Posted 10/03/09 at 10:29:49 PM by Justin Kerr

Microsoft announced today via its Windows Blog that it has released the final version Windows XP Mode to manufacturing, and it should be available for download on October 22nd, the day of the Windows 7 launch. Presumably the new version of Virtual PC is included in this RTM, curiously however, no mention of this was made. Microsoft has also not indicated if this would be available early for MSDN or TechNet subscribers, but let’s face it, October 22nd isn’t as far away as it used to be.

For those who haven’t yet hard about Windows XP mode, it’s a way for Windows 7 users to run applications within a virtualized Windows XP shell for compatibility reasons. Windows 7 RC users who want to give the beta version a test drive can still download the technical preview at the Microsoft Download Center up until the new version is released on launch day.

Want to learn more about Windows XP Mode? Check out our feature focus series which helps you make sense of all the new features.

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Posted 08/05/09 at 04:04:23 AM by Pulkit Chandna

Windows 7’s XP Mode has attained RC status. The RC build of Windows XP Mode is available as a download on the Microsoft Windows website. Windows XP Mode is designed to work in concert with Windows Virtual PC (formerly Microsoft Virtual PC) “to help ease the migration process to Windows 7 by providing additional compatibility for their older productivity applications.”

Windows XP Mode ensures that applications designed for XP run seamlessly on Windows 7. Although legacy Windows XP apps run from within a virtualized environment, they can be accessed in exactly the same fashion as native Windows 7 apps.

Windows 7 users will have to ensure that their CPU supports Intel Virtualization Technology or AMD-V for Windows XP Mode to work. It is also important to check whether hardware virtualization, if supported by the CPU, is turned on or not. If this feature is disabled, it will have to be enabled in the BIOS settings.

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Posted 07/14/09 at 01:30:00 PM by Mark Edward Soper

Although Windows has included the Program Compatibility Wizard and Compatibility tab to help older programs to run properly under the current version of Windows since Windows XP, these features are not always able to help older applications to run. While Windows 7 continues to offer these features, some editions can also use a better way to run older Windows applications: XP Mode.

Join us after the jump for an in-depth look at XP Mode: the FAQs, what it can do for you, who benefits most from XP Mode, and how to use its new features.

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