| 16-bit DOS-based programs | 16-bit programs will not
run under 64-bit Windows. On 32-bit Windows, some 16-bit
DOS-based programs and the Command Prompt will not run in
full-screen mode in Windows 7. This issue occurs because
Windows
7 device drivers do not support running all of the DOS
video
modes. The device drivers are based on the Windows Display
Driver Model (WDDM). To resolve this problem, you may need
to
install a Windows XP version of the video drivers for your
video
adapter. |
| Activation expires | You see an error stating
“Your activation period has expired” or that you have a
“non-genuine version of Windows 7 installed.” If you have
not
activated Windows 7 in the time allowed or you are running
a
nongenuine version of Windows 7, Windows 7 will run in a
reduced
functionality mode. If you modify the computer hardware so
that
Windows 7 determines that it is running on a different
computer,
Windows 7 will also run in a reduced functionality mode.
You’ll
need to activate and validate Windows 7 as necessary to
resume
full functionality mode. |
| Activation
fails | Activation of Windows 7
fails over the Internet. If you connect to the Internet
through
a proxy server where Basic authentication is enabled, you
will
not be able to activate Windows 7. Change the
authentication
method. Alternatively, when the Windows Activation Wizard
prompts you, click Use the Automated Phone System and then
activate Windows 7 over the telephone. |
| Administrator
account | The Administrator account
does not appear on the Windows 7 Welcome screen. In
Windows 7,
the built-in Administrator account is disabled by default
and
you cannot use it to log on to the computer in safe mode.
However, during an upgrade, if the built-in Administrator
account is the only active local Administrator account,
Windows
7 leaves the built-in Administrator account enabled and
puts
this account into Admin Approval mode. |
| ATM network
adapters | You receive an error
message when you start Windows 7 after you install an ATM
network adapter. This error occurs because Windows 7 does
not
support ATM. |
| Audio
playback | You lose audio playback
after you unplug a USB audio device, such as a microphone
or
headphones. This problem occurs because Windows Media
Player
does not detect that the USB audio device has been
removed. To
resolve this issue, stop and restart the media player or
restart
the computer after you unplug a USB audio device. |
| BitLocker Drive
Encryption | You see a “BitLocker
Drive Encryption key needed” error message when your
computer
resumes from hibernation. This occurs because the
BitLocker
Drive Encryption feature expects the USB key to be
inserted
prior to you waking the computer. As prompted, insert the
USB
key and then press the Esc key to reboot. To avoid this
problem
in the future, insert the USB key prior to waking the
computer. |
| Burning
discs | When you try to burn a
disc, Windows Media Player doesn’t recognize your DVD-RAM.
This
error occurs because you can’t use Windows Media Player to
burn
DVD-RAM discs. You’ll need to use Windows Explorer to burn
DVD-RAM discs. |
| Computer
names | After you change the name
of a computer, other computers can continue to access the
computer by using the previous name of the computer. This
occurs
because the computer name is stored in the DNS cache. At
an
elevated command prompt (Start→All Programs→Accessories,
then
right-click on Command Prompt and choose Run As
Administrator),
flush the DNS cache by typing ipconfig
/flushdns. |
| Connecting
computers | You cannot use a serial
cable connection to connect a Windows XP–based computer to
a
Windows 7–based computer. To work around this issue,
connect the
computers using a network connection with Ethernet
cables. |
| DHCP | Windows 7 cannot obtain
an IP address from a router or non–Microsoft DHCP server.
This
can occur due to a design difference in the way DHCP is
implemented. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928233/en-us
for
more information. |
| Digital still
cameras | A digital still camera is
not recognized. Windows 7 uses the Windows Image
Acquisition
(WIA) standard instead of the Windows Portable Devices
(WPD)
standard to import pictures and videos. To resolve this
problem,
configure the camera to use the Picture Transfer Protocol
(PTP)
standard instead of the WIA standard. See the owner’s
manual for
the camera to configure the camera to use the PTP
standard. |
| Digital video
cameras | When you are changing
modes, Windows Live Movie Maker may incorrectly detect the
mode
of a digital video camera. This can occur if you quickly
switch
between the Camera, Off, VCR, and Memory modes. To avoid
this
problem, pause momentarily after switching from one mode
to
another and before switching to another mode. |
| Disk drives with large
sectors | Windows 7 supports
large-sector hard disk drives. Newer hard disk drives may
contain physical sector sizes that are larger than the
traditional 512 bytes per sector. If the drive uses an
emulation
mode to support these large-sector sizes, your
applications
should continue to work without problems. If the drive
doesn’t
use an emulation mode, some of your applications may not
work.
