Windows 7: Win XP Mode - Cannot start virtual application. The application is blo

Our office has an old program that we still need to use when upgrading our PC's to Windows 7. The program will run fine if you start a windows virtual PC and install and run it. However, based on the needs of our office, I need to be able to run Windows XP mode and simply have an icon for our users to click to take them to the application.


If I install the program in windows XP mode, and then add a shortcut to the file under all users/start menu, a shortcut is placed in the appropriate place on the windows 7 machine and I can copy that shortcut ot the desktop. The program runs fine until you restart the computer. Once you restart the computer and double click the link on the windows 7 desktop to the program running in windows XP mode, it says:


Cannot start virtual application. The application is blocked from running as a virtual application.




I read some other posts saying to put a new shortcut in the all users/start menu folder. This works, but only until our users restart their computer. The next time the computer is up, the problem happens again. This is not an acceptable solution to have to create a new shortcut for each workstation each time the computer is restarted.


Can anyone help me? I found some threads on various boards but none with solutions.


Thank you!

Have you tried re-downloading Windows XP

Hope that helps.

Win7Home.

Have a look at this page You cannot start a virtual application from its notification area icon in Windows Virtual PC for Windows 7

If it fails, do a system restore to a previous time before the update failure and try and find any updates that may cause the issue. (check if your on sp1)