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The typical way of installing an operating system from Microsoft is purchasing the full version and installing it over your old system or purchasing the upgrade without wiping your existing files. The company may not admit it in so many words but now unofficially supports using the "upgrade" editions of Vista to perform full installations.
According to Market Wire, Microsoft supports using "upgrade" editions of Vista SP1 to perform full installs. The fact that Microsoft conveniently "overlooked" locking this out shows the company is behind this, in order to get more people using Vista.
To use an upgrade disc to install the full version, first install it without a license key and then use the disc to "upgrade" the unactivated installation and enter the license key.
The "normal" use for a Vista upgrade disc would be to move from Windows 2000 or XP to Vista but the fact that Microsoft knowingly left this "hole" in the installation procedure shows it must, on some level, support the use of it.
Windows Secrets editorial director Brian Livingston says,
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"The fact that the company has not taken steps to remove the upgrade trick from Vista SP1 leads us to believe that Microsoft executives knowingly support the trick."
Indeed, the upgrade version of Vista costs about $130 versus $239 for the full version. The price sensitive and comptuer savvy consumer would buy the cheaper upgrade edition and use it to install the full version of Vista. Of course, using this method requires you to litterally install Vista, twice.
He adds,
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"There is no ethical dilemma with people using a feature that Microsoft has specifically programmed into Vista."
Microsoft may not have officially admitted it supports this feature but the fact that it is still possible to take advantage of it says it does on an unofficial level.
