Windows 7

The Tool from Parallels “Windows 7 Upgrade Tool”, makes use of their virtualization technology to give users the option to upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 without having to perform a clean install and lose all their settings and data.

When they initial released it, Microsoft seemed all in favour of it, they even invited Parallels to a Windows 7 momentum event in Paris to make a public presentation about the program.

But now Microsoft have a bone to pick with Parallels, the reason is over licensing rules.

The way Parallels works is it takes your current Windows XP installation and puts it in a virtual machine inside Windows 7. However, this doesn’t comply with Microsoft’s licensing policy.

While it doesn’t apply to all, it does to most users. Users may have legit licences for both Windows XP and Windows 7, they wont have the appropriate license to allow them to run Windows concurrent with another Windows OS in a virtualized machine.

Here is what Microsoft’s general manager Gavriella Schuster had to say to Cnet when they inquired about the issue.

Microsoft does not endorse moving the user’s desktop from a physically loaded OS into a VM as a consumer solution, because the vast majority (more than 90 percent) of consumers do not license Windows under a license that would allow them to transfer Windows into a virtual machine, move Windows to a different machine, or run a secondary virtual machine that is not running XP Mode on the same machine,

So basically if you don’t have the correct licensing agreement, which most users won’t, it is in fact illegal to use this tool to upgrade from Windows XP.

Without these license rights, most consumers will not be properly licensing Windows when using the virtualization features of Parallels’ product

However there is a way to use this software without it being illegal. If you purchase the Enterprise edition of Windows 7 or if you buy a full retail boxed copy of Windows 7 or XP as opposed to the cheaper upgrade edition, you will be covered with the correct licenses.

For its part, Parallels continues to say it is up to users to make sure they are properly licensing Windows in conjunction with the upgrade tool.

So at the end of the day it’s really up to the user to make sure they have the correct licenses and it’s not Parallels fault, even if they do encourage it.

Source: Cnet