Building One Budget Test PC with 4 OS

I've decided to build a budget test PC running 4 operating systems - Linux, Windows Vista SP2, Windows 7 RC and Windows XP Professional SP3. If you buy the right Asus motherboard, you can get Linux from Splashtop (instant-on computing). If you install Windows 7 RC, you can get Windows XP Professional SP3 from Windows XP Mode Beta. The main components are as follows:

1. Asus M2N68-VM HDMI ($105) with support for Asus Express Gate (Splashtop) and hardware virtualization in BIOS
   
2. AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 5200+ Processor 2.7GHz with support for virtualization ($93)
   

You can get any 1GB memory, hard disk and internal DVD writer. The cost will be much higher if you choose Intel instead of AMD processor.

Comparing Windows Virtual PC with Virtual PC 2007

Both products are from Microsoft. Apart from the basic comparison, after using both products, the following is a list of pros & cons:

Virtualization Product	Virtual PC 2007	Windows Virtual PC
Supports USB flash drives & USB printers	No	Yes
Supports full screen	No	Yes
Supports static ip address	Yes	No
Requires AMD-V or Intel VT CPU feature	No	Yes
Requires new OS license for guest	Yes	No includes XP Pro SP3
Creates backup file copy of Virtual Hard Disk (VHD file) after changes	Yes	No

Installing Windows 7 RC on Lenovo IdeaPad S10

I downloaded the 32-bit version of Windows 7 RC Build 7100 and it took about 30 minutes to install on Lenovo IdeaPad S10. Contrary to information from Microsoft, the RC will expire 1 June 2010 but as shown, it will expire 2 March 2010.

All the hardware are automatically recognized in Device Manager except for one unknown device This can be resolved using the Energy Management driver from Windows XP.

Since Atom N270 processor does not support Intel Virtualization Technology, you'll get the error message as shown when you try to launch Virtual Windows XP after installation.

Public Release of Windows 7 Release Candidate

You can now download the following:

1. Windows 7 RC
   
2. Windows Virtual PC Beta / Windows XP Mode Beta
   

Windows Virtual PC provides the capability to run multiple Windows environments such as Windows XP Mode from your Windows 7 desktop. Windows Virtual PC requires a 1GHz 32-bit/64-bit CPU with the AMD-V or Intel VT feature turned on. This feature shows as AMD Secure Virtual Machine Mode or Intel Virtualization Technology must be enabled in the system BIOS.

Microsoft Virtual PC 2007

Downloaded and installed the free full version of Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 successfully on Lenovo Z61t running Windows 7 Beta.

Within Virtual PC 2007, the option for hardware-assisted virtualization is not available. According to Intel, the processor on Z61t which is Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 does not support Intel Virtualization Technology. But on further checking revealed that it is supported. Also in the BIOS, there is no option for Intel Virtualization Technology. Using another tool SecurAble confirmed that the processor does not support hardware virtualization. The conclusion is it does not matter whether your processor or BIOS support virtualization for Virtual PC 2007 to work.

Next, I tested installing Windows XP in the virtual environment. It took almost an hour to get Windows XP up and running. As shown, I can run IE 6.0 SP3 in Windows XP simultaneously with IE 8 in Windows 7 Beta. This is useful to run those software applications that are still not supported in Windows 7 Beta.

However, you can't expand to full screen in Windows XP and the maximum screen resolution is 1024 x 768 even though Windows 7 Beta runs in 1440 x 900 mode. Also, the date and time in Windows XP don't correspond to the date and time in Windows 7 Beta.

Peculiarities of MojoPac

I have tested 2 MojoPac devices (Kingston 1GB microSD card & Sandisk Cruzer 512MB U3) with 2 laptops (Asus Eee PC & Lenovo Z61t) and the results are as follows:

Kingston 1GB microSD card

1. Can be installed with MojoPac in Eee PC and can access Internet within MojoPac using internal network adapter in Eee PC or Huawei E220 USB modem without disabling the firewall in the host computer.
   
2. MojoPac cannot run in Lenovo Z61t. The error message is that it is not a USB 2.0 compliant device.

Sandisk Cruzer 512MB U3

1. Can be installed with MojoPac in Lenovo Z61t and can access Internet within MojoPac using internal network adapter or external Linksys WPC300N PC card by disabling the firewall in the host computer. But using the host computer, I can access Internet using internal network adapter or external Linksys WPC300N PC card in Lenovo Z61t without disabling the firewall in the host computer.
2. MojoPac can run in Eee PC and can access Internet within MojoPac using internal network adapter in Eee PC or Huawei E220 USB modem by disabling the firewall in the host computer. But using the host computer, I can access Internet using internal network adapter or Huawei E220 USB modem in Eee PC without disabling the firewall in the host computer.

Unsuccessful Update for AVG Antivirus in MojoPac

Previously, I was able to update the definitions files manually for AVG antivirus in MojoPac after installation. But, from yesterday onwards, the update was unsuccessful.

AVG Antivirus Free with MojoPac on Eee PC

Decided to test this software since manual updates for programs and virus definitions are available online. This software can be installed in MojoPac but the resident shield does not load so on-access scan will not work. You can update the program and virus definitions files manually if the automatic updates are blocked by the firewall in the host computer. The on-demand scan via Windows Explorer is definitely faster than ClamWin Free Antivirus.

Avast! Antivirus with MojoPac on Eee PC

In MojoPac, I installed Avast! 4 Home Edition Free but on-access protection (resident shield) is not functioning. It gives the error message as shown. Following the instructions did not resolve the issue. Since manual updates for programs and virus definitions are not available online, I uninstalled this software.

ClamWin Free Antivirus with MojoPac on Eee PC

My host eee PC is running iolo antivirus and it is able to detect the anti-malware test files. But inside MojoPac, running the same test fails. Thus, I installed ClamWin Free Antivirus which is supported with MojoPac. You can schedule automatic virus database update but it did not work. I have to download and update manually. Also, on-access scan is not supported while on-demand scan is slow. In the end, I have no choice but to uninstall this software.

MojoPac Freedom on Eee PC

On my Eee PC, I installed the free MojoPac Freedom on my Kingston 1GB microSD card. After installation, you can speed up your mojo. You can use any USB 2.0 compliant storage device with at least 128MB free space to install MojoPac Freedom. This is a desktop virtualization software which creates an environment whereby my microSD card becomes the c:\ drive to install applications. This allows you to carry your applications and data files for use on any Windows XP PCs. Another advantage is that it will prolong the life of the SSD on the Eee PC since there are less writes on the SSD.