Windows 7 XP Mode enters Release Candidate status
Published: 05 Aug 2009 08:24 BST
Microsoft has announced that XP Mode, the Windows 7 add-on that will allow users with the proper hardware to run a virtual version of Windows XP within Windows 7, has entered Release Candidate status.
There are several new features in XP Mode RC. XP Mode programs will now offer users a jump-list of most recently opened files with that program. This brings one of Windows 7's more useful productivity features into play with older programs that would not otherwise have it.
Not only will users be able to directly start their most recently used XP Mode programs from the Windows 7 taskbar, but they will be able to launch specific files from the Windows 7 taskbar too.
XP Mode RC also means it is possible to use USB devices in XP Mode without having to make it full-screen, directly from the Windows 7 taskbar.
Drive sharing between XP Mode and Windows 7 can be disabled, and a new tutorial has been created on how to use XP Mode that users will first get access to from the XP Mode installation screen.
In the XP Mode beta, users could not customise where to store differencing disk files. These relate to the virtualisation aspects of running XP in Windows 7.
Microsoft's Brandon LeBlanc recommends in the blog post announcing the XP Mode RC that users install antivirus and anti-malware protections in XP Mode, in addition to whatever protective steps users have taken in the native Windows 7 environment.
LeBlanc also cautions that XP Mode is designed for running productivity applications that will not be upgraded to Windows 7, implying that Microsoft does not expect the average consumer to get much mileage out of the feature.
Users who are still interested in testing out the Windows 7 RC can still do so through August.
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