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We have 25 users on Windows 7 due to critical software incompatibility. We have on site machines running hyper-v for active directory, databases, DHCP, etc.

One option I thought of was having each computer run a virtual machine running one program, and Windows 10/11. This would probably require more expensive desktop computers.

Then I thought well, what if we had a server capable of running 25 VMs, and have each user RDP in to use one program.

Either way, licensing isn’t something I imagine is still available. I have searched for Windows 7 licenses on Google but everything looked sketchy.

Another idea I had was seeing if this application would be compatible with RemoteApp? I haven’t done much research into that yet because I’m sure it would require licenses which are no longer attainable, not to mention install media/iso.

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AFAIK RemoteApp licensing is just the Remote Desktop CAL which is still available (These are ‘backwards compatible’ as well, you can only buy the most recent version but they will allow connecting to any previous version of Server).

The issue with virtualizing W7 is that I believe unless you have Enterprise licensing for it you are technically not allowed to virtualize it as Pro does not include those rights in the license. I would confirm this with a licensing expert as I am going off memory that is likely tainted by W10 which definitely requires Enterprise for virtualization rights.

The problem you may run into RemoteApp isn’t so much if it is compatible with it but rather that if it doesn’t run with W10 there is a possibility that it won’t run on Server 2016/19/22.

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What you are looking at should be VDI namely VMware VDI, Hyper-v VDI or even VDI solutions in the cloud. But VDI in the cloud may be out as they often do not support EOL OSes (like Win7).

You should see why that software only works on Win7 as currently there were very few limitations on software that have compatibility issues with Win10 from Win7. Furthermore, Win7 already EOL for so long and Win10 have started to go into Win11 preparation already.

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Can I just buy enterprise licensing for windows 7 then?

Remote App really feels like the best option. Unless if the program issues with windows 10 translate over?

The biggest reason I know of that this software does not work with anything past windows 7 is because it has a reliance on Internet Explorer 10 I believe. I actually run the software on windows 10 with no issues, but the official guidance from the software company is that windows 10 is not supported. So I’m afraid that even though it works fine for now, it could go away at any minute due to a windows update.

I’m going to look into VDI now.

Thanks for your help so far.

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You will also need to know that most VDI technology especially from MS (Hyper-v) will cease or have ceased support for Win7 as well. VMware Horizon view is your best option. You need to know that VDI is not exactly a cheap solution and for 25 clients, you may spend well around $50K for hardware (CPU & RAM with super fast SSDs to support 25 “VDI VMs” as you wil be running 25 PCs on one box) & licenses (VMware & MS as you will need Win10 Ent on top of Win 10 Pro with VDA & SA so that you have downgrade rights to Win7 and for use with VDI).

Do find out what is the limitations…IE10 or Win10 as IE10 still can be used in place of IE11…else how about Chrome or IE11 with IE10 compatibility settings ? Sooner or later, you will come to face Win11 (Oct 2021).

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Have you tried running your software using WINE https://www.winehq.org/ ? We have migrated a dozen of various legacy software products from Windows XP/2003/7, and everything has worked flawlessly since then.

Another option is using Windows Server 2008 R2 (which has good compatibility with Windows 7) and running Remote Desktop Services on top of that operating system. That will most probably solve your issue.

If the software still works on Windows 10, it will probably run on Windows Server 2016/2019/2022. I would recommend you try running it on top of a modern operating system. It would be best if you do it inside a virtual machine. This way, you can disable updates (if necessary) and isolate that virtual machine to maintain security.

If that application is business-critical, I would recommend you purchase two servers or a highly available appliance HCI Appliance by StarWind | Advantages & Specifications for that purpose.

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7

What software only supports WIn7 that still has support and a company that is still in business? Perhaps talk to them and see what they expect their customers to use?
I still have a customer running software from the 1990s that was originally won’t run anything later than XP. I cloned the HDs to new SSD for reliability and the users use remote desktop from their Win10 PCs to connect to their old PCs that are stacked up in the server room. The units are about half HP business towers and the other half xw4100 workstations so they are still working fine after a couple decades. They are on a separate subnet for security and print thru a Server 2000 file/print server that serves data and runs the 3 dot matrix printers and a laser.
Not much different that when we first went to PCs and ran the minicomputers via the same cables that ran the terminals hooked up to a serial port on the PC and a terminal program.

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I really appreciate all of the suggestions so far. You’ve all given me good stuff to research, but it’s all a little overwhelming and I’m not sure what the best option is.

The software is an ERP with an MSSQL server backend. .net 3.5, Adobe Acrobat, internet explorer 11 all required by the report viewing portion of the software. The developer (a pretty big company) software is not supported on anything after Windows 7.

We have the server legally licensed and operated in house as a VM already.

I like the RemoteApp option best for our users but have questions about that? Could the current server (2008R2) host RemoteApp to Windows 10? How do I obtain the licensing for this? Just contact Microsoft?

Thanks again!

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Given the requirements, using Windows Server 2008 R2 is probably your best option. Unfortunately, both Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 are end of life, which is why I highly doubt you can obtain adequate licensing from Microsoft in this case. Still, you can purchase Windows Server 2008 R2, including RDS CALs, from eBay. If I remember it correctly, that would cost you ~200$.

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I can’t imagine they have any new customers if it only runs on WIn7. That seems one step from out of business or at least discontinuing that product. Bear that in mind before proceeding.

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We are running an old version of the software. We have chosen to switch to a different product, but we will still have some users that need to access this system.

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