On the hardware requirements of Windows 7

Introduction:

From the beginning of Windows 7 beta open to the public download, many netizens are concerned about whether the computer in their hands can support the latest version of Windows. This article will first review the specific hardware requirements of XP and Vista, and then analyze Microsoft's hardware positioning for Windows 7 from a historical and market perspective, and then fully consider it from other angles. Finally, the author's own Windows 7 instance will be specifically explained.

(1) Background Review:

When the Microsoft officially introduced Windows Vista to the market in early 2007, it was a reflection. A large part of the dissatisfaction is due to complaints from individual users about the inability of their hardware to successfully support Vista. At the same time, a large number of corporate users have suspended plans to upgrade their operating systems for the same reason. So first, let's review the different requirements that XP and Vista have for system hardware.

Windows XP:

Official, WindowsXP minimum requirements are as follows:

CPU Intel MMX 233MHz

Memory: 64MB

Hard Disk Space :1.5GB

Video Card: PCI and AGP Graphics Cards with 4MB Memory or More

Sound Card: Latest PCI Sound Card

CD-ROM: 8x+CD-ROM

In fact, at the end of 2001 (?), which was listed on Windows XP, such a configuration is already inferior. And the situation at the time was that most of the users were using Windows 2000, and many people kept Windows 98SE to support the popular games at the time (2K as a workstation system, the support for the game is not very good). The above configuration has been more than adequate for the support of existing systems. At the time, the mainstream configuration was already PIII866, 128M memory, and TNT264 graphics card. Therefore, running Windows XP smoothly is basically not a problem.

After six years, Vista is only a long-awaited start. And as soon as it appeared, he threw him a blockbuster for the hardware configuration:

Windows Vista

Official statement, taking the advanced home version as an example:

CPU: 1G Main frequency

Memory: 1G

Hard disk: 40G, at least 15G is available

Support at least DX9 graphics card:

Support WDDM driver; 128M memory ; Pixel Shader 2.0 hardware support and 32-bit color;

DVD drive.

Today, it seems that this configuration is nothing, but think about when Microsoft just announced the configuration requirements, that is, in mid-2007 or earlier, what was the configuration of most people at that time? What?

Maybe the CPU is off, most PCs can pass, but others are not. First of all, memory. 1G memory is very useful for Windows XP, and in the Windows 2000 era, the standard configuration is 256M. So in fact, most people's computers are just about 1G of memory. Not to mention the specifications of the graphics card, 128M memory, if it is independent video memory, even today is quite a good configuration.

So many users can't upgrade to Vista at all, or even if they upgrade, the running speed is very slow due to the serious shortage of system resources, and the Aero effect of the signboard is automatically blocked (due to the lack of memory) .

While the majority of users complained, Microsoft also reviewed its positioning of Vista hardware.

(2) Analysis of historical and market perspectives

While Windows XP was released, Vista has been quietly developed, and its internal name is called "Long Horn". At that time, the situation of the hardware and software market was that the computer hardware leaps and bounds, rushing to the third, rushing to the third, running four to the D, and then to the dual-core; and the memory, the hard disk is getting bigger and bigger, the more the more Cheap, correspondingly, the development of software seems to be unable to keep up with the rhythm. When the Pentium HT comes out, there is almost no software that can take advantage of multi-threading. And Microsoft believes that it should lead the trend of the times and make full use of the most advanced hardware. Technology.

At the same time, Microsoft's main competitor, Apple, has done a good job in the combination of hardware and software. Because of its own design of soft and hardware advantages, Apple has always been unique on personal computers. This also makes Microsoft strive to hope that its new system can get rid of the hustle and bustle of the blue sky and white clouds, giving people a refreshing feeling. And this also directly led to the operating system's hardware requirements plummeted.

This shows that Windows Vista is so demanding on hardware requirements that it is inseparable from the historical background of the time. Of course, the hardware requirements of Windows 7 must also be considered in the current environment.

First of all, the market is constantly criticizing Vista's demanding hardware requirements, users are expecting a beautiful but slimming operating system. One of the most direct response is that many enterprise users refuse to upgrade in order to ensure the internal system is unified. The existing XP system, and chose to downgrade the new system to XP, to ensure that the computer purchased a few years ago can continue to use.

But at the same time, the market is complaining while updating, although many users still One way or another refused to use Vista, but it is undeniable that, after more than a year, hardware is no longer the main reason for limiting Vista's acceptance. Most people have chosen to update it over the past year. Computers. Therefore, it is reasonable to implement an operating system with a minimum configuration of 2007 mainstream configuration.

This is exactly what Microsoft has repeatedly confirmed to the outside world. According to the official data, the system hardware supporting Windows7Ultimate is almost the same as that of Vista. Previously, Microsoft has repeatedly stressed that in 2007, the mainstream configuration of the computer will be able to run Windows7 effortlessly

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(3) Other factors

In addition to market and historical considerations, other factors have also made it necessary for Microsoft to take action to ensure that the hardware requirements of its latest system are no longer as demanding as Vista.

One: Intel's strong ATOM processor and netbook's blush

Since ASUS pioneered the easy PC, the concept of Netbook has quickly become popular. Intel Corporation is also using this Dongfeng to force its own mobile processor ATOM. In turn, the prevalence of ATOM has further promoted the development of netbooks. This is what Microsoft did not expect. Most of the current netbooks use Windows XP. After all, Vista is too powerful for the netbooks that are stretched on hardware. But this situation can't last long. After all, Windows XP is about to be buried, and Vista is not suitable. What should I do? I can only rely on Windows 7 to help.

In order to fully support the netbook, Windows7 even prepares the U disk installation method for the netbook that does not normally have an optical drive (there is time to discuss this point), and the support of the netbook itself means Windows7 Hardware thresholds, or entry-level thresholds, have been placed very low.

Second: Microsoft is committed to shortening the development cycle

From XP to Vista, people waited for seven years and looked forward to seven years. More expectation, more disappointment. And for the operating system, seven years is also a bit long. Therefore, for the next generation of systems, Microsoft is committed to developing on the basis of the current technology, and strives to release updated systems as soon as possible. This allows the market to pay for Windows 7 immediately, while also reducing the pressure on expectations and waiting.

To this end, there are reports that Microsoft has announced that it will change the system's release cycle from seven years to five years or even shorter.

(4) The machine actually used by the author

Analysis and analysis, in actual use, what is the hardware requirement of Windows7, or let the facts speak. There is an example in front of me. I am currently using Windows 7. What is his hardware?

The author's computer is placed in March 2008, free gifts, so the configuration is not selected, as follows:

Pentium dual-core, E2140 1.6G

1G memory

Onboard graphics, shared memory 128M

DVD drive

80G hard disk

This configuration can only be considered as the next configuration even in 2007. Currently using Office2007, while running, IE8, MSN Live, QQ2009, the desktop has also set up an automatic slideshow, all visual effects are up. In my personal feeling, the system runs at a normal speed and is stable. The following two figures show the process and CPU and memory usage of the author's computer.

5) Summary

Windows7 is learning the lessons of Vista, combining the current history and the actual situation of the market. On the other hand, it has successfully set its hardware configuration requirements at a relatively reasonable level. Therefore, the author also hopes that interested netizens should not be caught by the "latest operating system" words and actively experience Windows 7. Believe, you, there will be surprises.