Essentially, XP Mode runs an on-demand virtualization of a Windows XP install using Microsoft’s Virtual PC allowing programs that would normally require Windows XP to run on a Windows 7 Machine.  The name, however, is deceiving as XP Mode will let you run any version of Windows including Vista and 7.  Compared to a normal virtualization, XP mode is different in that the VM runs quietly in the background and the virtualized programs can interact seamlessly with those running on the native operating system.

Microsoft’s goal with XP Mode is to reduce bulk in Windows 7 by removing legacy code required for old programs to run.

For the full rundown on XP Mode, check out the following link:  http://community.winsupersite.com/blogs/paul/archive/2009/04/24/secret-no-more-revealing-virtual-windows-xp-for-windows-7.aspx

Recently, on an episode of Windows Weekly, Leo asked, “Why would someone want to run a version of Windows besides XP in XP Mode?” and I feel that “Security” would be a reasonable response.

There are currently products on the market that provide similar, in-line virtualization but with a security orientation.  One common example is SandboxIE, an application initially designed to isolate your web browser from the rest of your system that has been now expanded to be able to sandbox any program you would run.

It is effectively able to sandbox any program by creating copies of files that the program attempts to modify and giving the user the ability to scrap virtualizations once things seem to be going wrong.  It is a very effective tool when used in conjunction with web browsers and e-mail clients.

One thing that SandboxIE does NOT do, however, is protect information on your system from a privacy perspective.  It allows any application running within its sandbox full read access as it would normally have; the only restriction is when applications attempt to write data.

For more information on SandboxIE, visit the creator’s site: http://www.sandboxie.com

Now, with this framework laid before us, there aren’t many lines to draw for the bigger picture to come together.  Having a version of Windows 7 installed via XP Mode on your main install of Windows 7 would allow you to run your web browser, mail application or any other program in a virtualized enviroment, cutting them off from the rest of your system.

The security provided from running an application in a fully virtualized environment as opposed to SandboxIE’s methods is somewhat superior as (like we mentioned before) the programs running in the virtualization have no access whatsoever to your primary install.  And now, since these virtualized apps are appearing right in the main install of 7’s start menu, the inconvenience stigma that was always attached to virtualization in the past is moot.

Hopefully, as long as Microsoft delivers as promised, anyone who will be able to install XP Mode will also have a nice built-in security feature that they may not recognize right off the bat.  It would be great if Microsoft would recognize this as well and rename XP Mode to something that more accurately represent the capabilities of the feature.

The potential downside to this whole thought is that Microsoft may (as they have in the past) sacrifice security for ease of usability.  From the perspective of a user trying to run legacy XP code on a Windows 7 machine, the ability of applications running within the VM to read the native harddrive would be more convenient, but basically negate any security bonus.

Windows 7

Microsoft has updated their Windows 7 development blog today with some depressing information about how they plan to allow users to migrate from the Beta version of Windows 7 to the Release Candidate – they want us to *shudder* DOWNGRADE to Vista then re-upgrade to the RC!  Of course, they do provide a separate option that will allow users to do a direct upgrade, but the steps they list seem unnecessarily difficult and convoluted when compared to running the upgrade from Vista to 7

If you have a read over at the blog, they claim that this policy has been established to encourage “real-world” testing when it comes to users upgrading TO the RC.  “We’ve also learned that many of you (millions) are running Windows 7 Beta full time. You’re anxious for a refresh. You’ve installed all your applications. You’ve configured and customized the system. You would love to get the RC and quickly upgrade to it from Beta. The RC, however, is about getting breadth coverage to validate the product in real-world scenarios. As a result, we want to encourage you to revert to a Vista image and upgrade or to do a clean install, rather than upgrade the existing Beta. “ It wouldn’t be very practical from Microsoft’s point of view to have users test upgrading from the Beta to the RC.

For users who do not wish to downgrade then upgrade then hope everything works, Microsoft posted the following steps which should allow users to circumvent the pre-release upgrade check.

Here’s what you can do to bypass the check for pre-release upgrade IF YOU REALLY REALLY NEED TO:

1. Download the ISO as you did previously and burn the ISO to a DVD.
2. Copy the whole image to a storage location you wish to run the upgrade from (a bootable flash drive or a directory on any partition on the machine running the pre-release build).
3. Browse to the sources directory.
4. Open the file cversion.ini in a text editor like Notepad.
5. Modify the MinClient build number to a value lower than the down-level build. For example, change 7100 to 7000 (pictured below).
6. Save the file in place with the same name.
7. Run setup like you would normally from this modified copy of the image and the version check will be bypassed.

Personally, I’ve never been a fan of installing a new operating system via the “Upgrade” option.  I don’t trust it to be clean or timely.  When it comes time for me to make the switch from Windows 7 Beta to Windows 7 RC, I will be doing a clean install, and I don’t believe that Microsoft’s strategy here will have much impact.