XP-Pro is aimed at office usage...
o Management via Remote Desktop
---- Thin-Client terminal server
---- view & control your desktop screen literally on your laptop
o Management via Remote Installation Services for offices
---- useful to remotely install the OS on a client system
o Domain capability, not just workgroups
---- need to VPN over TCP/IP to an Office LAN Domain?
-------- then you require XP-Pro (and ideally a few utils too)
-------- allows you to logon to Active Directory Domains
-------- roaming profiles allow your settings to follow you
---- simply want to create a home workgroup of PCs?
-------- then XP-Home will suffice
o Group security for multiple users such as PC share in offices
---- need to put different users in different groups re capability?
-------- then XP-Pro re Backup Operators, Power Users, Replicator etc
---- simply want home users to logon with different settings
-------- then XP-Home delivers with each effectively Administrator
o Enhanced shares for office environments
---- XP-Pro allows hidden administrative shares
o True multi-CPU support
---- XP-Pro will support 2 physical processors, XP-Home only 1
---- XP-Home does support Hyperthreading of course
o Automated System Recovery -- basically a Backup utility
---- XP-Pro includes it, XP-Home for some jackass reason lacks it
---- that said it is not a substitute for a proper backup
---- but useful considering the time to re-install XP-Pro + bug fixes
---- alternatively its omission is great for midnight pizza delivery firms
o Dynamic Disk Support -- RAID for office PCs
---- XP-Pro supports S/W RAID -- but only on data disks
---- for RAID support a disk is made Dynamic, but the System can not be
---- so it is not possible to create a higher availability RAID-1 System
Disk
---- RAID is not a substitute for a backup, indeed it often necessitates
one
o IIS web server -- for those who can't Apache
---- IIS 5.1 is included in XP-Pro, not in XP-Home
---- useful for home LAN & if masochistic hosting subject to broadband
up-limits
---- masochistic because if you think Windows has security bugs, wait till
you...
o Security for Office Administrators
---- XP-Pro offers Group Policy Objects - allowing file-level access
control
------- so Administrators can deny access to things on a whim
---- XP-Pro allows encryption - useful to some
o Network Monitor
---- ironically a bad omission at least for deeper home LAN bug hunting
---- then again Windows lacks a lot of basic Unix functionality anyway
So for most games & software there is no disadvantage,
XP-Home is also somewhat cheaper than XP-Pro.
Remote Desktop sounds good but...
o Both machines need to be on, running & logged in
---- remote desktop is not quite remote login
o So a simple 2-port KVM still has benefits
The only real loss of XP-Home over XP-Pro is the ASR, the Automated
System Recovery - which is a useful tool when Windows jumps out of one.
If you ever plan on a dual CPU PC or connecting to an office domain,
then XP-Pro would be useful - except MSFT will "obsolete it" soon.
Considering the price difference is large, more RAM or a spare HD?
