There's more than one way to migrate to Windows 7

[Airbot]

Microsoft is working on a new physical-to-virtual (P2V) tool for helping customers move legacy applications to Windows 7 using virtualization technology.

The latest migration tool in Microsoft’s arsenal — “P2V Migration for Software Assurance” — is a combination of the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) and the company’s Sysinternals Disk2 VHD product. Microsoft is currently beta testing the migration toolkit offering.
The P2V bundle converts customers’ existing Windows XP Service Pack (SP) 3 or Vista client environments to a virtual hard disk and then automates the delivery of a personalized Windows 7 containing a virtual machine with the previous Windows environment, apps and browser. The virtual desktop retains the management components, including domain membership and management policies, and makes availble users’ legacy settings via the Windows 7 start menu.

more at source..