"XP Mode" = simply VirtualPC + WinXP guestOS ? Seamless or full VM?

pstein said:

I am thinking about buying Win7 but want to clarify the feature "XP Mode".
As you know Win7 Home contains in contrast to Windows 7 Pro no "XP mode".
So I wonder what exactly this "XP mode" is.

If I take Win7 Home then install VirtualPC and install WinXP inside as a guestOS VM.
Is this the same as the "XP mode" in Win7 Pro?

Or is there something like a seamless integration of WinXP in Win7?

In other words: If I want to use 32bit WinXP programs in 64bit Win7 Pro with "XP mode" do I have to start

at first a whole lengthy VM and then the actual WinXP program inside this VM?
Or do I have to click just the 32bit WinXP just as if it would run in 64bit?

Peter

I now with Windows 7 Pro, Enterprise and Ultimate, when programs are run in XP mode, they run seemlessly. In other words, it appears as though they are running in Windows 7.

Although you'll have to start the XP Mode as a virtual desktop in order to install said programs into XP Mode.

I have, however, found very few XP programs that require XP Mode. Most (but not all) 32-bit Windows XP programs will run flawlessly on Windows 7 x64.

The only concern would be if the program in question makes use of drivers (like Alcohol, Daemon Tools, etc). The best choice here would be to rather get updated versions of these programs that are x64 compatible.

pstein said:

Dzomlija said:

Although you'll have to start the XP Mode as a virtual desktop in order to install said programs into XP Mode.

Ok, thank you for the answer.

But I would like to know how exactly to use 32bit programs in XP Mode.
Assume I have a portable program which comes WITHOUT installer.
On 32bit WinXP I simply double click on it to start it.

Can I just copy this program onto 64bit Win7 and double click on it as well?
Does 64bit Win7 AUTOMATICALLY recognize that this is a 32bit program and put/start it AUTOMATICALLY into "XP mode" mode?

Or do I have to tell Win7 in advance explicitely "Hey Win7 here is a 32bit program. Move it to the 'XP mode' world"?

Peter

XP Mode is not used to run 32-bit program on 64-bit Windows. 32-Bit programs, in most cases, will work unchanged in 64-Bit Windows, and no special "tell it to use XP-mode" is required. XP-Mode is there only for those few programs that don't work in Windows 7, regardless of what compatibility options you chose in the program properties page.

You will have to use XP Mode for older incompatible programs, and 16-bit programs or programs that use 16-bit installers.

If the program has an installer, then as I said before, open the XP Mode virtual Desktop, and install the program into Virtual XP.

If it's a portable program without and installer, then also open the XP Mode Virtual Desktop, and then copy the portable program to a folder on the XP virtual hard disk.

In either case, if you want to be able to then access the program from within Windows 7 via the start menu, just make sure that a shortcut in placed into the Virtual XP Start Menu under "All Users". From there you can "shut down" the virtual XP, and get to the program on your normal Windows 7 start menu.

chas56 said:

problem is how do you make sure that a shortcut in placed into the Virtual XP Start Menu under "All Users" if the program doesn't have an installer, ir if the installer doesn't allow you to make such choises, but instead just installs previous set defaults???????

Once you have opened "Windows XP Mode", do this:

1. Right-click the XP Start Menu, then select "Explore All Users"
2. Double-click the "Programs" icon
3. Right-click an unused parth of the folder (any part not containing an icon)
4. Click "New", then click "New Shortcut"
5. Follow the instructions to create a shortcut
6. Close XP Mode
7. The new shortcut will show on your Windows 7 Start Menu under "Windows Virtual PC"->"Windows XP Mode Applications"

Dzomlija has already given perfect answers to you, here's only a few small things to add from another VirtualPC user.

- Free to download XP Mode is exactly the same than installing XP from your own install media to a virtual machine. Both are fully functioning and working XP's running on a virtual machine. The only difference is that XP Mode is a fully licenced XP offered as a free download to those using Professional, Ultimate or Enterprise editions of Seven.

- It might surprise most of the new Seven users but Seven in fact runs most of the older software without problems. Even the 64-bit Seven. In some cases you have to use compatibility mode to get an older application to run, that's all. I even play one of my old favourite games, old 16-bit Railroad Tycoon, without problems on my 64-bit Seven Enterprise.

- For me, XP Mode's biggest advantage is it's ability to use old hardware no longer compatible with Seven. For instance, I have an old dia and negative scanner, so old there are drivers only to Win2000 and XP. The scanner is really good, working well, I really like it. I couldn't get it to run on Vista, nor could I run it on Seven x86 or x64. It runs perfecrly well when connected and installed on XP Mode.

- Also, XP Mode (as all VirtualPC virtual machines) includes a feature called Undo Disk. This works like a sandbox mode, letting me test various scenarious discarding all changes when turning virtual machine off.

I would like to say you are not going to need XP Mode to run most, probably all your older XP software. If you still want it, to be sure, remember you'll need Seven Pro, Ultimate or Enterprise. If you have Home edition, you'll need an XP with product key to install it to a virtual machine.

Kari