I was wondering if installing an OEM version of XP home would work on parallels. Specifically this version: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=335878&sku=M17-7500
It looks like an older version that does not include SP2. You can always download SP2 from the Microsoft Site if this copy is genuine, but you could save yourself a lot of work by buying a current copy. In general, avoid versions that say (for example) Dell OEM. They will only work on Dells. There is also a general OEM liscence, which I guess is for all those people who build non-branded PC's in their garages. That may work, but this license can only be installed on one machine and is not portable if you ever need to move it to a new machine. Also avoid buying "upgrade" versions. They will check for a current winddows OS on the virtual hard drive. Look for a full version. If you buy a full retail version, it is portable. You can still only run it on one machine at a time, but you can reinstall it on a different machine if you need to. Sometimes you can find good deals on the full retail version on e-bay, but it is buyer beware. There are a lot of counterfeits out there. The only way to know for sure that a particular one will work (unless you are getting it through a known major retail channel), is to buy it and try it, and run it through Micrsoft's antipiracy software, which they will prompt you to do before being able to get updates.
For $139 you can get XP Pro SP2 from the same source: <http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=335900&sku=M17-7502>. More money but less chance of a problem. David
