Frequently Asked Questions - Compaq 239158-999 - Mini Tower - Power Supply 250 Watt Frequently Asked Questions Manual

W 98 SE
INDOWS AND
. .
. .
. .
.
. .
. .

Frequently Asked Questions

. .
. .
. .
Microsoft Announcement
. .
. .
. .
. . 1. Microsoft is retiring Windows 98 SE and NT 4.0 in the multi-national OEM channel on
. .
July 1, 2002. Why?
. .
. .
Windows NT 4.0, first introduced in 1996, is a six-year-old operating system that does not
. .
. .
support many of the hardware features available today. Windows 98 SE is about four years
. .
old and it also does not support some of the latest technologies. Microsoft has since released
. .
. .
major advances to desktop operating system environments, including Windows 2000 and XP
. .
Professional. The recent introduction of Windows XP Professional adds key features
. .
. .
designed for the business environment and is reliable, stable, and cost-efficient.
. .
. .
According to Microsoft's operating system lifecycle guideline, systems that are older than
. .
three years enter the "extended phase." In this phase, Microsoft will discontinue providing
. .
. .
any further development. Support and quick fix structures also change. Please refer to
. .
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/lifecycle.asp
. .
. .
. .
End of life of older operating systems allows Microsoft to enhance the features and
. .
reliability of the newer operating systems such Windows 2000 or XP Professional. New
. .
. .
enhancements and features in Windows XP and Windows 2000 maximize the client
. .
operating system environments. These include enhanced security, reliability, scalability, ease
. .
. .
of use, and manageability. For more details please refer to
. .
http://www.microsoft.com/windows
. .
. .
. .
Operating System Migration
. .
. .
. .
2. If I buy Compaq computers preinstalled with Windows XP Professional, can I change
. .
the operating system preinstalled on my computer?
. .
. .
Yes. The End User License Agreement (EULA) for Windows XP Professional allows for
. .
. .
downgrade to Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows NT Workstation 4.0 or Windows 2000
. .
Professional.
. .
. .
. .
Main benefit: Customers can later reinstall the Windows XP Professional Edition on their
. .
hard drives at no additional charge.
. .
. .
* This downgrade provision is not applicable to any other operating system.
. .
. .
. .
3. How do I reinstall Windows XP Professional at a later time?
. .
. .
The Compaq Restore CD that is shipped in the computer box can be used later to restore the
. .
original Windows XP Professional factory-installed image from Compaq.
. .
. .
. .
4. Will the Windows XP Professional EULA (End User License Agreement) allow me to
. .
downgrade to Windows 95 or Windows XP Home?
. .
. .
No, the Windows XP Professional EULA doesn't allow for downgrades to these operating
. .
. .
systems.
. .
. .
5. If I want to downgrade, does Compaq provide the alternate operating system?
. .
. .
No, the Windows XP Professional EULA specifies that neither Compaq nor Microsoft will
. .
. .
provide the alternate OS version. Customers can use applicable retail operating system
. .
versions, system builder DSP operating system versions or versions obtained through
. .
. .
volume licensing agreements held with Microsoft.
. .
. .
5
NT 4.0
RETIREMENT
(cont.)
.
April 2002