Upgrading Home Premium 32-bit to Ultimate 64-bit **QUESTIONS**

Hi ALL,

I have just purchased the "RETAIL" version of HP Pavillion Elite m9150f PC,
which came loaded with Home Premium 32-BIT. I have Ultimate Upgrade Edition,
which came in 32-BIT and 64-BIT. After a visit to HP Shopping web site, I
found they sell the m9150f in the "PRE-BUILT" format, with the 64-BIT OS. I
have compared the 2 side by side, Retail vs. Pre-Built, and it appears the
ONLY difference between the two is the OS. Retail=32-BIT, Pre-Built=64-BIT...

Since I have purchased the Retail version, I would suspect the upgrade to
64-BIT OS, should be an upgrade option that will work with what I have
purchased.

Two Questions:

Q1: Is the 64-BIT version a better OS for the long haul, meaning now would
be the perfect time to make the switch, since I just purchased this system
and everything is factory default?

Q2: What is the Guru recommendation; Switch to 64 or Stay with 32, and why?

Looking forward to the responses and thank you!

Gunny

Theo
Tue Mar 04 13:24:20 PST 2008

There is absolutely no "upgrade" to the currently installed
OS from 32-bit to 64-bit. If you want to install Ultimate
x64, you will have to do a completely clean install; i.e.
delete current installation and install a NEW fresh
installation.

Which is better at the moment really depends on your
peripherals and software. You will need 64-bit drivers for
all hardware that require installation drivers. Most of
your 32-bit software should work on x64, but there are some
that won't Vista x64 requires "signed" drivers in ALL cases.




Seidell23231 wrote:
> Hi ALL,
>
> I have just purchased the "RETAIL" version of HP Pavillion Elite m9150f PC,
> which came loaded with Home Premium 32-BIT. I have Ultimate Upgrade Edition,
> which came in 32-BIT and 64-BIT. After a visit to HP Shopping web site, I
> found they sell the m9150f in the "PRE-BUILT" format, with the 64-BIT OS. I
> have compared the 2 side by side, Retail vs. Pre-Built, and it appears the
> ONLY difference between the two is the OS. Retail=32-BIT, Pre-Built=64-BIT...
>
> Since I have purchased the Retail version, I would suspect the upgrade to
> 64-BIT OS, should be an upgrade option that will work with what I have
> purchased.
>
> Two Questions:
>
> Q1: Is the 64-BIT version a better OS for the long haul, meaning now would
> be the perfect time to make the switch, since I just purchased this system
> and everything is factory default?
>
> Q2: What is the Guru recommendation; Switch to 64 or Stay with 32, and why?
>
> Looking forward to the responses and thank you!
>
> Gunny

Colin
Tue Mar 04 14:27:04 PST 2008

You can certainly migrate from x86 to x64. Whether you want to now depends
on what you use your computer for. Without knowing that no one can suggest
which version you might want to use today. It sounds like drivers and
utilities won't be an issue since those must all be available on the HP
website so it comes down to what you do with your computer.

Personally, I use Vista Ultimate x64 and enjoy it. An important factor in
that is the amount of memory I have. If your computer has 2GB I would think
you will be happier with Vista Home Premium. I cannot recommend VU x64 with
less than 3GB. The difference in performance between 3GB and 4GB is not
great, but the difference between 2GB and 3GB certainly is. If you have 2GB
add memory if you decided you want to use VU x64.

You will not be able to perform an upgrade installation of VU x64. You
should have no problem performing a custom installation, however. You will
need to reinstall all your apps and utilities and restore any files you have
to this point. You can use the Windows Easy Transfer wizard to save your
files and settings to intermediate storage and to restore after the custom
installation.

You should talk to HP support about the support implications of replacing
the pre-installed OS with one of your own. Even though Vista Ultimate x64
is supported on your model, the question is does it have to be pre-installed
by HP to be eligible for that support.

