up2date from RH 7.1 to 9?

Hi,

Hope this is an appropriate question for this forum.  I looked through 
the Red Hat website for this info, but this mailing list was the closest 
I could get to it.

I am currently running RH 7.1 with a demo RHN subscription.  Is there a 
way for me to use up2date to make a smooth transition to RH 9?  If I 
install RH9 without up2date, will I trash all of my config files?  
Basically, is there a less painful way to upgrade than archiving my old 
7.1 filesystem and configuring the RH9 packages one by one over the next 
few weeks as I realize I need them?

Thanks in advance,

Mark
[email protected]