Windows Installing Windows Vista...

So I'm getting Windows Vista Home Premium for my new PC next week and was wondering, first off, how to install it! I'm sure it's very simple, but I have little experience with computers.

Secondly, I want it so that there's no rubbish on it! I don't know exactly what is installed when I install Vista, but I'm sure there are plenty of things I won't need. I want to minimise the clutter on my computer and just have what I need installed. So any advice in that department would be great.

Thanks.

 

Hello,

I don't know your system specifications, but if your computer and peripherals can support it, I suggest in getting Vista 64-bit (Vista Home Premium 64-bit) instead of the 32-bit, if you don't have that already. If you have Vista 32-bit and would like to go to 64-bit, and unlock the full potential of your 64-bit CPU and allow you to support 4 and more GB of RAM, and enjoy a more finished product (I am not saying that 32-bit is any bad, I just find it less polish). If you want to go with 64-bit, and you have a RETAIL version of Home Premium you can order for FREE (depending on where you are you may been to pay a small shipping fee) at Microsoft main website the 64-bit version. I believe somewhere in the box or manual or paper should inform you of this, if not, well now you know. If you have an OEM (no nice box) 32-bit Vista and want to go with 64-bit, ask a friend for the OFFICIAL Vista 64-bit version disk (just the disk), any edition it doesn't mater, all disks are the same, its the product key that decide which edition to install. And yes it will activate just fine, Microsoft REALLY doesn't care, it's the same for them. Just remember to use YOUR product key when installing.

If you are scared in installing an OS, or it's your first time. Install and use on your current machine Microsoft Virtual PC http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/virtualpc/default.mspx, which is totally free. It's a virtual PC as the name suggest, you have a BIOS and everything. You can insert Vista DVD in your drive, and you can run Virtual PC, and tell it to boot from the drive and install the OS. The help documentation of the program is easy to understand, and it's really easy to make it work. Depending on your computer specification on how much RAM you give it to the performance of the OS on Virtual PC will vary. Now the idea is to no run Vista on, it's for you to check-out and see how the setup works. If you ask, Virtual PC doesn't touch your HDD. It uses it's own (it's HDD is seen by you as a large file) so if you format, it won't do anything to your computer.

Installing Vista is currently the easiest, among Windows version, to install.
You are greeted with a Vista look-alike interface setup with mouse and keyboard.

From what I remember (so don't panic if it's not the same thing exactly)
1 - You are greeted with a nice message on a window that asks you if you want to install Vista, or repair Vista.
2 - If you click on install, you will have the license agreement which you need to agree to continue the setup.
3- You will be asked to enter YOUR product key of Vista, and have a check box to allow Vista to automatically activate itself the second you have internet access.
4- It will ask you which partition on your HDD and which HDD you want to install Vista (almost like any software that you install under Windows)
At this stage you have a button that reveal more options. Inside you see described buttons which will allow you to install a driver (in the case that Vista doesn't see your HDD. This should not be needed on new and standard hardware, unless maybe you use an external (outside of the mobo SATA controller... but I am not sure and I don't' think so personally)), create and delete a partition, and quick format the selected partition. Then click on next, and wait 20-25min until it is done.

If you want a clean setup, I suggest to select the partition you want to install Vista and click on format. Now if you REALLY want a clean setup, remove the HDD form your computer and put it onto another computer, and normal format it from that computer.

About formatting, the general rule is bigger your HDD the more time it will take to format. If you click on format on a BIG HDD (like 200GB and more) that simply has 1 partition, like C:\ only, you feel that Vista setup "froze" just wait. It actually perform a quick format, it just doesn't give you feedback.
I suggest to create 2 partition. 1 C:\ of I don't know 50GB let's say, and D:\ with the rest. Use C:\ to install Windows and only Windows. and D:\ for your files and programs. Also don't forget to tell Windows to link "Music", "Video", "Documents", etc.. on your D:\ drive instead (this is done once Windows is totally installed, and can be done at anytime) This way if you need to re-install Windows for any reason at all, you don't need to backup anything. Now this say, I don't mean that you don't have to backup your data, as if your HDD fails your in screwed. But if you got infected by a virus or malware because you allowed a program admin right by mistake and you can't go "back in time" for some odd reason then re-installing the OS will be no worry. This dual partition can be done from Vista setup. If anything goes wont on the new partition, Vista comes with a partition manager program allowing you to repair the created partition and allow you to access it. This partition creation can be undone easily anytime, and it you do it once for ever, like you don't need to redo it every time you install Windows, once it's done it's done.

