One of Microsoft's biggest strengths - and weaknesses - is its focus on backward compatibility. Most Windows applications will work fine on Windows 8. This is especially true if they worked on Windows 7, as Windows 8 is very similar to its predecessor.
Solution to the problem:
Older games and software, particularly those designed for older operating systems, including XP and Win 98 or DOS, may not work properly. Regardless of the software you are dealing with, be it a PC game or business software, a Google search for the game name with Windows 8 or the exact error message you received will probably help solve problem. The tips below apply to different types of software, but finding more information specific to your program is always a good alternative.
Why games and programs might be incompatible?
There are many reasons why an app might not work properly on Windows 8.
Bad programming: Some programs may be dependent on administrator rights, work fine on XP, but have problems running as a regular user on newer versions. Some, for example, depend on requests from earlier versions of Windows, which have since been deprecated in newer versions of the OS, as they have been reported to have been hacked.
Dependency on older software versions: the software may use old libraries, for example, NET Framework version 3.5, which is not installed by default on Windows 8.
16-bit software: 64-bit versions of Windows no longer have compatibility for 16-bit Windows applications. If you have a 16-bit application written for 3.1, you need to use Windows 8 32-bit to run it.
DOSWindows 8, like all versions after XP, no longer runs on top of DOS. While some DOS programs still work, advanced software written for DOS — for example, DOS computer games — does not work in the Windows Command Promt environment.
Before updating
Microsoft offers some information that you can check before updating. You can download and run Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant, which will scan your computer and tell you if games, software, and hardware will work as expected on Windows 8. Of course, the app isn't 100% guaranteed, but it does provide some useful information.
Updating software
If the game doesn't work on Windows 8, you must update it to latest version and install all available patches. For example, old gameinstalled from disk may not work on Windows 8, but the game developer may have released a patch that allows the game to run on newer OS versions. For example, many Windows Live games don't work as expected until an update is installed.
You may also need old libraries required to run the software. For example, Windows 8 includes the .NET Framework version 4.5. If you see an error related to .NET Framework, you must go to Control Panel and install the .NET Framework 3.5 package, which will ensure that software that depends on NET 3.5, 3.0, or 2.0 will run.
Run as administrator
Launching the problematic application can be quite simple, sometimes just running as administrator is enough. Windows, as a rule, independently determines if an application needs additional rights and runs it as administrator, but this function may not always work. To run the program as administrator, right-click on its shortcut and select "Run as administrator".
You can also fix this problem by completely disabling User Account Control. However, we do not recommend disabling User Account Control as it important point security, and related bugs have become rare since the system has improved significantly since Windows Vista. Almost all programs for Windows work fine with UAC enabled.
Compatibility Mode
Windows 8 includes a compatibility feature for troubleshooting. Just right-click on the shortcut of the program that won't launch, select Properties and go to the Compatibility tab. From here you should be able to run the compatibility troubleshooter. Alternatively, you can trick the program by making it appear to work on previous versions of Windows, including XP or Win 98. This will help solve problems with software that worked well on previous versions of the OS. The Compatibility tab also allows you to always run the program in administrator mode - useful if the program is launched only as an administrator.
Use DOSBox
If you have an old DOS application that doesn't work on Windows - probably an old game like the original DOOM - you can run it from DOSBox. DOSBox is free appwhich emulates a full DOS environment in a window, allowing you to run DOS applications on Windows. DOSBox has better compatibility than command line... It works so well that some developers are optimizing their games for DOSBox - if you buy the original DOOM or Quake from the Steam store, they come bundled with DOSBox.
Use a virtual machine
Virtual machines allow you to run programs that ran on previous versions of Windows. With a virtual machine, you can install XP, for example, and run it in windowed mode. After that, you can run outdated software from under the virtual machine. Windows 8 does not support XP compatibility from Win 7, but you can get this feature by installing XP in VirtualBox or VMware Player.
It is worth noting that virtual machines are not ideal for gaming, as they are much slower and 3D graphics work very mediocre. However, virtual machines have limited support for 3D graphics, so if we are talking about a very ancient game, it should work well in a virtual machine. You may also run into problems where software requires direct access to certain hardware - you can plug a USB device into a virtual machine, but software that depends on direct access to computer hardware will not work.
Troubleshooting tips for specific games
G8 users, more often than not, experience problems with games, rather than with software that is timely replaced with new versions or updated. If you run into problems with a specific game, try searching for the game on the PC Gaming Wiki. This site provides detailed troubleshooting information for most games - not just Win 8, but other versions of Microsoft operating systems as well as other operating systems.
