Some Questions About Downgrading to XP

Sorry if any of this is very obvious, but I am a noob when it comes to operating systems.

I just got an ASUS M50SV-A1, and am interested in getting rid of vista, and going back to XP.

Assuming that I have a XP Pro CD, do I just put in the CD, boot up my machine and it will give me the proper instructions, format my drive, etc?

I have a serial#, but I still need to activate it, no? Does Microsoft still have that thing where you call them, say you are downgrading, and then they will activate your XP copy?

I should be able to download the iso and burn it from msdnaa, but am having some problems. Is there a reliable place/way to get it anywhere?

If for some strange reason I want to put Vista back on, can I do so with the recovery DVD that came with the system? I heard somewhere that the vista files are simply on a hidden partition, and that the recovery DVD only helps to access that, but XP installation would remove it, and I couldn't go back to vista. Is that true?

 

bumb. anyone help me with this?

 

1. download and burn on a DVD XP drivers for all your hardware. Make sure, they even exist. If some important drivers are not available, stick with Vista.

2. Try inserting XP CD and install, as prompts suggest. If there are problems, format HD and then do clean install.

3. Recovery DVDs often have complete OS and will install on clean hard drives. I don't know of producers that ship recovery DVDs that require hidden HD data.


I find Vista no different from XP, if you have 2GB of RAM and disable all the junk Vista services.

 

You need Vista Business or Ultimate to be eligible to downgrade using your Vista license. Alternatively, depending on where your XP disc came from, you may or may not be able to use the license that came with the XP disc, if it came with a license. (If it came with another computer, then you can't use it.)

You also may need to obtain SATA drivers, and maybe slipstream them. I'm not sure about the details on this... try a search, it's been discussed in plenty of other threads.

Then you'll need to find all the drivers for your other hardware, of course.

I agree with the above poster that unless there's some program that absolutely won't run in Vista even in compatibility mode, you're making your life more difficult by trying to downgrade to an OS that's probably not supported on your computer by the manufacturer (although perhaps it is; I don't really know).