The World According to Mitch

Windows Vista: Clunky on old hardware?

For more information about the Windows Springboard Series visit http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=8418918.

I am not going to lie to you.  Windows Vista has some serious hardware requirements, and like most versions of Windows ever released the minimums should be considered just that... very bare minimums.  Of all the complaints I hear against the platform, that is one of the louder ones, and it is not one that I can really deny... when I decided to beta test Vista the first thing I did was upgrade my laptop.  This is however not a new phenomenon.

In October, 2001 Microsoft released Windows XP.  All of a sudden my Pentium 3 with 64 Megabytes of RAM... just didn't cut it.  Coupled with the fact that I was starting a new course of training, I invested in a brand spanking new Pentium 4... 1.8GHz with a whopping and (at that point) mostly unprecedented 256MB of RAM.  The CPU lasted for several years... the memory level became a joke within months.  The problem was simply that XP simply did so much more than Windows 2000... and by definition more needs more.

Windows Vista does so much more than Windows XP did.  That is why most of us are migrating (or have already done so).  Some of the cool new features do require hardware upgrades (do not skimp on RAM!), especially if you were running at or close to the minimum requirements for Windows XP.

Note: In this professional's opinion the minimum system requirements for Windows XP should have been modified upon the release of Windows XP SP2 to more closely reflect a more realistic minimum for a comfortable user experience. 

Now, if you have read my blog before or heard me speak it is unlikely at this point that I am going to say 'that's the way it is... live with it.'  Microsoft has released three different sets of 'System Requirements' for Vista... and the likelihood is that the system that you ran Windows XP on will also run Windows Vista:

Minimum Supported System Requirements

These are exactly that... Vista will simply not install on less, and chances are you will not be able to do much more than check your e-mail and write letters on this... and slowly:

• 800 Megahertz CPU
• 512 Megabytes RAM
• 20 Gigabyte hard drive (with 15 Gigabytes available space)
• Super VGA video
• CD ROM Drive (ummm... can you install Vista without a DVD?)
• Network Interface Card (if you want the Internet)

Let me be clear again... these are bare minimum requirements, and will not give you the true Vista experience.  It will run or... walk.

System Requirements for Windows Home Basic

Again, these are pretty minimal requirements, but are a step up from the minimum:

• 1 Gigahertz CPU (32-bit or 64-bit)
• 512 Megabytes RAM
• 20 Gigabyte hard drive (with 15 Gigabytes available space)
• Support for DirectX 9 graphics with 32 Megabytes of video memory
• DVD-ROM
• Audio output
• Network Interface Card

This configuration offers a few improvements over the minimum requirements... slight speed improvements on the CPU and since Vista Home Basic does not support Aero Glass the 32 Meg video RAM will suffice.

System Requirements for Home Premium / Business / Ultimate

• Support for DirectX 9 graphics
• 128 Megabytes Megabytes of video memory (minimum)
• Pixel Shader 2.0 Hardware
• 32 bits per pixel

In addition to these requirements, there are a number of caveats, such as:

• Vista Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate will support dual processors;
• Vista Home Premium and Ultimate will require a Vista-compatible TV tuner card for TV functionality within the Media Center;
• Vista Home Premium, Business and Ultimate support Tablet and Touch Technology, which require either a Tablet PC or alternate touch screen; and
• If you are planning to use BitLocker (only available in Vista Enterprise and Ultimate) make sure your computer has a TPM 1.2 chip, or else you will need to use a USB key for encryption.

Do all of these different sets of requirements make your life easier when planning to upgrade to Vista?  Of course not.  However to mitigate the difficulties there is a free Hardware Upgrade Advisor tool (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/buyorupgrade/upgradeadvisor.mspx) which will check your current hardware and make recommendations before you install Vista.  With this tool's help I was able to discover before going ahead that although my family room computer (mostly used by our son to play games and use the Internet) needed more RAM, <start segue> and if I wanted to run Aero Glass would have to upgrade the video card.  I have always loved the Aero Glass effects, but decided it was not necessary for my son's Zoo Tycoon, so I ordered more RAM and proceeded with my installation.

As nice as it is, and there is a very solid case for Aero Glass being a productivity tool and not simply a 'shiny bead'... but the reality is if that a WDDM (Windows Display Driver Model) video card the only road block preventing you from going forward then GO AHEAD!  You can still benefit from the myriad other improvements in the operating system... and if you do eventually decide to upgrade your video card you will be ready to hit the ground running.

In the case of Rami Negev - the first winner of the blog.mitchgarvis.com Vista Springboard contest - he stated that the TV tuner in his ATI All-In-Wonder video card was not compatible with Vista.  I have not checked whether this is still the case, and it might be true that in order to get the full Media Center experience.  That is why it is so important to check your hardware compatibility before upgrading.  If he wants to find out without going through the install process he can run the Vista Hardware Upgrade Advisor to find out.

It is easy to participate in the blog.mitchgarvis.com Vista Springboard contest and possibly win your own copy of Windows Vista... simply leave a comment with why you are concerned about upgrading and you can win too... just like Rami.  Just be sure to include your e-mail address (it will not be published) so that I can contact you and get your prize out.

For more information about the Windows Springboard Series visit http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=8418918, and make sure you are subscribed to this blog to keep up to date with my Springboard articles!