Hope this helps!
If you have any further questions don't hesitate to ask!

 

Wow, thanks for the helpful response. Really appreciate it.

First off, I will provide you with some info on my rig. It's an entirely new setup, Q6600, 4Gbs of Ram and a 640GB hard drive. And I will be installing Windows Vista Home Premium 64 bit.

So, being a person of little computer knowledge, I have some questions about what you said!

1. Is it necessary to install Microsoft Virtual PC? I don't really see whats the idea behind it! Are you saying run Virtual PC on my current rig (not the new one), and install Vista using that? It may sound stupid, but I really don't understand what it does!

2. You say if I want a really clean setup I should format it on another computer. Why can't I just do it while installing Vista?

3. Partitioning. Not exactly sure what this is either, but I believe it's just dividing the Hard Drive into different sections. Am I right? If so, how will that help in avoiding all the rubbish (in my eyes) that comes with Vista? Or is everything that is installed with Vista necessary?

I hope my questions are clear, and thanks again for the help.

 

So far it looks lke you need Vista 64-bit, as XP or Vista 32-bit will only see 3.5GB of RAM at most.

You said that you didn't know how to install an OS. So Virtual PC will offer you some PRACTICE. Of course it won't run smoothly on it, but the idea that I am saying, is to try, as you can still use your current OS (which I presume is XP), and be able to ask questions if any, before you jump to the real deal and REALLY install your OS on your machine.

I made a little example for you:
http://www.helpweaver.com/Virtual_PC.png
You can see I run Vista as my main OS, and have Windows XP under Virtual PC. (I have no use for this, I just use it to make sure my software runs under XP properly). But the idea is there. imagine you use XP as the main OS and in the a window you have Vista setup.
Now something I forgot to say, is that Virtual PC currently support only 32-bit OS. SO you can only install Vista 32-bit on it. But the setup for you to practice is THE EXACT SAME.

Because Vista setup only allows quick format. Which pretty much does "Select all files, then hit the delete key". And not position every magnet on teh HDD to position 0.

Yes it split Your HDD on 2 or more parts (like you want). As for the second part... ok let me re-explain. The IDEA, is to have 1 partition with Windows Vista and only Vista. That means you have Vista and everything is comes with it INSIDE that partition. Then you have another partition where you put your software, games, music, videos, picture, data, documents, etc...

You know what... screw that part, and the day that it will arrive that Windows has an issue and require to re-install, and you have A LOT of files... just be prepared with another computer to transfer your files, and a tower of DVD's to backup everything, as you will lose everything if you re-install Windows.

 

1: No it isn't necessary but if you want to see what is involved in setting up Vista before actually doing it on your new PC then you could try that.

2: If it is a new HDD then it is already clean, no need to format in another PC first.

3: You are correct, it is just a way of dividing up the HDD so you can have Vista on a separate part to the rest of your data so if something goes wrong with Vista you can just format the Vista partition and re-install Vista without losing your other data that is on the other partition.

I have recently asked questions about partitioning in this thread which might help.

Go into BIOS and make sure the first boot device is set to CD-ROM (this still means DVD even if not mentioned) and secondary boot device is set to HDD, save and exit with the Vista disk in the drive.
As there will be no boot files on the HDD it will automatically boot from the CD/DVD, if it asks you to push any key to boot from CD/DVD then push any key, don't do a Homer Simpson and look for the 'any' key, I just push the space bar.

When you go to install Vista you will get to the point where it asks you where you want to install it and you will see your HDD listed, until you partition it it will be listed as 'Device 0 unallocated space'.

