Windows Virtual PC can be installed on Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Ultimate, and Windows 7 Enterprise. It allows you to run multiple Windows environments such as Windows XP Mode from your Windows 7 desktop.

Windows XP Mode for Windows 7 makes it easy to install and run many Windows XP productivity applications directly from your Windows 7-based PC. It utilizes virtualization technology, such as Windows Virtual PC, to provide a virtual Windows XP environment for Windows 7. In other words, Windows XP Mode is a virtual machine package for Windows Virtual PC containing a pre-installed, licensed copy of Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3 as its guest OS.

Windows Virtual PC has the following new features :

• Easy setup of Windows XP Mode : Once both the Windows Virtual PC and the virtual Windows XP environment are installed, Windows Virtual PC provides a simple wizard to set up Windows XP Mode with just a few clicks.

• USB support : Users can access USB devices attached to the host directly from virtual Windows XP. These devices include printers and scanners, flash memory/sticks and external hard disks, digital cameras, and more.

• Seamless applications : Publish and launch applications installed on virtual Windows XP directly from the Windows 7 desktop, as if they were installed on the Windows 7 host itself.

• Folder integration between host and guest : Access your Windows 7 Known Folders: My Documents, Pictures, Desktop, Music, and Video, from inside the virtual Windows environment, such as Windows XP Mode.

• Clipboard sharing : Cut and paste between your Windows 7 host and any virtual machine.

• Printer redirection : Print directly to your attached printer from your seamless application or virtual machine.
  
  

The main steps in this articles are :

• Downloading and installing Windows XP Mode
• Downloading and installing Windows Virtual PC

Downloading and Installing Windows XP Mode

1. Click the following link to Download Windows XP Mode : Download Windows XP Mode
   
   
   
   
2. Download and save WindowsXPMode_en-us.exe on your Desktop. ( Note : The part of the name in red will vary for you depending on what language you selected in step 1 )
   
   
   
   
3. After the download is completed, double click on WindowsXPMode_en-us.exe , and click on Run when prompted to allow this file to run.
   
   
   
   
4. XP Mode setup files will start to extract into your system hard disk, and then the Welcome to Setup for Windows XP Mode will open. Click Next
   
   
   
   
5. The default install location of Windows XP Mode is C:\Program Files\Windows XP Mode, if you want to change the install location, then click on the Browse button and specify the new location. Once the location is set, click Next to continue
   
   
   
   
6. If you have UAC ( User Account Control ) enabled, then you will be asked if you want the setup to continue. Click Yes
   
   
   
   Once installation is completed, click Finish to complete the installation of Windows XP Mode.
   
   
   
   Windows XP Mode is now installed and the virtual hard disk is located in the path C:\Program Files\Windows XP Mode ( the location which was specified in step # 7 above ) .
   
   
   
   Now we need to install the runtime engine for Windows XP Mode to provide a virtual Windows environment for Windows 7. We need to download and install Windows Virtual PC

Downloading and Installing Windows Virtual PC

1. Click the following link to Download Windows Virtual PC : Download Virtual PC
   
   
2. Double click on the file you downloaded for Virtual PC, you might be asked if you want to install the KB958559 update for Windows, If yes, then click Yes
   
   
   
   
3. On the License terms page, click I Accept
   
   
   
   
4. Installing Windows Virtual PC will start
   
   
   
   Once installation is completed, click on the Restart Now button to reboot your machine.
   
   
   

 

Now that we have Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode installed, in my next article, I will be showing you how to run and use Windows XP Mode.

Summary

Windows Virtual PC is an optional component of Windows 7. It is the runtime engine for Windows XP Mode to provide a virtual Windows environment for Windows 7. Windows XP Mode is a virtual machine package for Windows Virtual PC containing a pre-installed, licensed copy of Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3 as its guest OS.

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