Download Extra Windows 7 RC Features: Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC

Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC are the secret features Microsoft has been holding back, tucked away for the Release Candidate of Windows 7. On April 30, 2009, the Redmond company made the Beta builds of Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC for its MSDN and TechNet subscribers. On May 5, the Beta development milestones became available for the public. Together, the two solutions come with the promise of 100% compatibility for Windows XP applications in Windows 7 running on computers with hardware virtualization capable processors with AMD-V or Intel VT turned on in the BIOS.

“Windows XP Mode for Windows 7 makes it easy to install and run many of your Windows XP productivity applications directly from a Windows 7-based PC. It utilizes virtualization technology such as Windows Virtual PC to provide a Virtual Windows XP environment for Windows 7,” Microsoft revealed. “Windows XP Mode provides a 32-bit Windows XP Professional Service Pack 3 (SP3) environment pre-loaded on a virtual hard disk. Client virtualization software, like Windows Virtual PC is a pre-requisite to use Windows XP Mode.”

With Windows XP Mode users will be essentially getting a free, virtualized copy of Windows XP Service Pack 3 to run as a guest operating system in Windows 7, in a Windows Virtual PC virtual machine. XP Mode is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors and is supported only on the Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions of Windows 7. Microsoft recommends that Windows XP Mode be used only on machines with at least 2 GB of RAM.

“Windows Virtual PC has a number of exciting features including: Seamless Applications: Launch applications installed on a virtual machine directly from the Windows 7 desktop, as if they were installed on the Windows 7 host. Simplified UI: Enhanced UI that is easy to use. Integrated with Windows 7 Explorer. Integration Features: Allows clipboard sharing, drive sharing, and printer redirection between Windows 7 and the virtual machine. USB support: Users can access USB devices attached to the host, directly from virtual machines. These devices include Printers and Scanners, Flash Memory/Sticks and External Hard Drives, Digital Cameras, and more,” Microsoft revealed.

According to the Redmond company, Windows Virtual PC comes with support for the following host operating systems: Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Enterprise. When it comes down to guest platforms, users will be able to run: Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) Professional, Windows Vista Enterprise Service Pack 1 (SP1), Windows Vista Ultimate Service Pack 1 (SP1), Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Enterprise. Windows Virtual PC is available in both x86 and x64 variants.

In addition, Microsoft is offering RAIL QFE Beta Windows XP SP3 and RAIL QFE Beta for Vista SP1. When installed in virtual machines with XP SP3 and Vista SP1 guest operating systems, these packages permit Windows 7 users to run XP and respectively Vista applications straight from Windows 7, scrapping the need for Windows Virtual PC.

Windows XP Mode Beta, Windows Virtual PC Beta, RAIL QFE Beta Windows XP SP3 and RAIL QFE Beta for Vista SP1 are all available for download via this link.