With my new server, I kept being told that XP doesn't support such a large drive. They kept telling me to use 2003 Server--at around $700. Then I rememberd that I blasted Vista away from my desktop system to backup data on the entire hard drive during the transition--with no plans of reinstalling it...just letting it sit.
Well, they then said, Yes, it *should* work! So I installed it and, as I was expecting, it did not active on its own. So I call in and have to enter a ~54 digit installation ID code (lol). Then, I explained the situation and the helpful individual read me back a ~54 digit code to tell Vista I'm a good guy--that I'm okay.
So here's the problem: I have 3 320GB drives in use for temporary backup of some data. Vista is currently on an old 20GB drive. When I get all three drives moved to the new array, I would like to take the 3 drives, set them up in a RAID5 configuration (SATA), and then install Vista on them. This way, I will have redundancy at the OS level--which includes my MySQL database and email server database among other things.
The problem is that with the Vista Home Premium Upgrade disc, I end up with very strange issues. First: will it even give me the option to reinstall? If not, I'll have to setup the new array, install XP, then install Vista. It needs XP installed to be happy. Then, I wonder if I'll have to call Microsoft again? It will be the same system as the 2nd install so it may activate, but who knows?
Anyone with some Vista experience would be helpful to me right now.
P.S. With the RAID5 setup, I have the option of either using the 4-port onboard SATA RAID or a 4-port Addonics RAID card I have from my old server. I'm thinking they are both moreless software raid. The card was ~$50.
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Topic: Windows Vista Reinstall Question? (Read 1444 times)