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Computerworld - Microsoft Corp. today confirmed that it will sell what it calls "upgrades" for Windows 7 to users running the aged Windows XP operating system.

Those users, however will have to do a "clean" installation of Windows 7, meaning that all data on the machine will be lost.

"Regarding XP, customers can purchase upgrade media and an upgrade license to move from Windows XP to Windows 7," a company spokeswoman said in an e-mail this morning. "However, they will need to do a clean installation of Windows 7."

In a follow-up reply to questions, the spokeswoman fleshed out what Microsoft means by upgrade. "The 'upgrade' part is referring to the license," she said. "You will be able to get the discounted 'upgrade' license, but it will include full bits."

That's how David Smith, an analyst at Gartner Inc., interpreted "upgrade" in Microsoft's description of what it would offer XP owners. "They're talking about the upgrade price," he said, pointing out that most software vendors use the term upgrade to designate a lower-priced version aimed at existing customers.

Although Microsoft today spelled out the six planned versions of Windows 7, it declined to provide pricing for them, or for the XP upgrade licenses.

Typically, an operating system upgrade offers users the choice between an in-place migration of the machine -- including installed applications and all data -- and a fresh installation, which overwrites the hard drive's contents. When Microsoft launched Windows Vista in January 2007, for example, it offered those upgrade paths to people then running XP .

Smith and other analysts applauded Microsoft's decision to not provide in-place upgrades from XP to Windows 7. "I'm not a big fan of them," said Smith. "They're tough enough from one version to the next, and from two versions [behind], it would be pretty challenging, technically."

Michael Gartenberg, formerly an analyst at JupiterResearch and now a vice president of mobile strategy with JupiterMedia, agreed. "For most end users, it will probably mean that they end up with a more reliable installation," he said.

Microsoft benefits, too. "It makes life a lot easier for Microsoft by not having to support an XP to Windows 7 transition," said Gartenberg, who is a Computerworld.com columnist. "It means that it's something they can get out the door earlier."

Microsoft has been aggressively pushing Windows 7's timetable. Just two weeks after it launched the first -- and in the end, the only -- public beta of the new operating system, the head of Windows development said the company is moving directly to a "release candidate" version of the operating system.

But the process of upgrading a PC from Windows XP to Windows 7 won't be easy, Gartenberg predicted. "It's a double-edged sword. For many consumers who may be looking to go directly from XP to Windows 7, the idea of doing a clean install, backing up their applications, backing up their data, can lead to a lot of hassles," he said.

"Considering that there's a lot of XP out there, one has to wonder why Microsoft is taking this approach," Gartenberg added. "It's not going to be the simplicity of sticking a disc in the drive and upgrading. We'll have to see if that affects the upgrade market."

Microsoft said it was working on ways to help Windows XP users make the move, but it did not get more specific. "Microsoft plans to have other tools and ways to help people get through that process, but we don't have full details on that at this time," a company spokesman said today.

Read more about Windows in Computerworld's Windows Topic Center.