According to research firm Gartner, Microsoft’s new generation operating system can be installed on any computer, but it will only be fully compatible with about 50% of the systems currently in use.
Microsoft has also provided only basic guidelines for Vista, such as a minimum of 512 MB of RAM and a modern processor. This lack of information has left IT administrators and consumers puzzled about the best configuration for the operating system.
For this reason, many businesses have decided to wait an additional year after the launch of Vista before upgrading their systems. “We are particularly concerned about graphic requirements, so we will need to test for a while before fully transitioning to the new program,” stated Robert Rosen, Chief Information Officer at the Dermatology Institute in Bethesda, USA.
According to Gartner, Windows Vista requires 1 GB of RAM to utilize all features, contrary to Microsoft’s claim of 512 MB. Furthermore, if businesses implement virtualization technology to maintain synchronization between the old operating system and Vista, they will need an additional 512 MB of RAM.
Moreover, most current desktop computers use integrated graphics chipsets, but integrated graphics cannot effectively support the Aero user interface in Vista like dedicated graphics chips from ATI and Nvidia can.
Gartner predicts the minimum desktop system configuration for Windows Vista to be a 945G chipset, Pentium IV processor, and 1 GB of RAM, while laptops should have a Core Duo chip, 945GM chipset, and 1 GB of RAM. Experts in the technology field should equip their systems with 2 GB of RAM and a dedicated graphics card.
Gartner did not mention configurations for systems using AMD processors since Intel hardware is present in most business computers.
