Windows 7 will sport a nifty new feature called “XP Mode”. Basically, this is a virtual machine embedded in the OS that boots a VHD containing an image of a XP SP3 computer. It’s not revolutionary, but it is much more convenient than downloading and installing Virtual PC and installing XP SP3 on a virtual drive by yourself.
The only issue with this feature is that it will require hardware virtualization. How can you tell if your computer is up to the task? By downloading a small, free app from Steve Gibson’s website (yes, that Steve Gibson, of the “Windows Security sky is falling!” fame). It’s called SecurAble, and it will tell you in an instant whether your processor is up to snuff:
The first column tells you if you have a 32 or 64 bit processor. The second column tells you if your computer supports D.E.P. (which protects against certain types of malicious software). The third column, the one marked “Hardware Virtualization”, is the one we’re interested in. If it says “Yes”, then you can run XP Mode in Windows 7. If it says “No”… you’re out of luck.