1.) The academic version may come with some restrictions, including but not limited to being restricted to educational use (not personal or commercial) and being limited to use for as long as you remain a student. You'd need to check with the provider to find out exactly what the restrictions are. (Academic discount rate vs MSDN-AA vs volume licensing agreement is usually the determining factor.)
2.) An upgrade license may only be used to upgrade a qualifying version of Windows, NOT create a dual boot or other clean installation.
Sorry, but it looks like you'll have to purchase a license for your intended purposes.
John
is Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade (Academic) the same as the commercial version? im running Xp media center, can i use Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade (Academic) to create a dual boot system?

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