Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

[ratdude747]

As you may have seen from the laptop thread of doom, I now have a latitude d630 to play with.

it has a vista liscence but I am running xp on now (dualbooted with linux).

first off, the COA is for vista home basic if that means anything (i will have to torrent the dell edition vista DVD no matter what). the drivers page at dell defaulted to vista 32 bit when i used the unit's service tag.

Question #1. Do the dell edition vista DVD's distinguishbetween what the laptop was shipped with (Xp pro was fine with it) or is any dell bios fair game?

Question #2. Am I better off to keep Xp pro 32 bit SP3 and stay away from Vista (64 or 32) SP2? is there an an advantage either way?

side note- All I can get for a university discount is 7 ultimate upgrade for $91. Not worth it IMHO. the days of purdue discounted $20 Xp are over.

[c_hegge]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

1. IDK. I've only ever had toshiba laptops and briefcases.

2. This one is a matter of personal opinion, but I absoloutely hate vistrash (and 7). I would say stick with XP.

[yyonline]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

Dell Vista DVDs will install on any Dell with a SLIC v 2.0 bios and not require activation. I've heard some Dells that shipped with Linux do not have the SLIC table in the bios, but I haven't come across any. Basically, the Dell Windows DVD has an OEM "system locked preinstallation" key, and if it finds a matching SLIC table in the bios, it will not require activation with Microsoft. Any Dell model made after Vista was launched should have this table. Older Dells may not.

Windows 7 works the same way, but requires SLIC 2.1. Vista will still work with 2.1, but 7 won't work with 2.0.

XP will probably give you better performance on your D630. Vista may be marginally more secure, and has a nicer looking UI, which may be important to you. If you're going with Vista, give it lots of RAM. Vista runs acceptably well given enough RAM.

If you're a college student with a .edu email address, you can buy Win7 upgrade from Microsoft for $30:
http://www.microsoft.com/student/en/...e/default.aspx
(see the "Other deals" box.)

Win 7 drivers for the D630 can be a bit tricky to find, especially for sound and touchpad. If you go that route, PM me if you want a list of drivers that worked well, as I've done the upgrade on my D620 which has very similar hardware and a few D630s as well.

[kaboom]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

PM sent to OP.

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

some misunderstadings i see:

1. the laptop had vista as stock, so yes, it has new enough bios. for vista. the ship date was 6/08/2008 so no on 7.

2. It came with an Xp pro disc... I also had a copy with sp3 slipstreamed (still dell edition) which worked. the whole $20 xp thing was a reference to how cheap things used to be, not that I didn't have a working copy.

I was unaware of the $30 7 thing.

specs:

c2d mermon T7700 2.4ghz
2gb DDR2 533mhz
Nvidia graphics (no comments on the "issues" please)

[digge]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

There is no real difference of the different oems discs apart from extra bundled software and the slic licence installed like yyonline said. You can even download and install the slic key afterwards and install using any oem version disc (i use vanilla one), thats what i normally do to get rid of all the bundled software crap.

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

There is no real difference of the different oems discs apart from extra bundled software and the slic licence installed like yyonline said. You can even download and install the slic key afterwards and install using any oem version disc (i use vanilla one), thats what i normally do to get rid of all the bundled software crap.

nah, you missed what i meant.

i meant the disc that acts like retail but uses a bios file not a COA key. not a restore disc either (which gives the extra bullsh*t)

[digge]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

I think you misunderstood me rather. Tired from crappy weather and lack of sleep. I try again

SLIC is the bios file thingy, its basically a certificate that has to match up with a key in the bios. You can install the certificate manually after install if you didnt use original disc. Here is a link for how to do it.

http://dobeweb.com/2009/how-to-insta...e-and-key.html

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

the disc (xp pro) is a copy of an original, which the seeder of the file added sp3 to. it has the bios thingy like an original but also has sp3 slipstreamed. no activation was requested upon install.

if i did get the 7 upgrade, i would use the dell edition disc as proof of pre-purchase.

[Per Hansson]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

As you may have seen from the laptop thread of doom, I now have a latitude d630 to play with.

it has a vista liscence but I am running xp on now (dualbooted with linux).

Ok.

first off, the COA is for vista home basic if that means anything

Basic of both Vista and 7 is crap, avoid at all costs (missing Aero for one)
The only worse edition is "Starter" but that is only sold to developing nations so we wont see that here in the West...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Vista_editions

the drivers page at dell defaulted to vista 32 bit when i used the unit's service tag.

This might just be "default behavior" and not actually mean anything...
I'd advice to go 64bit even if you only have 2GB of RAM, saves you the trouble if you decide to upgrade to 4GB later on (32bit OS will only see ca 3.2GB of RAM)

Question #1. Do the dell edition vista DVD's distinguish between what the laptop was shipped with (Xp pro was fine with it) or is any dell bios fair game?

