Datasheet

Preparing to Install Windows Vista

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Use the Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) version 5.0 or later to determine

the compatibility of your current applications with Windows Vista. ACT will determine

which applications are installed, identify any applications that may be affected by Win-

dows updates, and identify any potential compatibility problems with User Account Con-

trol and Internet Explorer. Reports can be exported for detailed analysis.

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If applications were written for earlier versions of Windows but are incompatible with

Windows Vista, use the Windows Vista Program Compatibility Wizard, from Start 

All Programs  Accessories  Program Compatibility Wizard. This utility is covered in

greater detail in the “Dealing with Incompatible Software Applications” section later

in this chapter.

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If the application is not compatible with Windows Vista, upgrade your application to

a Windows Vista–compliant version.

Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor

To assist you in the upgrade process, the Windows Vista Setup program can check the compat-

ibility of your system, devices, and installed applications and then provide the results to you. You

can then analyze these results to determine whether your hardware or software applications will

port properly from Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP to Windows Vista.

You can access the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor web page by launching setup.exe on

the Windows Vista media and clicking Check Compatibility Online. Alternatively, you down-

load it from http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/upgradeadvisor/

default.mspx.

When installing the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor, you may be prompted

to download and install Microsoft Core XML Services (MSXML) 6.0 or later

and .NET Framework version 2.0 or later.

After your computer is scanned, the Upgrade Advisor will determine whether any incom-

patibilities exist between your computer and Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, and Ulti-

mate. It will also tell you which edition of Windows Vista seems to be best for your computer.

However, you are by no means limited to upgrading to the recommended edition.

Compatibility reports are broken up into three categories:

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The System Requirements report will alert you to any shortcomings your system might

have when running certain editions of Windows Vista. For example, my lab computer

should have no problems accessing all the features of Windows Vista Business, but it won’t

be able to access all of the features of Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista

Ultimate because it doesn’t have a TV tuner card.

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The Drivers report will alert you to any potential Windows Vista driver issues. Each

device in your system will be listed in this section either as a device to be reviewed or as

a device that should automatically work after Windows Vista is installed. As shown in

Figure 1.1, we will need a driver for the network card after Windows Vista is installed.

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The Programs report will alert you to any potential application compatibility issues.

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