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24 Chapter 1
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Planning for the Installation of Windows 7
Virtualization Considerations
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) has come a long way in the past few years. In short,
VDI is the practice of hosting one or more virtual desktop operating systems on a desktop
operating system. The desktop operating system is referred to as the host, and the virtual
systems are referred to as virtual machines, virtual images, and sometimes just virtual
applications.
As an example, you can run an instance of Windows 7 as the host operating system.
Then, within the Windows 7 host, you can run other operating systems such as Windows XP,
another virtual machine running Windows 7, and a third running Windows Server 2008.
With the cheap but abundant processing power built into desktop PCs, using VDI is now
being seriously considered an alternative to Remote Desktop Services (RDS). Desktop PCs
rarely use much of their processing power, and VDI applications and operating systems can
provide distinct isolation from the host operating system.
Remote Desktop Services (previously known as Terminal Services in Win-
dows) can be configured on a server to allow users to run individual appli-
cations or entire desktops over a network. From the users’ perspective, the
application or desktop appears to be running on their individual system
but is actually running on a server.
Microsoft introduced Windows Virtual PC (VPC) with Windows 7. This was previously
known as Microsoft Virtual PC and was often used by administrators, technical trainers,
and students. It’s been available as a free download for years. If you’ve used Microsoft
Virtual PC, you’ll notice similarities with Windows Virtual PC, but the underlying tech-
nology provides some significant improvements.
VPC is not just for techies anymore. It can be installed and configured for regular users
to run applications in virtual isolated environments using Windows XP Mode. It can be
used to host applications running on other operating systems. It can even be used to host a
dual-boot system using virtual hard disk files. You’ll see all of this in this section.
Considering a VDI Environment
The choice between a complete physical environment and a hybrid physical and VDI envi-
ronment requires considering several different elements related to how the VDI environ-
ment will be used. These include the following:
Existing hardware There are several things to consider with existing hardware. First, if
it’s 32-bit, you’re limited to no more than 4 GB of RAM, as discussed earlier. You’re much
better off if the hardware is 64-bit and has more than 4 GB of RAM.
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