There will be a drive options selection on the bottom right of the window that you can click on and that will allow you to set the partition size that you want if you want to partition it.
Lets say you wanted a 100GB partition for Vista and all programs and the rest of the space for everything else, you set the first partition as 100GB, Vista will do as told, you then select the rest of the HDD which will be listed as unallocated space and enter the remaining space, Vista will partition it to that size, if you want more partitions then just enter the size of each in turn.
You can then select to format each partition, though I don't think that is necessary as I think Vista does that when it creates the partition.
You then select the first partition, it will highlight it and you then select next to install Vista there, don't try installing Vista on the second partition (or any others) it needs to be on the primary partition which should be labelled 'primary partition'.
When Vista restarts your PC may ask you again to push any key to boot from CD/DVD, do not push anything, after a few seconds it will boot from the HDD and continue setting up Vista.
Everything else should be straight forward from then on, setting time and date, network options, desktop wallpaper, username and password etc.

If you don't want to partition it then you don't need to click on the drive options, you can just make sure the HDD is highlighted and click next, Vista will prepare the HDD and start installing, it is all automated from there and will restart when needed, once Vista starts for the first time you will be asked to enter a few details like time and date, network security options (I select public which makes it more secure but makes connecting it to another PC harder as it won't be detectable on a network).

 

I think I understand everything now.

Just another small couple of things:

When partitioning, how much should I allocate for the Vista partition? Do I need a certain amount of extra space for windows updates and such?

I see you say you partition for Vista and all programs. Is there any benefit of having all my programs installed on the same partition as Vista?

And finally, is it possible to undo a partition?

 

Yes. And also to carry your video/audio codecs (32 and 64-bit), shared files that some software installs.

50GB (51 200 MB)

Some application run without requiring to install. This is great incase you don't have time to re-install everything at the moment where you re-install Vista. Also, you have all your programs that you use, so that when you have time to re-install everything, you don't have to worry about what program you used, and then forget one or two, until the day you need to use, and you have to go and get it, install it, and waist time and makes everything annoying. Then if you know what program you use, then you can re-install everything in one shot and never talk about that re-install ever. Back when we were using Windows XP, it was important as it it carried the program configuration. But thanks to Vista order was done to chaos, and now all software configuration are located in C:\Users\<your name>\AppData\Roaming for your account, and C:\Program Data, for configuration that affect all accounts.

Yes, but it is not recommended to do this once you have data on your partitions, as data loss could occur during partitioning or removing a partition.

 

So I should create a 50GB partition for Vista and all my programs?

And what sort of programs should I install into that partition? Anti-Virus? Anti-Spyware? What else?

And a semi-related question: Is it wise to install a lot of games onto my HDD? Currently my drive is only 120GB and so a lot of the time I have to uninstall some games to free up space. So if I installed a lot of games onto my new 640GB hard drive, would performance be affected? (Probably a stupid question, but when you know nothing about computers, it needs to be asked!).

Thanks again.

 

Well, I'd have said 80-100GB but that's just what you prefer. Vista will use about 20-30GB when fully installed. I think 50GB will be good enough.

Just about that, as they'll need reinstalling anyway with Windows.

On NTFS (Windows NT File System) which is used by Windows XP and Vista, there is no performace degradation when the drive is full, but on the older filesystem, FAT32, used by Windows 95/98/Me, there was. On the other hand, drives do always get fragmented, and fragmentation occurs more when the drive is more full. Windows comes with a built-in defragmenting tool, which needs about 15% free space on the drive to completely defragment the drive.

Shortly: Yes, it is wise. There is no performace affect, if you remember to defragment the drives.

 

Well defragmenting is done once a week automatically in Vista if you leave your machine turn on 24/7 and in idle.

Once you successfully installed Vista 64-bit, pleas tell us. I have a little note to mention once done.

 

Thanks for the replies. Really helped me understand what to do!

I will hopefully be receiving all the parts for my rig this week so when everything's up and running, I'll let you know.

 

Front tip: If your hard drive has a lot of activity on it's own in Vista. Don't panic.
That is just Windows that index your harddrive for instant search to work properly. Leaving your computer turn on over night, should be enough to let Windows finish it's task. Also remember, that this only occurs when your computer is in idle.

