Windows, it is very important that you assess the system, document it, plan the installation, and then methodically follow through with your plan. When documenting the system configuration, it's crucial that you ensure that the system is powerful enough to run the desired version of Windows and that all components are in the HCL. It's also important to thoroughly record all the information you can about the computer, including the network and hardware settings for the system. Also, you can save time as well as a very large headache if you plan ahead by deciding such things as what file format to use on the partitions, whether to perform a dual boot, and whether to automate the installation.

When it comes time to perform the Windows installation, there are a number of different phases of the setup process, including the optional Windows-based phase (if you're installing from Windows), the text-based phase, and the GUI-based Setup Wizard. If you have any trouble during the setup process or immediately after Setup completes (such as not being able to boot into a previous operating system), you can try a number of things to solve the problem, from updating the BIOS to refreshing the Master Boot Record with a previous operating system's boot information. In the next chapter, we move on to the steps you'll want to take after installing Windows.