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Chapter

5
Windows XP Professional
Windows XP Professional Overview
Install and Upgrade Windows XP Pro
Customize and Manage Windows XP Pro
Troubleshoot Common Windows XP Problems
 Learning Objectives
• Describe Windows XP Professional benefits,
features, and limits
• Install and configure Windows XP Professional
• Customize and manage Windows XP Professional
• Perform Proactive Maintenance tasks
• Troubleshoot common Windows XP Professional
problems

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Windows XP versions
• Windows XP Professional
• Windows XP Home Edition
• Windows XP Media Center Edition
• Windows XP Tablet PC Edition
• Windows XP Embedded
• Windows XP 64-bit Edition

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Enhanced Features and Benefits
• Desktop Beauty and Usability
• Visual Appeal
• Usability
• Speed
• Faster Bootup
• Programs Run Faster
• Security
• Required Logon
• NTFS5

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Enhanced Features and Benefits (continued)
• Stability and Compatibility
• Code Signing/Driver Signing
• Program Compatibility Settings
• Automated Windows Update
• File system support
• NTFS version 5, FAT16, and FAT32 for hard disk.
• FAT12 for floppy disks.

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Enhanced Features and Benefits (continued)
• New and Improved Recovery Tools
• Last Known Good Configuration startup option
• Task Manager
• Recovery Console
• System Restore
• Automated System Recovery

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Limitations of Windows XP
• Hardware Support
• Older unsigned device driver may be
problematic
• Hardware Requirements
• OK for new systems
• May be too high to install on older
computer

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• When to Use Windows XP
• Preinstalled on new PCs
• Do your homework before upgrading old OS

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 Windows XP Professional Overview
• Choose XP Professional over Home if
• User needs to connect to the computer remotely
• Computer will be a member of a Microsoft NT
or Active Directory domain
• To easily recovery from a catastrophe
• To make individual files secure

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-10 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional
• Preparing for Windows XP Installation
• Ensure XP Hardware Requirements
• Minimum requirements
versus
• Recommended Minimums

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional
• Preparing for Installation (continued)
• Verify Hardware and Software Compatibility
• Windows Catalog
• Upgrade Advisor

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.01

Running the Upgrade Advisor

Page 210

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional
• Preparing for Installation (continued)
• Booting into Windows XP Setup
• Boot from CD
• Optionally create set of 6 setup boot diskettes
• Registration vs. Activation
• Registration: optional licensee information
• Activation: mandatory anti-piracy technique
• Microsoft Product Activation (MPA)
• Changes to Hardware may require reactivation

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional
• Getting Down to Business
• Windows Setup wizard will guide you
• Manual, clean installation takes about an hour

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.02

Installing Windows XP Professional

Page 213

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional
• Performing-Post Installation Tasks
• Verify Network Access
• Install Updates

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 Installing and Upgrading
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.03

Installing Updates

Page 219

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Creating New Partitions in Windows XP
• Good strategy:
• One partition for OS and installed applications
• Separate partition for data
• Create additional partitions before installing
applications

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.04

Creating a New Partition After Installation

Page 222

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Installing and Removing Apps in Windows XP
• Install a new application using its setup program
• Rarely need to use Add or Remove Programs
applet

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.05

Installing an Application in Windows XP

Page 226

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Installing and Removing Applications (continued)
• Remove a program using its uninstall
or
• Use Add or Remove Programs applet
• Never try to remove a program by deleting files

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Add or Remove Windows XP Components
• Use the Windows Components wizard from the
Add or Remove Programs applet in Control Panel

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Preparing the Desktop for Users
• Customizing Display Settings
• Use the Windows Components wizard from the
Add or Remove Programs applet
• Ordinary user can make changes to the desktop
• Administrator needed for more advanced tasks

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.06

Using the Display Applet

Page 231

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional
• Preparing the Desktop for Users
• Adding a Local Printer
• Attach a physical print
• Install the correct driver (creating a printer)
• Plug-and-play and non-plug-and-play supported

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 Customize and Manage
Windows XP Professional

Step-by-Step 5.07

Adding a Printer in Windows XP Professional

Page 233

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 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems
• Where to Find Help
• Windows XP Help and Support
• Other sources listed in Chapter 4
• www.microsoft.com/technet
• www.microsoft.com
• Internet search engines
• Perform Proactive Maintenance Tasks
• Create Backups and ASR Disks
• Backup often
• Create ASR disk sets using the Backup Utility

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 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems

Step-by-Step 5.08

Explore the Backup Program (NTBACKUP)

Page 236

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 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems

• Perform Proactive Maintenance Tasks (continued)

