How to upgrade Windows XP to Windows 8.1

Next April 8th is the day when official support will be terminated as of dear Windows XP,thus giving, among other things, a boost to migration to more recent operating systems, and of course we include the newest Windows 8.1 among them.

So for Windows XP users who are thinking about a migration (remember that this is highly recommended because the system can be exposed to various vulnerabilities) we leave you with some interesting tips with which you can make an efficient migration to Windows 8.1 Shall we start?.

Migrating from Windows XP to a later version is important because, due to the lack of updates and support, you can be exposed to various vulnerabilities.

Minimum requirements, backup of our information and software compatibility

If you are considering an upgrade from a computer that was running Windows XP to a later version, it is inevitable to first see if it will be compatible with the new version of Windows , and in our specific case with Windows 8.1.

Here Microsoft makes clear from its official page the minimum requirements to run Windows 8.1, although an important clarification must be given. These requirements are those that Microsoft recommends so that the system can run smoothly, however, if we do not meet any other specific requirement, we could leave out some functions.

For example, we can use Windows 8.1 with screens of any resolution. However, if we do not have at least 1024 x 768 pixels, Modern UI applications will not work, although we will have full access to the classic desktop.

So going back to the minimum requirements, here we leave the list:

• Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster
• RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
• Free hard disk space: 16 GB (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
• Graphics Card: Microsoft DirectX 9 Graphics Device with WDDM Driver

I think it is clear to us that if the computer we want to update meets any of these points we would have to think about upgrading its hardware , or if it is a laptop, directly evaluate the purchase of anotherBut taking as an example that we do meet the minimum requirements, we must continue with the update.

The first thing we recommend, before doing anything, is the creation of such an important backup of our information Well, although we can install the new system without formatting our storage medium, its installation has to be 'clean' and we run the risk that due to some random error we could lose our information .

So it doesn't hurt to make backup copies of our data, either transferring the information to external storage media (such as hard drives, a flash drive, or DVD's), or bet directly on the OneDrive cloud and upload our content to the service so that, without making any additional movement, after installing Windows 8.1 we have our information available.

After backing up our information, another step that we cannot skip is verifying the compatibility of the software we used in Windows XP, Here we can do it in different ways, although the one we recommend is to check directly on the page of the program developer if there is compatibility with later versions of Windows.

Buying Windows 8.1

Once the pre-installation steps are completed, it's time to buy our new Windows 8.1. Here we have many ways to do it, but either from a physical store or from the web the price for Windows 8.1 is 119.9 euros or if we want the Pro version this go up to 279.99 euros

For both versions, if we choose to buy it from the Microsoft Store we will have the opportunity to purchase it physically (DVD) or downloadable.Although I personally recommend that even when it is downloaded, and we were to make a move like this transition from Windows XP, we generate a DVD with the operating system.

We start the installation of Windows 8.1

Once we have purchased our Windows 8.1 (or Windows 8.1 Pro) and having the key to activate it at hand, we insert the DVD or connect our bootable USB and from the BIOS we select one of these two as the first boot device to be able to start the installation of our new operating system.

Once the installation starts we will have the classic options available to select the country or region, and right after that the 'Install now' button that when pressed will take us to a window in which we will be able to choose the type of installation to perform.In our case, as it is Windows XP, we will not be able to use the 'Update' option so we must choose 'Custom'.

By choosing the 'Custom' option we will perform a completely clean installation of the operating system and No applications or settings will be savedthat we have had in Windows XP. Once this option is selected, we go to the window to select on which disk, or partition, we want to install Windows 8.1.

In this window we will have several options available, ranging from managing the partitions, or formatting any of them, to directly formatting a hard drive, deleting everything stored on it.

Here we will have several issues to analyze, and for those who decide to do a completely clean installation, it is advisable to format the partition, or hard drive, where the system will be installed, an option that it would imply the loss of our information stored there

But there will also be those who decide not to format the partitions, or hard drives, and install the operating system on one of these storage media, which would imply that all personal files will be kept in a folder called 'Windows.old' within the installation disk itself.

From a very personal point of view I recommend formatting the disk or partition where we are going to install our new system, but of course without forgetting to back up all the information well before starting the installation.

Once our disks, or partitions, have been managed and selecting where we want to install the system, the installation program will carry out various steps until finishing the installation by sending to its configuration. In these options we can select the colors with which we want to personalize our home screen, add a name to the PC, among other things.

Also, if we are connected to the Internet, we will be asked to log in with our respective Microsoft account to make use of the various services offered in Windows 8.1, and also to take advantage of OneDrive cloud storage by storing our images, documents and PC settings, backed up in the service.

Once these configurations are finished we will finally have Windows 8.1 fully installed, so all that is missing is, depending on whether or not we have formatted the installation disk or partition, transfer our documents back to the computer or review which ones we have available in the Windows.old folder.

Also another thing to do, once we finish with the configuration, is to install the necessary drivers to take advantage of all the hardware available on our PC When we install Windows 8.1, it includes a certain number of generic drivers for most hardware, but it is still advisable to do a thorough review of what drivers we need to install to activate all the devices on our computer.

Also, once the installation is finished, it will be necessary to re-install all the software we had in Windows XP but don't forget to check in the manufacturer's page if it is compatible with Windows 8.1 or not. Here the system has several options for unsupported software in 'Program Compatibility Troubleshooter', ranging from switch to compatibility mode, reduced color, run as administrator, and more.

And after all these steps and recommendations, we would have our new installation of Windows 8.1 running from Windows XP.Something that, as we said above, is highly recommended for all users of this old operating system, since the end of its official support and future updates may expose various vulnerabilities.

As a last piece of advice I would like to insist on the support of our information Well, many times in this type of migration, for some reason or another , errors can occur during installation, so it doesn't hurt to have all our important information and data on some external medium before doing anything.