Microsoft Details Windows 7 Downgrade Rights

posted by Thom Holwerda on Fri 19th Jun 2009 09:45 UTC

Despite the generally positive reception of Windows 7 so far, there will still be many people who
will want to stick to Windows XP. For these people, downgrade rights are particularly important,
and Microsoft has confirmed the rules of the game to El Reg.

Two editions of Windows 7 will be eligible for downgrade rights: Windows 7 Professional, and
Windows 7 Ultimate. Windows 7 Professional buyers will be able to downgrade to Windows Vista
Business or Windows XP Professional, while Windows 7 Ultimate buyers can downgrade to Windows
Vista Ultimate or Windows XP Professional. Downgrade rights will be granted for 18 months after
Windows 7's launch, so from October 22, 2009, to April 1, 2011.

Per standard policy, organisations with volume licensing deals with Microsoft will be able to
downgrade to whatever version of Windows they please, at any time. Volume licensing deals are for
organisations with 250 PCs or more.

There is one possible catch: downgrade rights to Windows XP will expire before 18 months if a service
pack is shipped for Windows 7. Downgrade rights to Vista will not expire, service pack or no.

Windows XP is no longer available for normal computers or at retail; only netbook manufacturers have
access to Windows XP Home, but only until one year after Windows 7's release.

Microsoft Windows 7 Professional downgrade to Microsoft Windows

XP Professional : Spécification principale
Système d'exploitation Windows XP Professionnel - 64 bits

Type de licence Licence et support

Description du produit Microsoft Windows 7 Professional downgrade to Microsoft Windows XP Professional - licence et support

Nbre de licence(s) 1 PC

Langue(s) Anglais

Tarification de licence CTO

Informations sur la licence 64-bit

Localisation Royaume-Uni

Microsoft Windows 7 Professional downgrade to Microsoft Windows

XP Professional : Spécification étendue
Général
Système d'exploitation Windows XP Professionnel - 64 bits

Langue(s) Anglais

Localisation Royaume-Uni

Système d'exploitation
Type de licence Licence et support

Nbre de licence(s) 1 PC

Tarification de licence CTO

Informations sur la licence 64-bit

Configuration requise
Type de processeur mini 233 MHz

Mémoire vive minimale 64 Mo

Espace disque mini 1.5 Go

Périphériques / interfaces Souris ou périphérique compatible, CD-ROM, moniteur SVGA, clavier

Compatibilitée