From XP SP3 and VistaSP1/SP2 to Windows 7

With the advent of Windows 7, users are bound to upgrade from Windows XP and even Windows Vista to the next iteration of the Windows client. For some, even XP’s SP3 or Vista’s SP1 and SP2 will not be sufficient an incentive to keep them away from Windows 7. However, in order to ensure a smooth transition, preparation is key for both home users and corporate customers. Of course, as market segments go, home users will have an easy task awaiting them, while companies will go through complex and painful evaluation processes lasting as much as a year and a half. Still, planning ahead is the right way to go, when preparing to upgrade from Vista, XP and previous releases of Windows to Windows 7.

As with Windows Vista, the biggest issues concern hardware support and software compatibility. Microsoft is promising that by making Windows 7 version 6.1 the vast majority of hardware products and software solutions currently tailored to Vista will continue to work seamlessly with its successor. At the same time, the Redmond company is engaging hardware and software developers to get their device drivers and applications ready for Windows 7 in due time.

Users that had a bad experience with upgrading from XP to Vista and subsequently ended up going back to XP will not have a better experience when moving to Windows 7. As a general rule, if XP-centric pieces of hardware or programs, did not work with Vista, they will not work with Windows 7 by magic. Users will need to make sure that the manufacturers and developers of their favorite devices/applications are offering support at least for Vista if not for Windows 7, and if not look for alternatives that do in case they will want to upgrade to the next version of Windows.

The best way to do this is to download a pre-release version of Windows 7, install it and check whether all the hardware components are supported. Next, users need to install the software that they use and check for problems. At the same time, it will be necessary for various devices to also be tested with the operating system. Seeing as Microsoft has cut access to Windows 7 Beta Build 7000 and discontinued downloads altogether as of February 12, 2009, testers will need to grab the Release Candidate version when it comes out. At the same time, consumers will need to be on the lookout for the Windows 7 Logo branded products, both software and hardware, once they come out, which will be guaranteed to work with the platform. Companies will have to take a similar approach.

“I know that the reality of customers’ deployment projects will typically take them 12-18 months of planning and testing before operating system deployments can begin,” stated Gavriella Schuster, senior director, Product Management for Windows Client. “Application testing and migration readiness typically takes a significant portion of this time. It also takes time for companies to standardize hardware, certify operating system images, select deployment tools and methods, as well as train end-users and IT for the new operating system. With this demand on time, plus the strains from today’s economy, our customers are under a lot of pressure. As a first step, we recommend our customers assess their environment to be in a better position to decide what OS they need to deploy.”

Schuster emphasized the need for testing and preparation. In this regard, she recommended that companies make an inventory of the software solutions in the enterprise environment. The next step will be to ensure, via application vendors, that support will be provided for the current Windows operating system (for the transition period) and Windows 7. Together with software, assessing hardware compatibility is also a critical step (guidance available here).

“This will help you assess the maximum length of time that you have to move from Windows XP to Windows 7. Then you should assess the level of application compatibility that your applications have with Windows 7 (we recommend you test your applications against Windows Vista as there will be a high degree of compatibility between Windows 7 and Windows Vista) – this will help you assess how many of your applications will need to be upgraded, remediated or replaced in order to work in your new operating environment. If you test your applications against the Windows 7 Beta, we recommend that for the mainstream OS deployment, you later test applications against the RTM (Release-to-Manufacturing) release. Here is guidance and documentation on performing your application compatibility testing,” Schuster added.