Overwhelmed with questions - "What? Why? How?" in the new Windows 7 megapixel called Windows XP Mode. I will try to answer briefly, but for those who are especially curious - as in the case of the post about installing Windows 7 on a netbook - I also recorded a video review ... I understand that this looks like an obsession, but what can I do - like my wife, it suddenly became quite interesting to write video for blog (bad example is contagious, probably). And judging by the statistics - the video turned out to be a very popular thing, I plan to further supplement my separate selection of videos on local UA-IX resources for more convenient viewing by users in Ukraine.
What is Windows XP Mode in Windows 7?
This small piece of technology with the general name Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization, MEDV, or "bear" in common people (not to be confused with well-known characters around Internet folklore :)) is supplied as part of the MDOP 2009 package. A small part, but the most important one - Windows XP Mode allows you to run a virtual OS process (Windows XP or Windows Vista) in a specially developed edition Virtual PC (currently supplied separately in beta status), and the user will not be shown the virtual machine desktop, but only the window of the application that is installed in the virtual OS, but published as a "normal" link in the "Start" menu parent system. Thus, for the user, working with applications both installed in "native" Windows 7 and in virtual Windows XP is absolutely "transparent" - he will be able to distinguish them only by the design of the windows. And no confusion with desktops, switchovers and the like. For admins, no problem with the compatibility of applications written for Windows XP when they run in Windows 7 - since they run in their native, albeit virtual, XP environment. And it's rather difficult to call it especially "virtual", especially when compared with "pure" virtualization Hyper-V - in the Windows XP Mode version, not only USB-sticks are supported, but also various "natural" USB, and not only devices - so , I "found" and earned a fingerprint reader on a laptop in virtual Windows XP.
In fact, this is all close (or rather, it is built on the same principle) to the work of Terminal Services in Windows Server 2008, where the user sees windows of individual applications running on the server instead of the remote desktop. Only in the case of MEDV / Windows XP Mode, such a server is a virtual OS, in which special "a la terminal" services are installed, and the "terminal client" is located on the parent OS and its tasks include also "raising" the virtual OS upon request, if it doesn't work yet. This is how everything is really simple, no fraud, just "software magic". :)
Yes, and one more thing - MDOP offers this mode of operation not only for Windows 7, but also for Windows Vista, and in addition - utilities for centralized management of images, virtual OS settings and application publishing, which is very useful for networks where even 50 PCs will use a single image and settings.
How to enable / run Windows XP Mode in Windows 7 RC?
Both in RC and in the release (most likely) there is no ready-made "superbutton" with the proud name "enable Windows XP Mode". The technology is external (again - for now) in relation to Windows 7 itself (only professional editions, editions like Home / Starter are not supported). But it doesn't matter - on a special site you can download a new version of Virtual PC to support Windows XP Mode in Windows 7 and a "ready" image (about 450MB) of "clean" Windows XP with the necessary services and drivers installed. For those who want to create their own virtual image, there are beta versions of updates for Vista / XP on the site, the installation of which into the virtual OS adds support for Windows XP Mode. Download, install - first the Virtual PC for Windows 7, then the image itself
In the "Start" menu in the "Programs" section appears Windows Virtual PC, and in it is the actual point Virtual Windows XP... This is the link to the very image, which is installed second in 450MB :) At the first start, the image is configured in a very trivial way - only the password of the future user is requested and that's it. All settings of this virtual OS correspond to the typical settings of Virtual PC virtual machines, except for the Auto Publish item that appears. This item is responsible for how applications from virtual Windows XP will be published in the Windows 7 start menu. By default, the automatic publishing mode is set, which means that - attention!!! - all newly installed applications in the virtual machine will be automatically " emerge" on the menu parent Windows 7
We install what we need - in the start menu, in the same section Windows Virtual PC section appears Virtual Windows XP Application with links to these virtual applications. We close the virtual machine, launch the required application from the Windows 7 start menu - and after a short wait (the video shows the start time of the virtual machine "in the background" followed by the launch of the required OS on an HP 8510w laptop) we get the application in "real" XP mode.
What are the limitations of Windows XP Mode?
Most importantly, it requires hardware virtualization support in processors. Instructions for configuring hardware virtualization are on the same page (above) as you boot the Virtual PC itself. I want to draw special attention to the fact that often to enable hardware virtualization after the actual settings of the BIOS parameters, you also need to physically turn off the computer's power.
This answer has collected information regarding various techniques for operating system options Windows 7, both by means of the OS itself, and with the help of various secondary programs.
