Appendix G: Differences with Windows XP Home Edition

Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition is the new operating system for home users who currently use Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, or Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me). In addition to features included with Windows XP Home Edition, Windows XP Professional includes advanced and business features that focus on productivity in the workplace.

Related Information

• For more information about installing Windows XP Professional, see Planning Deployments in this book.

Windows XP Home Edition Overview

Windows XP provides improvements over Windows 2000 Professional designed to appeal to both business and home users. Enhancements include:

• Improved application and hardware device compatibility

• Simplified security and logging on

• Fast user switching

• A new user interface with simplified WebViews

• Enhanced digital media support for movies, pictures, and music

• A software-based firewall to protect against outside security threats on the Internet

• Support for Direct X version 8.0 technology for gaming

Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Me were designed to support both home and business users. Windows XP Home Edition is designed specifically for home users. It provides them with the reliability and security of Windows XP Professional and the efficient simplicity of Windows Me. Windows XP Home Edition offers enhanced support for computer games, storage of digital media (such as the My Movies and My Music folders), and wizards for connecting to the Internet.

The hardware requirements for installing Windows XP Home Edition and Windows XP Professional are similar; however Windows XP Home Edition supports only one CPU.

Users can upgrade to Windows XP Home Edition from Windows 98 or Windows Me but not from Windows 95, Microsoft Windows NT Workstation or Windows 2000 Professional. You can upgrade to Windows XP Professional from any of those operating systems, except Windows 95.

Note 

There is no 64-bit version of Windows XP Home Edition.

For more information about hardware requirements and compatibility for installing Windows XP Professional, see Planning Deployments in this book.