What is xp mode on windows 7 professional

The setup program will install the files to the directory. After it has completed, click Finish to end setup. Back in your browser, under the Step 4 heading, click the 'Download and install this second: Windows Virtual PC' button. Choose to open the file when prompted.

Click 'Yes' when prompted if you want to install the Windows software update. Review the licensing terms and click 'I Accept'. Windows 7 will proceed to install the required updates. When installation has completed, you will be prompted to Restart Now.

Take a moment to ensure that you have saved anything you were working on before you continue. Read over the licensing agreement and click 'I accept the license terms' checkbox and then click Next when ready to proceed. You will be prompted to enter a password for your Windows XP Mode virtual machine login.

Pick something easy for you to remember, type it into both fields, and then click Next. The next screen will ask if you would like to enable automatic updates or not. This is recommended, so click enable and the click Next, and then Next again on the following screen. Setup will finish up the installation and launch Windows XP Mode automatically. Yes, it does. Yes No.

Not Helpful 1 Helpful Sure, it's important to have some amount of compatibility for regular commercial software, but major applications are supported and actively maintained, so they can be upgraded, or replacements sought. No such joy with the line-of-business application. If it gets broken by an operating system upgrade—or even a Service Pack or security patch—then there's little option but to refrain from upgrading.

One strategy companies have used to free themselves from the problems of such applications has itself caused even more compatibility headaches. Many businesses have redeveloped their essential applications to be delivered through a Web browser, in principle relieving the operating system dependence.

Unfortunately, these Web apps have all too often suffered the same fate as their desktop counterparts, leaving them locked in to a particular version of a particular browser. Worse luck for Web developers; it's normally version six of Internet Explorer. The result ends up being the same; companies have to stick with software that's well past its use-by date, because if they upgrade, important things stop working. This problem has been a thorn in Redmond's side for many years.

It's great for Microsoft to have this entrenched, committed user-base, of course—it's a great money-maker—but it serves as a huge restriction on what the company can do. Change Windows or IE too much, and these essential-but-awful applications stop working. That becomes an even bigger problem when the changes are essential, such as fixing security flaws or improving general security robustness.

The issue really came to a head with the release of Windows Vista. I found installing and working with the Windows XP Mode to be significantly easier and more satisfying than any other virtual computing environment I have used. Millions of consumers still rely on Windows XP and Microsoft is banking on them making the switch to Windows 7.

It is bad enough that there is no seamless upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7. The least Microsoft could have done was to provide consumers with Windows XP Mode to make the transition smoother.

Tony Bradley is an information security and unified communications expert with more than a decade of enterprise IT experience. The only difference I have noticed is based on how much RAM that you allocate to the virtual machine. But if you have sufficient RAM on the host so you can allocate 2GB for the guest, it's just like another computer. Should you ultimately take the plunge and try XP Mode and have technical questions, the real virtual experts are at:.

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