My 64 bit Averatec notebook came with Windows XP home preinstalled. Instead
of providing installation media, Averatec relies instead on Phoenix software
in a hidden partition to reinstall Windows XP if needed. They don't even
sell installation media for the notebook. I would like to perform a clean
install of Vista while still taking advantage of the upgrade pricing.
However, in the past, Windows upgrades I have performed have required the
insertion of previous version installation media to verify the users rights
to use an upgrade version. Can I perform a clean Vista upgrade without
having installation media from the prior version of Windows?

Thanks