This week I decided to upgrade my work computer from Windows XP to Windows Vista. The migration was fairly smooth with a few glitches on the way, but within two hours I had a full operational computer running windows Vista. In this post I will write the steps I took to make the migration.

The first thing to do is to download the Windows Easy Transfer Companion tool on your Windows XP machine to collect the data. This tool will move “some” of the applications from your Windows XP installation to windows Vista. The applications that got moved on my machine were: Microsoft Office 2003, WinZip, Adobe Acrobat Reader 8.0, Net Drive, FileAmigo, PDF Creator etc. all other applications needed to be reinstalled again on Windows vista. For a list of applications that you can successfully move with WETC check the Microsoft Support site here

Collecting the data from your old computer is simple, unlike Files and Settings Transfer Wizard on windows XP, Windows Easy Transfer only has two options to move data, either through a USB cable, or through the Network; I chose the network option. There is a Windows Easy Transfer USB cable for Windows Vista to make the migration from Windows XP even easier.

When launching WETC in windows XP the first step is to choose between the old or new computer, then select what type of data transfer you will use. Check the image below

After selecting the option on how to transfer you the data, WETC will scan for all the programs installed on your computer, after the scan it will give you the list of the programs that will get moved. Clicking the next button, WETC will prepare the XP computer for the move, after it finishes it will give you a key that you will need to put on the new computer. Write down the key and go to the computer with Windows Vista.

Now you might have noticed that windows vista already comes with Windows Easy Transfer companion, but is not the same version as the one you downloaded for Windows XP above. I had small issue here, somehow windows vista was not recognizing the data on the other computer until I downloaded and installed the same version of WETC I used on the old computer.

After launching WETC on the new computer and choosing the option as a new computer, you will get to the option where you will need to put the key you wrote down above. Check the image below.

Now if the old computer is successfully found, WETC will start doing the transfer. after it finishes probably you will need to reboot the system. Test all the applications to make sure they run fine. Also make sure you do all the updates on your windows Vista, and you have an anti-virus running. I recommend AVG for home use. Enjoy your Windows Vista Experience.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, April 27th, 2008 at 6:52 am and is filed under Windows Vista Tips, Windows XP Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.