Lesson 1: Upgrading and Migrating to Windows Vista

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Lesson 1: Upgrading and Migrating to Windows Vista

Whether you upgrade or migrate to Windows Vista depends on the hardware and software

configuration of the computer you’re going to work with. In Chapter 1, “Installing Windows

Vista Client,” we discussed dual booting, which is when a computer is configured to run

both Windows Vista and another operating system. Upgrading and migrating differ from

dual booting because both involve having the user’s data, such as Microsoft Internet

Explorer bookmarks and desktop settings, included in the new Windows Vista installation.

When upgrading or migrating to Windows Vista, the user forgoes using the existing oper-

ating system.

After this lesson, you will be able to:

■ Determine valid upgrade paths.

■ Explain the difference between an upgrade and a migration to Windows Vista.

■ Understand the functionality of the Windows Easy Transfer tool.

■ Use the Windows Easy Transfer tool to migrate data to Windows Vista.

■ Identify application compatibility requirements.

Estimated lesson time: 30 minutes

NOTE

The lesson time will be longer if you perform the optional upgrade from Windows XP to

Windows Vista.

Upgrade and Migration Concepts

Some of the questions in the 70-620 exam involve your understanding the difference between

an upgrade and a migration. When explaining upgrades and migrations, it is important to be

precise with definitions. This first section clarifies some concepts that will be useful through-

out the rest of the chapter. These terms build on each other and are defined as follows:

■

Original operating system This is the operating system that users have been using and

which hosts their data until they upgrade or migrate. In the 70-620 exam, the original

operating system can be Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Vista.

■ Destination operating system The operating system that the user will be using when

the upgrade or migration process is completed. For the purposes of the 70-620 exam,

the destination operating system will always be Windows Vista.

■ Upgrading Upgrading is the process by which the original operating system is directly

converted to Windows Vista. All data and user settings are retained, although it is possi-

ble that application compatibility problems might arise. Application compatibility prob-

lems are covered in more detail later in this lesson.