operationg system requirement

I am in the process of learning SQL from scratch and figure it would be helpful if I can run a local server and experiment with it as I move along some book reading. I have a few questions regarding the operating system requirement for running a localhost server and hope some of you can answer to my novice questions. Can I setup a server under Windows XP? when I looked thru the documentation it indicated only windows 2000 and other Microsoft server OS will support a SQL server setup. Why then it also indicate XP as compatible? Is it because it's compatible as a client? If I do have to run a server under a different operationg system, what is the best approach for setting up another server on my only PC system along with my XP. Thanks for any answers and comments in advance.

Are you talking about SQL 2005? XP does support SQL 2005, but it depends on which edition you have. See the following link for more information about which edition is supported on which OS. http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinfo/sysreqs/default.mspx

|||I'm not completely clear on whether I'm covered for a developer edition
Does "Windows XP with SP 2 or later" mean that the media center edition 2005 should suffice?
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Short answer: Yes.

Please see topic "Hardware and Software Requirementse for Installing SQL Server 2005" for more information.

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143506(SQL.90).aspx

|||Short Answer: Thanks
|||so with an athlon 64 X2 dual Core processor 3800+ 2Ghz I should be ordering the
x64 developer version rather than win32? Or would the latter also work (and be compatible with an older processor)
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x86 can install on X64 machine, but you should install x64 version if you can.