Member Avatar for amyb

I am currently running windows ME on my home Compaq PC. After many many hours of grief I finally purchased windows XP home to use instead. I want to completely rid my computer of ME first and then put on XP as the new operating system. I know this has probably been asked numerous times but could someone help me out and tell me how (or where I can go to find out how) to uninstall windows ME? Thanks.

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For : Windows ME does not have a built-in "uninstall" path to roll it back to nothing. A clean Windows XP install is the right approach (as pointed out). 's linked walkthrough is useful for step-by-step setup; the notes below cover preparation and common pitfalls specific to older Compaq systems that often get missed.

Key prep checklist before starting: back up personal files (documents, photos, browser favorites, and mail). Export or copy mail and address-book data from whichever client is in use rather than relying on program reinstall later. Use the Compaq/HP recovery utility to create recovery media if the OEM recovery partition exists and should be kept. Record installed software product keys and the XP product key/label. Download and save device drivers (chipset, network, video, audio) for the exact Compaq model to removable media so networking will work immediately after install.

Install notes and cautions: confirm the PC meets XP minimum specs (CPU, RAM, disk space) and whether the XP copy is retail/full or an upgrade—upgrade media can require different steps. Choose a clean/custom install; create an NTFS partition for the best stability and security. If the recovery partition is removed during partitioning it cannot be restored without discs, so burn recovery media first. After setup, install the chipset and NIC drivers, then run Windows Update and the latest service packs before restoring files and installing applications.

Post-install checklist: verify Device Manager for unknown devices, install vendor drivers in the recommended order (chipset first), reinstall antivirus and critical apps, and restore backed-up data. If any hardware lacks XP drivers on the Compaq site, check the chipset vendor or component maker for legacy drivers. These steps reduce downtime and avoid the common “no network after install” trap that slows most ME-to-XP migrations.

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Member Avatar for alc6379

All you really want to do is format your hard drive, and reinstall Windows.

If you've backed up all of your data, this shouldn't be a problem. As it happens, I just posted these instructions for another user:

http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?dn=1089352

This page is from Dell, yes, but it should work for a Compaq. The instructions for installing Windows change little from OEM to OEM.

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