Help, Which OS Do I Need?

[Bisirko]

I have an AMD opteron 170 with the asus A8n32 deluxe SLI. Im gonna reformat my whimpy 80gb HD and I need a new OS for it. I heard I can get the full version somewhere for around 100 bucks, but i dunno what that SP1/SP2 stuff means, or which one to get cuz there are versions out there from 100-200 $ and they all read to be the same thing. I just want the full basic Home xp edition with updates and all, cuz im starting from scratch. Some1 give me some advice please. Plus I have an e-machines xp home key, can i get a copy from a friend and use that to save some money?

 

[DelJo63]

If you can get a copy of XP/Home SP2, DO SO NOW!

When you run the Windows Update from Microsoft the first time, you will
still get a TON of updates -- I did this for a friend and we DL/Installed 76 updates --
which is why we used my hispeed cable access to an ISP!

If you buy an official Box Copy of the OS, it will come with its own license key.

 

[Bisirko]

does it matter if its OEM or full retail version?

 

[DelJo63]

Not really, but the Retail will allow an install on almost ANY system.
The OEMs are ususally tailored to a specific hardware vendor.