Restoring the Traditional Start Menu in Windows 7
Return to the traditional startup menu, the function of returning to which in Windows 7 absent, there is a possibility using a free program CSMenu... This utility makes an alternative "Start" button, returning it to the traditional style, perfectly recognizable by the interface Windows 2000... After installation (requires administrator rights), the program leaves two icons on the desktop. Launching one, the user starts scanning programs in the start menu. After indexing, this icon can be deleted, and then, in order for the configuration to take effect, exit the profile and re-enter. After logging in, you need to move the second icon to the taskbar - it will serve as a specific "Start" button, made in the traditional style. With all this, the real button does not disappear anywhere, it remains in place. Download CSMenuthere is an opportunity from the forum about Windows 7: windows7forums.com. There is also an opportunity to watch a video on how to install the program.
Search the Internet via the Start Menu
IN Windows 7 it became possible to find it on the Internet through the "Start" menu, but this function is disabled by default. To enable Internet search through the Start menu, you need to do the following:
Enabling DreamScene on Windows 7
DreamScene Is one of the functions in Windows Vista Ultimatewhich allowed you to set the video as the desktop wallpaper. But this feature has been removed from Windows 7 and it was replaced by the function Desktop Slideshow - the function of automatically changing desktop backgrounds. Option to enable DreamScene still exists. In order to run DreamScene in Windows 7, you need to do the following function:
It should be understood that DreamScene not officially supported in Windows 7because its options are not in the applet Personalization (Personalization) and on the configuration page Desktop Background (Background sketch of the desktop). Despite this, all functions DreamSceneincluding Play (Reproduce), Pause (Stop) and audio are supported.
Restoring the Quick Launch Panel
IN Windows 7 to replace the quick start panel, a new function supported by the taskbar came - pinning applications to the taskbar. In order to pin the application to the taskbar, just press the right mouse button on the application window in the taskbar and select the item "Pin program to the taskbar"
To restore the fast start panel (Quick Launch) you need to make an additional toolbar and point to the folder Quick launch: To do this, right-click on the taskbar and select "Panels" from the context menu and then "Create toolbar ...". In the dialog box that opens, point to the following folder: C: Users \\ AppDataRoamingMicrosoftInternet ExplorerQuick Launch... (In that case, the folder AppData is not visible in the dialog box, you need to open the control panel, select the item "Design and personalization", select the item "Show hidden files and folders" in it and select the option "show hidden files, folders and disks" in it) Then the toolbar Quick launch will be added to the taskbar. For its traditional display it is possible to right-click on the panel and uncheck the text display characteristics Show Text and headings Show Title... The convenience of the traditional quick start panel is that the user will have access to application icons that place their shortcuts in this panel.
Changing Windows 7 taskbar to XP / Vista style
One of the most obvious configurations in Windows 7 is a brand new taskbar, in which icons are shown instead of buttons, and all application windows are connected together under one button. The first thing to do in order to return to the older style of the taskbar is to right-click on any free space in it and select a line from the menu that appears Properties (specifications). Further on the tab Taskbar (taskbar) opposite the taskbar buttons label Taskbar buttons you need to choose an option Never combine (never put together), which will set the taskbar to display a separate button for each separate window. It is also possible to select an option Combine when taskbar is full (Connect once, if the taskbar is full), which will connect once the windows when the taskbar is full. After performing these actions (and of course their implementation), the buttons will be displayed with text labels ... which, however, will be executed in the style Windows 7... To fix this, you still need to go to the characteristics of the taskbar and set the item for using small icons Use small icons... With all this, the taskbar will become a little narrower and will be very similar to the panel Vista... The only remaining problem will be the "pinned" icons that will still be on the taskbar. But they can be removed by clicking on each of them with the right mouse button and selecting the item Unpin this program from taskbar (unpin this program from the taskbar). And then the taskbar will look and work almost like a panel WindowsXP / Vista.
Changing the LOGON UI welcome screen in Windows 7
Windows 7 has a new welcome screen LOGON UI... The welcome screen, you just have the ability to change using the free Tweaks Logon Changer program. With its help, the welcome screen can be changed to any other picture, or return the original welcome page. In that case, the size of the picture is more than 256KB, then Tweaks Logon Changer will offer to make a copy of it and automatically compress it to a suitable size.
It is also possible to change the welcome screen by means of the system itself, in the absence of the use of additional programs. How to do this is carefully described in this article.
How to enable / run Windows XP Mode in Windows 7
XPMode (mode WindowsXP) Is an addition, which in conjunction with VirtualPC allows you to ensure full comparability of old applications with Windows 7. XP Mode is a virtual machine with a pre-installed system Windows XP; it runs from underneath Windows 7 and offers to create startups of old applications that are not compatible with Windows 7, just in the environment Windows XP, due to which full comparability is achieved.