• Periodic Housekeeping
• Keep the computer ‘lean and mean’
• Avoid installing too many programs
• Remove unnecessary programs
• Remove unnecessary data and temp files
• Defragment the hard disk

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 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems
• Perform Proactive Maintenance Tasks (cont.)
• Create Restore Points for System Restore
• New in Windows ME; improved in Windows XP
• Preserves OS and program settings in restore points
• Create new restore points or initiate system restore
• Configure and Turn System Restore on and off for
individual drives

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 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems
• The Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Revisited
• Preparing for Stop Errors in Windows XP
• Write an Event to the System Log – recommended
• Send an Administrative Alert – useful in a domain
• Automatically Restart – recommended as long as
the first option is selected
• Writing Debugging Information – writes a dump
file. More useful for network server than for a
desktop.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-33 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems
• The Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Revisited
(continued)
• Troubleshooting a Stop Error
• Note the Stop error message and search
support.microsoft.com
• Apply solutions found in documents from
this search

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-34 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Troubleshooting Common
Windows XP Problems
• An Old Application Will Not Run
• Worked OK in older Windows
• Does not perform correctly in Windows XP
• Experiment with compatibility options
• Set manually in Properties dialog of program file
• Use wizard from Start | All Programs | Accessories
|Program Compatibility wizard

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-35 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Windows XP Professional Overview
• There are several Windows XP products, but
none of them is designed to be a true network
server operating system.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-36 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Windows XP Professional Overview
• The Windows XP Products include
• Windows XP Professional
• Windows XP Home Edition
• Windows XP Media Center Edition
• Windows XP Tablet PC Edition
• Windows XP Embedded
• Windows XP 64-bit Edition
• Windows XP Professional is the focus of this chapter.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-37 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Windows XP Professional Overview
• Windows XP Professional features and benefits
include:
• Desktop beauty and usability
• Speed, security, stability and compatibility
• File system support of NTFS5, FAT32, and FAT16
• New and improved recovery tools
• Last Known Good Configuration startup option
• Task Manager; Recovery Console; Safe Mode startup
• Device Manager; System Restore
• Automated System Recovery (ASR)

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-38 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Windows XP Professional Overview
• Windows XP Limitations include
• Limited hardware support (driver signing)
• High hardware requirements
• While Windows XP (Home or Professional) comes
standard on most PCs today, choosing it for an
upgrade of an older computer requires research to
ensure compatibility with the computer, other
hardware, and installed software

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-39 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Windows XP Professional Overview
• Choose Professional over Home
• To connect to the computer remotely
• To have computer join a Microsoft domain
• To be able to easily rebuild system
• To secure individual files

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 Chapter Summary
Installing and Upgrading Windows XP Professional
• Choose between an upgrade and a clean installation
• Hardware requirements include the amount of
disk space, memory, and processor required to
run an operating system
• The published minimum requirements for an
operating system may not be sufficient to run
additional programs and to store data.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-41 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Installing and Upgrading Windows XP Professional
• The Windows Catalog at www.microsoft.com/
windows/catalog is a searchable list of hardware
and software known to work with Windows XP
• Run the Upgrade Advisor and perform any
suggested tasks before upgrading to Windows XP
• No Setup startup disks are included with Win-
dows XP. If you need to make them, you must
connect to their web site and create them from a
program available there

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-42 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Installing and Upgrading Windows XP Professional
• To combat software piracy, Microsoft requires
that you activate Windows XP within 30 days of
installation.
• Registration is still optional.
• Soon after installing Windows XP, you should
verify network access and install new updates.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-43 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Customize and Manage Windows XP Professional
• To create and manage disk partitions, use Disk
Management in the Computer Management
console
• When you install new programs in Windows,
you will often use an installation program that
comes with the new applications.
• To uninstall a program, use the Add or Remove
Programs applet in Control Panel.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-44 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Customize and Manage Windows XP Professional
• Programs should be removed correctly using an
uninstall program.
• To add or remove a Windows component, use the
Windows Components wizard from the Add or
Remove Programs applet in Control Panel.
• Use the Display applet in Control Panel to ensure
that the screen resolution is set properly.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-45 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Customize and Manage Windows XP Professional
• ClearType is a new setting for FPDs.
• Windows XP supports both plug-and-play and
non-plug-and-play printers.

McGraw-Hill/Irwin 5-46 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Summary
Troubleshooting Common Windows XP Problems
• Help and Support Center is the new and
improved help program containing a large
menu of options.
• Proactive tasks include:
• Creating backups and automated system recovery disks
• Periodic housekeeping
• Creating restore points for System Restore.
• If an old application will not run, or causes problems
with the display, locate the executable file for the
application, and select options in the Compatibility
page of the file's properties dialog box.

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