 

IbramGaunt, I Noticed you had some questions about an upcoming install of Vista. It looks like the folks in this room have done a good job with their advice to you. I wanted to let you know that I work with the Vista Outreach Team, and we are trying to provide the community with helpful resources and information. For now I will pass along this performance and tuning guide to help you get Vista up and running after your install. Have a look at this link and download this guide, I think you find it quite helpful. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...98-a637-432c-a3c8-1607ab629201&DisplayLang=en If there are more specific concerns/questions, I would be happy to help anyone out with that.

Good luck
Rick

 

wow, you are from Microsoft?

erm, my 64bit Vista's 32bit sidebar stopped showing up, just launch, and then quits according to process explorer. so im stuck with 64bit sidebar at the moment, meaning no MSN list any tip on how to get 32bit sidebar working again?

i understand you are not from help and support, just asking for a tip or two

had a scan through the document, there's always something that bugs me: "sleep is the new off state"
there's nothing can replace a full restart. i run my system 24/7 with Folding@home on GPU and BOINC on CPU. but every day, i try to make sure the system does a full normal restart. this insures RAMdisk is updated, sys tray settings are remembered and a few other small things.
Vista starts up very fast, so why does Microsoft insist on using Sleep as default shutdown button?

 

Everything mentioned on the above Microsoft document is all great stuff and approved by me.

Additional optimization can be done with your SATA HDD. You can enable advance performance mode for it.
To do this: In "control Panel" > "Device Manager" > "Disk Drives" > Double click on your HDD > go to the "Policies" tab Check the bottom checkbox "Enable advance performance". You need to restart your computer to take affect. Although I recommend to ONLY do it if you have an excellent Power Supply, with a good real power surge bar, and using a good motherboard (no external SATA controllers), or backup battery. Also that you backup all your important files a lot of times. Personally, I had MANY power surges (10-15), and did not lose any data. But I might be lucky.

 

Easy, Control Panel > Power Options > on the green side column click on "Choose what the power button do". Enjoy!

With Vista it should not be needed. It's been since last Windows update that requested to restart the computer that I did it. It's been like a month or about, and the system still run smoothly here.

It's better to leave the computer turn on then turn it off for all your hardware. Unless you don't use much the computer.
Everyone is tired of the slow startup of the Video card BIOS, BIOS, Windows... sleep mode allows you to startup your computer and directly get on the game, no wait. Vista new Sleep mode only uses a few Watts to be used, so you save on your electricity (if it's expensive) and have a very close effect as if your computer is turn on.
All my computer run 24/7. I have this Pentium III 800Mhz that I got in 1998 I believe, and still works today and used today by my mother. That is 10years! with an average PSU, and low-end motherboard.

 

LOL, that power setting is the 2nd thing i did after install Vista.

you haven't been running Folding@home on your GPU then, Goodbytes. nVidia's driver is not very stable when running F@H, some times when playing video files, it comes up with blue screen and dreaded nvkl(something).sys error. do you know that i run RAMdisk which only saves on each restart? that means whatever i save on it will only be persistent if i restart the computer once. so a crash is fatal and sleep doesn't help.

the shutdown button has always been point of argument, for Vista, and i don't blame people. some prefer very fast resume, some prefer to make sure the computer to save all data. i personally think Microsoft should play on the safe side rather than just try to be fast.

 

If you don't usually have your computer on 24/7 (only my Linux webserver is on 24/7) then the 'sleep' state is a waste of electricity and MS should be prosecuted for their environmental irresponsibility.

"But it's only a few watts!" I hear you say. Multiply that by the millions of computers that only enter a sleep state under Vista and you've got thousands of tonnes of CO2 entering the atmosphere every day.

It's not irresponsible, it's bordering on environmental terrorism!

Andy

P.S. Just in case you think I'm a raving greenie, I work in the nuclear industry in the UK.

 

Just wanted to say, good post!

 

Thanks!

What CO2?! We use Hydro electricity here!