wondering if I should update old PC w/XP

I have an older computer running WinMe & was wondering if I could or even should update it with WinXP. I have the old comp & a new one pre-installed with WinXP networked & thought they would work better running the same OS. I was going to take the WinXP CD that came with the new comp & upgrade the old PC. What pitfalls should I be aware of or precautions should I take?

old comp:
Intel Celeron 733MHz
WinMe
300mb ram (about)

thanks

 

Yes but after you install xp you might need to activate it by phone or online will have to pay for it and you'll want to check for and download updates for xp.

 

You probably will have driver problems. The CD supplied with your new computer will have drivers for it, which may be incompatible with your old computer's hardware. This will cause errors if not a crash. There is also the activation problem you will run into. Your best bet would be to buy another copy of XP with license.

 

XP will run somewhat sluggishly on this hardware. You can tweak the OS so that it isn't so bad. (I've managed to get XP running TOLERABLY on 192MB RAM) If you get the system running, you can post back for some recommendations.

Also, as everyone is mentioning, you will need another XP license to do this legally. You can install from that CD, but to legally use the software, you will have to purchase another license.

 

The activation problem mentioned by people here is something that does need attention. If Microsoft get hold of the fact that the same ID key is being used on 2 different computers, that key goes on the pirate list and you can't get updates on that key anymore. They find out about the key if you try to update the second computer...

 

Licencing issues aside, yes, it will run on a machine with that spec, but as has been said already, it might be a bit slow. I've had XP on even lower spec systems though. I put it on a pc that had originally used Win 98. It was an AMD 500 with about the same amount of ram, and it was slower than watching paint dry, compared to more modern stuff.

 

Someone else said it above, and I'll say it again.... the XP CD that came with the other PC is an OEM disc and probably has drivers for that PC built into it. So, besides the product key problem, there's good chance you'll have all kinds of other problems: limited display settings, no audio, no internet, etc... You should be able to remove all those drivers after they've been installed, and replace them with the correct drivers. The key word here is 'should'. Also, if the XP CD isn't an 'upgrade', you'll probably have to format the drive, losing WinME and all the data/files/programs in the process.

hopperdave2000

 

XP seems to have drivers for older hardware.

 

I tried doing the same thing, and cheat by chaning the date on the computer. It wouldn't boot into windows. I had to buy a new CD. I bought and OEM on eBay for $90. You can probably get an upgrade for $50. Some vendors will even allow you to buy and download a licensed copy.

My IBM thinkpad specs are 498 Mhz, 586 MB RAM, 20 gig. hard drive. Make sure you have a large enough hard drive. I reccomend atleast 10 gigabytes.