Windows 7 Dual mode - Advantageous opportunity or waste of precious time

[KCav]

Introduction

I began running Windows 7 in Dual mode with Windows XP in the Virtual Machine because I had a gut feeling I would discover ways of doing things under Windows 7 that I would like to make part of my repertoire, but at the same time I did not want to suddenly stop using applications I have become familiar with and embark upon a venture with a hazy idea of the goal the effort is directed towards.

I made a fresh install of Windows 7, Ultimate edition, 32-bit on a notebook computer that according to its manufacturer and a Microsoft detection program is virtual machine capable and BIOS enabled. After completing the installation I validated as genuine, activated, and updated Windows 7. Then I did the same for Windows XP Professional.

A coupe of weeks have gone by, during this time I installed applications and connected peripheral devices, read the manuals, and scripted workflows. Now I feel I am ready to articulate questions about how to cultivate a migration away from Windows XP to Windows 7.

I decided to do something I have never done before – blog. At fist my statements may sound like they should be directed to the Complaint Department, but in the age of multi-core processors and Nehalem architecture, I believe VM technology will become a practical means for running dissimilar software side-by-side on the desktop. I thought Blogging would provide a centralized place for posing questions, where I could direct people to, and this might serve as a means for finding the solutions I seek.

1st Question

I have a laser printer wirelessly connected to a router using 802.11B protocol. All the PCs on my LAN can connect to the printer but one. The VirtualPC running Windows XP does not connect to the printer. Even though the printer has an IP address in the router’s DHCP table. I can not ping it from Virtual XP's Command line. How does networking a VM work?

I went to Event Viewer > System and found:
- Warning Printer Microsoft XPS Document Writer is purged
- Warning Printer Microsoft XPS Document Writer is pending deletion
- Warning Printer Microsoft XPS Document Writer was deleted
- Error Driver Brother HL-2170 required for printer Printer is unknown
- Error Driver Brother HL-2170 required for printer Printer is unknown
- Error Driver MS Shared Fax Driver required for printer PrinterFX is unknown

Can someone explain why Microsoft XPS Document Writer is being purged in the Virtual Machine? What triggers this?

 

[Mike]

I do not have a technical answer for this question, but I'm assuming that XP can't write XPS documents natively. I haven't used Windows XP in years: only in the dreaded client support environment where noone knows anything about XPS and uses PDF instead.

Here then lies the problem, your adventure into virtualization intrigues me completely, but I have no answer about XPS Writer. I believe you will find, that VMWare's costly Workstation offering is a total godsend and goes above and beyond what Microsoft's virtualization is capable of doing at this time -- although that is bound to change and shift as time goes on.

Surely, virtualization will become the future of computing. It already has changed the web hosting community. You can now buy shared VPS (virtual private servers) which are usually Citrix-server based "private" images hosted at a datacenter. This allows them to use one mega-server (well.. in theory.. chances are they are using what would be a regular dedicated server), to cut costs financially and increase their R.O.I., while offering you "your own server".

So its had an impact on the industry already, but it hasn't exactly hit the front door of every home user just yet. But for software development and hosting - it is a driving force. Software developers often use multiple images of OS's now to do product testing on many operating systems at once. Some day, there will be an undeniable and absolute reason for the home computer user to use virtualization. One reason for an unseasoned user would be to "use the virtual image" and "revert to snapshot" to protect the computer. This could, for instance, be done at an Internet cafe (or for that friend we all know who has a tendency to destroy computers whenever he/she gets on one!).