For many organizations, the migration to Windows 7 will be in full swing in 2011. The driver for this is that support for Windows XP is ending in 2014, and according to Gartner, it takes the typical business 14 to 18 months to fully migrate to a new OS. Added to the migration challenge is the reality that nearly two thirds of XP applications will need remediation to work with Windows 7, according to Dell’s real world experience. This combined upgrade/application compatibility process can take up to 2 years or more to complete. For many organizations only now beginning their migration, the process will continue well into 2013.
Migrations are difficult, error-prone projects that require IT managers to update major portions of their users’ software without interrupting their work. Dell KACE is introducing new capabilities to its systems deployment appliance to simplify and accelerate Windows 7 migrations. The latest version of the Dell KACE K2000 Deployment Appliance includes valuable new features to simplify the lives of IT managers during this transition.
Policy-based migration enables IT managers to define system images and installation scripts so they can upgrade systems from a central appliance and ensure standardization, network-wide.
Using a new offline migration capability, offline systems can be accessed, the new OS upgraded and user data and settings copied over from a central location, without end user interruption.
Dell KACE Appliances now support direct driver feeds from Dell so that the new software drivers can be automatically downloaded and installed, saving IT valuable time searching for compatible drivers on the internet.
To learn more about the K2000 Deployment Appliance and hear best practices for a successful Windows 7 migration, by accessing our recorded webinar event, Windows 7 Wide Open: Tools for a Swift and Successful Migration.
For those who are interested, check out our whitepaper Windows 7: Tips and Best Practices for Simplified Migration, or see a wider range of our other whitepapers. Find out more about the Dell KACE K2000 Deployment Appliance and how it fulfills the systems provisioning needs of an organization including inventory assessment, OS deployment, application distribution, configuration and recovery.
And feel free to share your feedback in the comments section below. Thanks!
