Problems When Upgrading From Windows XP

• Windows Vista Home Basic and Premium Editions can be problematic when upgrading from Windows XP. Windows XP should be upgraded to at least Service Pack 2 (SP2) in order to upgrade to Windows Vista Home. Prior to upgrading the operating system, the user should download and install Microsoft's Vista Upgrade Advisor. Incompatible hardware and software, including antivirus software, can cause the installation program to hang.
  
  

Windows Update Errors

• Windows Vista Home editions require regular system updates in order to protect the computer from harmful software and Internet attacks. Windows Update writes temporary installation files when updating the computer. If the computer reports a Windows Update error 80070002, these files must be manually removed. Windows Update error 800f0826 indicates that an update has not installed correctly and requires troubleshooting on the computer owner's part.
  
  

Problems When Opening Files

• Windows Vista Home editions feature different folder structures and file permissions than previous versions of Windows. Users who do not have appropriate permissions to open files and folders must adjust settings in order to read or write to files. Other files may be encrypted. These files require the encryption certificate to decipher. Microsoft does not fully support Encrypting File System (EFS) on Vista Home Basic and Home Premium editions, so users must follow steps to encrypt and decrypt files.
  
  Windows Vista also altered the locations of common folders. In Windows XP, the documents folder by default could be located at \Documents and Settings\user name\My Documents. In Windows Vista Home Basic or Premium editions, this same folder is located at \Users\username\Documents.
  
  

Problems with USB Devices

• USB devices must have drivers that are compatible with Windows Vista or the devices cannot be used. Windows Vista Home Basic and Home Premium administrators can view any incompatibilities in the Device Manager, which can be found in the Control Panel.
  
  Devices may not work if they do not receive enough bandwidth. High-powered USB devices, therefore, may require direct insertion into a USB port instead of into a USB hub and may demand that all other USB devices be removed from the computer.
  
  "Bandwidth exceeded" error messages can be allayed by lowering the resolution of video camera streams.
  
  

Graphic Problems

• Windows Vista Home Basic and Home Premium editions use the Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM). The computer may have only one display driver installed, regardless of the number of video cards or on-board graphics chips in the system. In order to use multiple video cards for multiple monitor output, the video cards must either be the same model or feature the same graphics chipset and able to use the same display driver.
  
  The display driver determines the range of resolutions that can be displayed. Display drivers may need to be updated if the monitor is capable of only low resolution or if the display is corrupt.