Out of curiousity, does anyone know if the data I have saved on my computer is toast if I upgrade the OS? I'm running one of my machines on windows ME (yes, I know it's horrible, thats why I want to switch) and want to upgrade it to XP, but my main concern would be losing all the data currently on it (I'd transfer it all to disk but I'm lazy and probably won't unless I have to) Any of the folks smarter at computers than me able to give any input?
It "should" save the data when doing an upgrade but if you are switching the disk format from Fat32 to NTFS( prefered, I think XP is all NTFS ) it probably wont save it. The best thing to do is compress all your files(WinZIP) and store them on CDs or DVDs. Storing things on a removable format is the only garanteed method of protecting those files.
If you change the OS completely you'll lose it.
You can use the Windows XP "upgrade" which will save most of your data but most people who do this regret it as XP tends to run like crap if it's not a fresh install.
Make sure all your hardware will run on XP.
I assume since you are running ME your PC is about 4-5 years old.
Somwhere on the micro$oft website you can download a little program that will check your hardware for XP compatibility.
And Auch is right about the file format.
I *think* ME uses the FAT32 format.
You can run XP in FAT32 but it will work better if you use NTFS.
Confused?
Just back up your data and start fresh.
You'll be happy you did in the long run.
Upgrades often turn into disasters. To do the job properly, back up your files and reformat your hard drive when you upgrade, which will give you a predictable result.
You can use a USB hard drive or a CD burner to back up your files, both of which are cheap these days.
it depends on where the data is located on your hard drive when you do the upgrade.
I would recommend backing up the data somewhere (cds, another computer, etc) and then formatting and then installing the OS and all of your applications. You will have a much easier time running your applications afterwards.
6
twistedone
USA
June 2004
JUL 11, 2005 07:57 PM
As everyone has said, upgrades == poo. Also, if your computer is 4 or 5 years old and you haven't upgrade any hardware, it probably has at most 128mb of ram (could be wrong though) and you will want to upgrade it as soon as possible. Trust me, if you're gonna roll with XP, don't do so with little memory, gonna bite you in the ass.
I have a 250gb external drive, best thing I've ever bought. Also, for future recommendation, if you have the hard drive space, create an OS partition and a data partition. That way if you ever have to reload windows, you won't lose your data on the other partition, but of course you want to still back it up often.
back up your data. if you have data you don't want to lose, back it up. it doesn't matter if you're upgrading or not...what os you use, eventually, you will lose data. always backup.
i agree that starting fresh is a good idea. especially since windows, after some time, begins to get slower and slower. start clean.
Manchester_Black
Edmonton, AB
March 2004
JUL 11, 2005 03:41 PM