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• January 14, 2004 •
Virtual PC is a powerful software solution that allows you to run multiple PC-based operating systems simultaneously on one workstation, providing a way to maintain compatibility with legacy applications while you migrate to a new operating system such as Windows XP or Windows 2000 Professional.
Virtual PC lets you create separate virtual machines on your Windows® desktop, each of which virtualizes the hardware of a complete physical computer. You can run multiple operating systems at once on a single physical computer and switch between them as easily as switching applications—instantly, with a mouse click.
The Virtual PC application requires a 400 MHz Pentium-compatible processor (1 GHz is recommended), and requires approximately 20 MB of disk space. It runs on Windows XP Professional and Windows 2000 Professional.
The real requirements for running Virtual PC are those necessary to support the guest operating systems that you will run. Add the disk requirements for every guest OS you'll install and add the memory requirements for every guest OS you will run simultaneously, plus memory for the host OS. Hard disk space requirements range from 50 MB for running MS-DOS 6.22 to 2 GB for running Windows ME, 2000 and XP. Memory requirements vary from 32 MB for MS-DOS 6.22 & Windows 95 to 128 MB for Windows XP (all minimum requirements. Installing applications in a guest OS increases requirements. Increasing memory beyond the minimum can result in significant performance increases.)
Download
You can download Virtual PC 2004 directly from the Microsoft download site [18.9 MB]
This is a 45-day time-out, full version of the Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 product. No serial number is required.
Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 marks Microsoft's entry into the Windows-based virtual machine arena. The product is built on virtualization technology that Microsoft acquired in February 2003 from Connectix Corp., a company at the forefront of virtual machine development since 1988.
More information can be found in the Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 Evaluation Guide, a 2.07 MB Microsoft Word file, or by visiting the Microsoft Virtual PC Web site.
