Can I mix operating systems on a network?
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
If you ordered the 70 PCs with Windows 7 and Office 2010 already installed, you would likely not have any issues deploying them on your network. However recognize that users who start using Office 2010 will be producing documents that users who are still on Office 2003 may have problems with. I'm assuming here that not all 70 PCs will be replaced at the same time. What you really need is for a plan that documents how the replacement operation will take place. All manner of issues such as how will user's documents be backed up, should documents be converted to newer formats. Besides Office, how about other software that is currently in use. Is it compatible with Windows 7? Are upgrades needed. There are a lot of issues that need to be considered and a plan for how to tackle them is important. Good Luck with this. I work in an large organization, +10,000 people, and our Windows 7 migration has just been pushed out until Q3 of 2012. :)
Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar] In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is. [Yogi Berra] posting about Crystal Reports here is like discussing gay marriage on a catholic church’s website.[Nishant Sivakumar]
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
Tell your IT Guy (how did he get the job?) to look at this[^]. Also there is absolutely no reason why you cannot mix Windows XP machines, and Windows 7 machines, and MACs, and UNIX and Linux machines, on the same network.
Unrequited desire is character building. OriginalGriff
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If you ordered the 70 PCs with Windows 7 and Office 2010 already installed, you would likely not have any issues deploying them on your network. However recognize that users who start using Office 2010 will be producing documents that users who are still on Office 2003 may have problems with. I'm assuming here that not all 70 PCs will be replaced at the same time. What you really need is for a plan that documents how the replacement operation will take place. All manner of issues such as how will user's documents be backed up, should documents be converted to newer formats. Besides Office, how about other software that is currently in use. Is it compatible with Windows 7? Are upgrades needed. There are a lot of issues that need to be considered and a plan for how to tackle them is important. Good Luck with this. I work in an large organization, +10,000 people, and our Windows 7 migration has just been pushed out until Q3 of 2012. :)
Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar] In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is. [Yogi Berra] posting about Crystal Reports here is like discussing gay marriage on a catholic church’s website.[Nishant Sivakumar]
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Chris Meech wrote:
nd our Windows 7 8 migration has just been pushed out until Q3 of 2012.
FTFY :)
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:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: I'm planning to retire before we begin looking at Windows 8. :)
Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar] In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is. [Yogi Berra] posting about Crystal Reports here is like discussing gay marriage on a catholic church’s website.[Nishant Sivakumar]
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
quinet wrote:
he does not have an image for Windows 7
So buy him a copy of Win7Pro and let him play with it until he feels comfortable with it. Easy! He is right, though, there will be some issues. He's leery because if he lets this go through, it's going to be his ass in the sling when problems come up, and he probably already misses a lot of sleep as it is. As has already been mentioned, Office 2003 can't open Office 2010 documents, unless they are deliberately saved in the older format. This is certainly possible, but that eliminates some of the reasons to upgrade to the newer version. You can mix and match OSs on the network to your heart's content - the network doesn't care, and there are workarounds to overcome the minor problems that might come up. The best case, but rarely affordable, is to replace all machines and software at one time. That ain't gonna happen... Next best is to buy the new machines and software, and get a few extra licenses for Office 2010 for those who must frequently share documents but are stuck with the old machines. That could be a gotcha, though, as Office 2010 might not run on XP - I've never checked. Other "legacy" software could have issues, but Win7Pro has an XP-compatible mode that will allow most obsolete older applications to run. IF you have stuff that only runs on 95/98, now's the time to dump it. WinXP would let you make it work most of the time, but no future OS will. I'd get on with it now, though, before Win7 is obsolete, too.
Will Rogers never met me.
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
Where I work we have mixed various setups 1 Win7 3 Vista 46 XP As others have stated the problem is compatibility between the different users i.e. Word 2010 to Word 2003. But we got around that by setting the default version that they save in, Our office 2007 users save in .doc rather than .docx Plus as we have found getting hold of Windows XP now is a near impossibility in the UK.
Lobster Thermidor aux crevettes with a Mornay sauce, served in a Provençale manner with shallots and aubergines, garnished with truffle pate, brandy and a fried egg on top and Spam - Monty Python Spam Sketch
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
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quinet wrote:
he does not have an image for Windows 7
So buy him a copy of Win7Pro and let him play with it until he feels comfortable with it. Easy! He is right, though, there will be some issues. He's leery because if he lets this go through, it's going to be his ass in the sling when problems come up, and he probably already misses a lot of sleep as it is. As has already been mentioned, Office 2003 can't open Office 2010 documents, unless they are deliberately saved in the older format. This is certainly possible, but that eliminates some of the reasons to upgrade to the newer version. You can mix and match OSs on the network to your heart's content - the network doesn't care, and there are workarounds to overcome the minor problems that might come up. The best case, but rarely affordable, is to replace all machines and software at one time. That ain't gonna happen... Next best is to buy the new machines and software, and get a few extra licenses for Office 2010 for those who must frequently share documents but are stuck with the old machines. That could be a gotcha, though, as Office 2010 might not run on XP - I've never checked. Other "legacy" software could have issues, but Win7Pro has an XP-compatible mode that will allow most obsolete older applications to run. IF you have stuff that only runs on 95/98, now's the time to dump it. WinXP would let you make it work most of the time, but no future OS will. I'd get on with it now, though, before Win7 is obsolete, too.
Will Rogers never met me.
Publisher '10 works on XP SP3 on mums PC with no problems
-tim
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I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
Wow. Considering Windows XP has already been end-of-lifed, good luck getting someone to sell you LEGITIMATE licenses for it. Tell your IT guy he's an idiot.
A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]
Dave Kreskowiak -
I am managing purchasing for an organization of 200 people. We want to buy 70 new computers. Our old computers are on Windows XP with Office 2003, but staff wants Windows 7 with Office 2010. My IT guy tells me it can't be done because he does not have an image for Windows 7 and he is not sure it will be compatible with the network. So he wants to order 70 computers with Windows XP and Office 2003. This would cause huge political problems with staff. I need someone who knows what they are talking about to help me make this decision. What kind of technical problem would I face with Windows 7? What could I do to make everyone happy? Thanks for your help!
Well, Sysprep would work in conjunction with an imaging software like Norton Ghost, or if you have a Windows 2008 server license available -- you could use the Windows Deployment Services Role. Operating system is less of an issue, whereas mixing x86 and x64 bit versions can reek havoc on print servers and such. If your applications support both OS's it shouldn't be an issue, but keep in mind that Win 7 can be run in XP Mode to emulate legacy software needs. What kind of deployment strategy are they currently using may I ask? Your "IT" guy better rethink his position in the company, or go back to working at KFC. :wtf: Cheers,