It is important to note that the function Windows XP Mode invariably asks for hardware support for virtualization, in addition to the company's specialists Microsoft it is advised to use a computer equipped with at least 2 GB of RAM. It is possible to make sure that the hardware of the computer meets the necessary requirements by downloading and running the utilities exposed on the page microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc.
Ready-made "superbutton" with the proud title "enable Windows XP Mode" not. Development is external to the Windows 7, with all this, only professional editions are supported - Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate... To install XP Mode to a computer running Windows 7, the Microsoft dedicated website needs to download newest version Virtual PC (file Windows6.1-KB958559-x86 ~ 4.9 MB) and the finished image Windows XP (file VirtualWindowsXP.msi ~ 445 Mb), in which the necessary services and drivers are already installed. For those who wish to make their own virtual image - the website contains update versions for Vista / XP, the installation of which into a virtual OS adds that support for the Windows XP Mode... After downloading both files, you need to install them - first Virtual PC for Windows 7, later the image itself.
In the "Start" menu in "Programs" there is a section Windows Virtual PC, and in it is actually the point Virtual Windows XP... At the first start, the image changes in a very elementary way - only the password of the upcoming user is requested. In the start menu, in the same section Windows Virtual PC there is a section Virtual Windows XP Application with links to virtual applications. It is possible to run as a virtual machine with Windows XP, as well as separate programs installed inside the virtual environment. With all this, the system ensures completely transparent work with such applications and does not impose any multifunctional restrictions on them. Launched from within Windows XP programs have the ability to work with files of the parent system, interact with USB and other devices connected to the computer, copy data through the clipboard, send them to print, etc.
Additionally to the site:
How to enable / run Windows XP Mode in Windows 7?
This answer contains information regarding various methods of the Windows 7 operating system option, both by means of the OS itself, and with the help of various secondary programs. Restoring the Traditional Start Menu in Windows 7 You can use the free CSMenu program to restore the traditional Start Menu, which does not have a return function in Windows 7. This utility makes an alternate Start button, ...
Many of us find it difficult to give up familiar programs and even just the features of the operating system on which we have worked for several years. New system it does not look like the old one, and not all software runs even in compatibility mode. Especially for such conformists, they came up with Microsoft XP mode, which can be run using a virtual machine.
Step 1. Check your Windows 7 version
XP Mode for Windows 7Microsoft offers Windows XP Free Mode for Windows 7 Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions. While working in it, you can continue to use previous versions of applications that no longer work in Windows 7.
First, check which version of Windows 7 you have. To do this, press the key combination + [Pause] or right-click on the "Computer" tab of the main menu and select "Properties".
If you have Home Basic or Home Premium installed, you have to do a little work.
Step 2. Download files for XP mode
First, you need Windows Virtual PC to set up your virtual machine.
Then load the actual XP mode. If you are running Windows 7 64-bit, you will need to download XP-mode from the appropriate download source from Microsoft.
Two downloads will be available at the exit: WindowsXPMode_en-en.exe is the full version of Windows XP, including the media player and media center. The second file is WindowsXPMode_N_en-en.exe, which does not contain Windows Media Center.
Step 3. Install and configure XP mode
Install "Windows Virtual PC" first, it will show as "Update for Windows (KB958559)". After reboot, Windows Virtual PC will be available to run and you can configure virtual systems.
Then set Windows XP Mode and start it. Complete the appropriate steps by following the prompts of the installation wizard. Then you can use virtual Windows XP. To do this, open Windows XP Mode from the Start menu.
XP Mode in "home" versions of Windows 7
If you don't have one of the above Windows 7 flavors installed, you can still install XP-mode. The main prerequisite is to have a legal Windows XP installation CD or downloaded ISO file.
Open Windows Virtual PC from the Start menu and click Create Virtual PC at the top of the menu bar. Then follow the instructions of the installation wizard.
After you have configured the virtual machine, insert the Windows XP CD into your CD-ROM drive and start Virtual PC by double-clicking the "XP Mode.vmcx" file.
The virtual machine should now start windows installation XP you will need to follow step by step. 512MB memory should be sufficient for Windows XP.
Installing integration components
Installed integration components improve the interaction between the virtual machine and the physical computer, as well as between both operating systems. Integration components also display programs that you install on a virtual machine in a physical operating system in the start menu.
Create a user with the same username and password as on your "real" system.
If you are not integrated into the XP version, install SP3 using Windows Update.
Then in Windows Virtual PC select "Tools" and install the Integration Components.
Subsequently, Windows should automatically install the KB961742 update.
Restart Windows Virtual PC, click Tools and Activate Integration Features.
If Windows Virtual Machine is not to your liking, try the free VMware Workstation Player or another virtual machine.
Photo: pxhere.com, manufacturing companies