I'm having a little trouble interpreting your question (after reading the whole thread and others replies)
All Windows Vista & 7 DVD's are the same, they only differ in a specific certificate file, and what default VLM key is used
You can use any Windows 7 DVD and install the certificate later using Digge's link above (I had to do this at work because the "Dell Win7 Pro" disc gave a BSOD, I used a "Retail" DVD and it installed just fine, then I added the cert and key manually after installation, you have 30 days to do this, and you can "rearm" it 3 times so it's really 120 days...)
As for the BIOS, of course the BIOS must match the laptop, Dell sometimes updates the SLIC version 2.0 > 2.1 (see yyonline post above)
This applied to my work Dell Precision PC, it only had SLIC 2.0 originally but with new Dell BIOS it got Win7 SLIC v2.1 support...

Question #2. Am I better off to keep Xp pro 32 bit SP3 and stay away from Vista (64 or 32) SP2? is there an an advantage either way?

This only you can answer, I actually prefer Win7 over XP x64 at work
And at home with my gaming PC I prefer XP x64. "each to his own..."

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

starter does exist over here... netbooks have it. glad my only one had xp.

the newer bios was a 2009 job, so no v2.1.

sounds like a dell edition vista buisness or vista ultimate may work with it... i dunno. i may stick with xp until 7 since vista still sounds like vistrash.

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

If you're a college student with a .edu email address, you can buy Win7 upgrade from Microsoft for $30:
http://www.microsoft.com/student/en/...e/default.aspx
(see the "Other deals" box.)

Win 7 drivers for the D630 can be a bit tricky to find, especially for sound and touchpad. If you go that route, PM me if you want a list of drivers that worked well, as I've done the upgrade on my D620 which has very similar hardware and a few D630s as well.

yup, I'm eligable.

question:

since I only have 2gb of dd2 on my laptop, will x64 run ok? or should i not install until i have 3/4GB to play with?

[delaware74b]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

Ratdude - going by your specs in post #5, x64 on your laptop with 2gb of DDR2 should be okay. My Acer Aspire netbook ran okay with 2gb although I did max it out at 4gb. (Intel SU2300 1.5GHz/2-2GB Kingston KVR533 DDR2 SODIMMs).
Waiting on new 320GB WD Black for it (dropped netbook and killed the drive)

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

Ratdude - going by your specs in post #5, x64 on your laptop with 2gb of DDR2 should be okay. My Acer Aspire netbook ran okay with 2gb although I did max it out at 4gb. (Intel SU2300 1.5GHz/2-2GB Kingston KVR533 DDR2 SODIMMs).
Waiting on new 320GB WD Black for it (dropped netbook and killed the drive)

ok.

its ok, i nuked the screen in my eee 1000HEb when it hit a hardwood floor. (fixed and given to my dad as a birthday gift). hence why i use dell latitudes now... much more durable for a klumsy klutz like myself (my d400 survied the same distance into concrete and only suffered a gash in the metal frame)

[yyonline]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

2gb should be fine unless you do very heavy multi-tasking. I'm talking 20+ applications at a time. Windows 7 seems much more intelligent about swapping things to disk to maintain a good performance/free memory ratio.

I have 4GB installed in my D620. Due to a chipset limitation, even 64-bit Windows can only use 3.25GB. It rarely goes above 1.5GB used.

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

ok... worst program would be Labview 8.5.

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

it appears that the only dell dvd's i can torrent are 32 bit... blech. 7 or xp it looks like.

[Uranium-235]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

you can use a dell OEM sticker on any OEM copy of vista, you will just have to put the key in and activate it manually. I have never had any trouble doing so, and this is for many laptops/desktops with vista, gateway, dell, HP, whatever. I prefer to use an OEM anyways and install the latest drivers yourself

that out of the way. NEVER install vista on ANYTHING. You will regret it, one way or another. 7 is OK for a high end system, but XP is excellent for anything, I use XP on everything but my gaming rig, which I only use 7 cause its the only decent windows system that can take advantage of the 12gb of ram. x64 XP dosen't have much driver support

[ratdude747]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

you can use a dell OEM sticker on any OEM copy of vista, you will just have to put the key in and activate it manually. I have never had any trouble doing so, and this is for many laptops/desktops with vista, gateway, dell, HP, whatever. I prefer to use an OEM anyways and install the latest drivers yourself.

FYI, the dell edition discs do that. all they give is the OS, no drivers or other bullsh!t. It works just like a normal disc minus the "enter your key" step. In fact, they are so close to the Microsoft stock discs that the images can be slipstreamed with whatever (I have a few copies of dell edition xp pro with sp3 streamed).

I thought the liscence codes were limited to the specific versions. mine is for vista home basic.

my biggest issue with xp is the upcoming drop in support... since my laptop is my only computer that i even use windows in the first place on (all else is linux or mac), I want it to be done well and done right since i use a lot of modern high end stuff (labview 8.6 for example).

[brethin]

Re: Vista SP2 vs XP SP3

If you reflash your bios with one that has a SLIC 2.1 table you can load any Dell OEM Win 7 version you want on it and it will use the Dell OEM key on the DVD and never ask for one. I would not bother with 64bit you will have more problems with drivers and gain nothing from it with that system (you would have no need to run any 64bit apps). Personally I would put 32bit Windows 7 Ult on it.