"Seidell23231" <Seidell23231@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:EB476A72-8CAA-4B73-B9E9-D89B564DEFFB@microsoft.com...
> Hi ALL,
>
> I have just purchased the "RETAIL" version of HP Pavillion Elite m9150f
> PC,
> which came loaded with Home Premium 32-BIT. I have Ultimate Upgrade
> Edition,
> which came in 32-BIT and 64-BIT. After a visit to HP Shopping web site,
> I
> found they sell the m9150f in the "PRE-BUILT" format, with the 64-BIT OS.
> I
> have compared the 2 side by side, Retail vs. Pre-Built, and it appears the
> ONLY difference between the two is the OS. Retail=32-BIT,
> Pre-Built=64-BIT...
>
> Since I have purchased the Retail version, I would suspect the upgrade to
> 64-BIT OS, should be an upgrade option that will work with what I have
> purchased.
>
> Two Questions:
>
> Q1: Is the 64-BIT version a better OS for the long haul, meaning now
> would
> be the perfect time to make the switch, since I just purchased this system
> and everything is factory default?
>
> Q2: What is the Guru recommendation; Switch to 64 or Stay with 32, and
> why?
>
> Looking forward to the responses and thank you!
>
> Gunny

Seidell23231
Tue Mar 04 16:17:00 PST 2008



"Colin Barnhorst" wrote:

> You can certainly migrate from x86 to x64. Whether you want to now depends
> on what you use your computer for. Without knowing that no one can suggest
> which version you might want to use today. It sounds like drivers and
> utilities won't be an issue since those must all be available on the HP
> website so it comes down to what you do with your computer.
>
> Personally, I use Vista Ultimate x64 and enjoy it. An important factor in
> that is the amount of memory I have. If your computer has 2GB I would think
> you will be happier with Vista Home Premium. I cannot recommend VU x64 with
> less than 3GB. The difference in performance between 3GB and 4GB is not
> great, but the difference between 2GB and 3GB certainly is. If you have 2GB
> add memory if you decided you want to use VU x64.
>
> You will not be able to perform an upgrade installation of VU x64. You
> should have no problem performing a custom installation, however. You will
> need to reinstall all your apps and utilities and restore any files you have
> to this point. You can use the Windows Easy Transfer wizard to save your
> files and settings to intermediate storage and to restore after the custom
> installation.
>
> You should talk to HP support about the support implications of replacing
> the pre-installed OS with one of your own. Even though Vista Ultimate x64
> is supported on your model, the question is does it have to be pre-installed
> by HP to be eligible for that support.
>
> "Seidell23231" <Seidell23231@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:EB476A72-8CAA-4B73-B9E9-D89B564DEFFB@microsoft.com...
> > Hi ALL,
> >
> > I have just purchased the "RETAIL" version of HP Pavillion Elite m9150f
> > PC,
> > which came loaded with Home Premium 32-BIT. I have Ultimate Upgrade
> > Edition,
> > which came in 32-BIT and 64-BIT. After a visit to HP Shopping web site,
> > I
> > found they sell the m9150f in the "PRE-BUILT" format, with the 64-BIT OS.
> > I
> > have compared the 2 side by side, Retail vs. Pre-Built, and it appears the
> > ONLY difference between the two is the OS. Retail=32-BIT,
> > Pre-Built=64-BIT...
> >
> > Since I have purchased the Retail version, I would suspect the upgrade to
> > 64-BIT OS, should be an upgrade option that will work with what I have
> > purchased.
> >
> > Two Questions:
> >
> > Q1: Is the 64-BIT version a better OS for the long haul, meaning now
> > would
> > be the perfect time to make the switch, since I just purchased this system
> > and everything is factory default?
> >
> > Q2: What is the Guru recommendation; Switch to 64 or Stay with 32, and
> > why?
> >
> > Looking forward to the responses and thank you!
> >
> > Gunny
>