Will old software run on Windows Vista?
Fri Apr 25, 2008 11:52AM EDT
See Comments (26)
After my most recent blog post about XP and Vista, many users who are finally considering upgrading to the new OS have emailed me with the same question: Will my old software run on Vista, or will I have to upgrade all of that, too?
I've covered this issue a few times in the past, but the situation changes from month to month as new applications become compatible and other ones break. The bottom line is, yes, most software that ran on XP will run fine on Vista, with a few exceptions.
What won't run? Older security software designed for XP or earlier will almost universally not run; you shouldn't even try to install an antivirus or anti-spyware application on a Vista machine unless you know for sure that it is compatible with Vista. (It will say so on the box or when you download it.)
As for other older software, there's no way of knowing whether your program will run on Vista or not without simply trying to install it. Chances are it will work, but Microsoft never published a broad compatibility list for Vista, which has left millions of users guessing whether their software would work or not. However, when you first attempt to install an old app, Vista may pop up an ominous warning that the program you're installing is not compatible with the OS. Try to install it anyway: More often than not, I've had zero problems with the software after it was installed, despite Microsoft's warning to the contrary.
But even if the app won't run after installation, you still have another option for making it work: That's because Vista includes a system called Compatibility Mode, which lets Vista emulate an older Windows OS, all the way back to Windows 95. (XP actually has this feature, too, but very few people have ever had to use it.) If you install an app and it won't run, just right-click it, select Properties, and click the Compatibility tab. Check the box for "Run this program in compatibility mode for" and select another OS (typically Windows XP SP2) from the drop-down box. (See screenshot for example.) It ought to work most of the time, but again, be warned, do not use this trick for old security software.
If Compatibility Mode doesn't work and you can't find a Vista patch for the softwar online, well, you should probably upgrade.
Comments on Will old software run on Windows Vista?
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2 Posted by bowling_255 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:11PM EDT Report Abuse
I had a couple of games that would not work on XP but now work on Vista
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3 Posted by lennyogarc on Thu Sep 3, 2009 6:49PM EDT Report Abuse
Yet another boring article... what dummy wouldn't try to run the old software anyways? I don't know many people that don't follow that assumption. The only people that might do that are people that know absolutely nothing about computers.
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4 Posted by mpputman on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:27PM EDT Report Abuse
lennyogarc - I suppose it didn't occur to you that the tech blogs are somewhat aimed at novice or casual users? Not that the "advanced" user won't get anything out of the blogs, but that's not really the target demographic. In that light, this article was just fine. Speaking as an IT tech, I can tell you that I get questions like this ALL THE TIME. So apparently you are just that much smarter than the average PC user that you find these postings boring and useless.
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5 Posted by rayvr@att.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:31PM EDT Report Abuse
It may sound a lot simpler than it is, but things like my scanner (HP) don't run properly under Vista and my photo printer doesn't run at all under Vista. Neither of these items is more than two years old. In the case of my Olympus photo printer, a call to Olympus tech. told me that Olmypus did not plan on a Vista update patch. I was aghast! Olympus just didn't want to spend the money, but they took the money for the printer. And they knew Vista was going to be released. There's a reason why Vista has a bad reputation. It's well earned and the silence on Microsoft's part, after my purchasing a new computer with an over-priced Vista operating system, is deafening. I wouldn't recommend Vista to anyone. Also, a lot of weird messages come up under Vista that NEVER go away. Again, silence from Microsoft. In this age of electronic communications it is possible for Microsoft to communicate with consumers, but no, they want to charge you just to talk to them and then you usually waste hours on the phone with no resolution. I am no longer a Micrsoft fan.
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6 Posted by shadowman_26 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:15PM EDT Report Abuse
#5, you need to blame OLYMPUS about the driver issue, not Microsoft!!! They had absolutely nothing to do with the drivers for your printer. The manufacturers of the componets have given Vista the reputation it has. Everyone is all too gun ho to place the blame on Microsoft when the real problem is the equipment manufacturers who won't update or release Vista drivers.
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7 Posted by sciencetroll@verizon.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:08PM EDT Report Abuse
the shadowman is right. everyone always blames microsoft for all of the compadability issues. i have hardware that wont run on my xp machine that will work on a 98
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8 Posted by dittersdoodles on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:44PM EDT Report Abuse
I have 3 laptops running Vista. I have a desktop with XP. I just had a motherboard failure on a 7 year old Compaq with W98. I found that running older versions of a program that was reliable in W98 ran fine in Vista. I have problems with the newer ones that were made specifically with XP in mind. I too had issues with a manufacturer about compatibility. HP said it was Windows and Microsoft said it was HP. Because my equipment was fairly new, I blamed HP and went out and bought a competitors scanner. The manager at Best Buy accepted my return (surprisingly) in order to keep a customer happy. After spending more money on a scanner, I found out that when I installed my W98 hard drive in the XP tower as a slave, I was able to boot up the W98 and still use the old scanner. Now I have two scanners. One is used for everyday use and the other I do still use, booting up W98 in order to use the scan slides and scan negative features, something that I couldn't find available in my budget when I bought the new scanner. I haven't had problems with Vista or XP for that matter, until Microsoft starts spitting out updates. I disable them and my machines work fine. I wait until an update is quite old before I get them. I google the KB# on the update and see what others say about it, then decide to install or not. The only thing this article forgot to mention that a lot of novices don't do is restart the computer after installing something. Even if it doesn't ask, you should restart. If it appears it didn't install - restart before you uninstall/delete your attempt. Also, they need to go to the software's website, check their FAQ's and also google the program with "compatible with Windows X" and see what you come up with. Might help doing this before buying software too.
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9 Posted by celticleia on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:20PM EDT Report Abuse
A number of older classic games won't run on Vista either. or if they do, they are so buggy it's almost not even worth it. Most gamers I know are sticking with XP.
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10 Posted by ybotherasking on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:55PM EDT Report Abuse
Once again I feel the need to offer some personal experience. I work for a large hospital system. We have several thousand computers that run 24/7/365. They're used for such mundane tasks as registering new patients, monitoring patients' vitals on the floors, accessing patient records, etc. We also have a couple of thousand more computers for specialized tasks such as processing and reading Xrays, controlling CT scans, MRIs, positioning lasers in the operating rooms, etc. Every machine is running XP and will continue to do so for the forseeable future because Vista is NOT up to the task. Even brand new diagnostic tools manufactured in 2008 are NOT Vista compatible and it has nothing to do with drivers. Biomed companies have pleaded with Microsoft and have brought numerous problems to Microsoft's attention. So if you ever need to go to a hospital make sure they're not using Vista. Your life could depend on it.
1 Posted by dcsoccer25 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:39PM EDT Report Abuse
But! Problems arise for users who use Vista 64-bit as it has severe issues with running 16-bit code, which many installers apparently use.