See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/923332/en-us
for
more information. |
| EAP-MD5 | Extensible
Authentication
Protocol-Message Digest 5 (EAP-MD5) doesn’t work. In
Windows 7,
EAP-MD5 has been deprecated and is not enabled. You can
reenable
support for EAP-MD5. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/922574/en-us for
more information. |
| Favorites in InternetExplorer
| In
Internet Explorer,
Windows 7 does not let you type a favorite name that is
longer
than 227 characters. Make sure that the name of the new
favorite
is no longer than 227 characters. |
| Fingerprint
readers | You cannot use a
fingerprint reader or another biometric device to log on
after
you upgrade to Windows 7. Windows 7 does not support the
Graphical Identification and Authentication (GINA)
components
that the device requires. Install drivers for the device
that
are compatible with Windows 7. |
| FireWire devices | In Windows
Explorer or
other interfaces, you cannot see a specific FireWire (IEEE
1394a) device that you’ve connected to the computer. To
resolve
this issue, see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/927827/en-us
for
more information. |
| GINA/biometrics | Custom
GINA modules do
not work after you upgrade your computer to Windows 7.
This
occurs because GINA functionality that existed in earlier
versions of Windows is replaced by a credential provider
model
in Windows 7. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/925520/en-us
for
more information. |
| Help (.hlp) files | Windows 7 won’t display
Help (.hlp) files. The
Windows Help program (WinHlp32.exe) is not included in
Windows 7. Windows Help is no longer supported. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917607/en-us
for
more information. |
| Hosts and
Lmhosts | You cannot modify the
Hosts or Lmhosts
file in Windows 7. This
occurs because the program you are using must be in
elevated
mode to save the edited files. Before opening the Hosts
or Lmhosts file, right-click the program
shortcut and then select “Run as administrator.” |
| Installation | Installation
media is not
recognized when you try to install Windows 7. If the media
is
damaged, you’ll need to obtain replacement media.
Otherwise,
make sure that the CD or DVD drive is configured as a
startup
device in firmware and that you are inserting the media
into the
appropriate CD or DVD drive. |
| Installation | During
installation, you
are unable to select the hard disk you want to use. This
issue
can occur if the hard disk partition contains an invalid
byte
offset value. |
| Installation | During installation of
Windows 7, you see an “Error: uncaught exception” message.
This
error can occur if there are problems with the selected
disk
partitions. To resolve this problem, you’ll need to remove
the
partitions, as discussed previously. |
| Installation | During
installation of
Windows 7, you cannot select or format a hard disk
partition. If
the partition is formatted with FAT32 or has other
incompatible
settings, this may be causing the problem. To work around
this
issue, you may want to boot to the current operating
system,
convert the partition to NTFS, and then restart the
installation. As this could also be due to a problem with
the
drivers for the hard disk, you may need to boot to the
current
operating system, update the disk drivers, and then
restart the
installation. |
| Installation | During
installation, you
see a “This computer’s hardware may not support booting to
this
disk” message. This can occur if the disk has not been
initialized for use or if the BIOS of the computer does
not
support starting the operating system from the selected
disk. To
resolve this problem, create one or more partitions on all
the
hard disks that are not initialized and then restart the
installation. |
| Language/Keyboard | Only one keyboard
layout
is available during installation. If your keyboard
language and
the language edition of Windows 7 you are installing are
different, you may see unexpected characters as you type.
Select
the correct keyboard language to avoid this. |
| Language/Keyboard | Some
user interface items
are not displayed in the correct language after you change
the
display language. This occurs because Windows 7 cannot
update
language settings for currently running processes. To
resolve
this problem, restart your computer. |
| Language/Keyboard | You
see an incorrect
display language when you use elevated permissions to open
a
dialog box. This can occur because Windows 7 uses the
preferred
user interface language of the administrator whose
credentials
you provide. This language may differ from your preferred
user
interface language. |
| Live File System | The
available space on a
Live File System disc is less than the capacity of the
disc.
This issue occurs because the Live File System reserves a
small
amount of disc space to accommodate link-loss area. In
contrast,
the Universal Disc Format (UDF) filesystem reserves at
least 10
percent of the reported capacity of the disc for sparing.
See
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928353/en-us
for
more information. |
| Mf.sys devices | You
cannot install a
device that requires the Mf.sys device driver in
Windows 7.
The Mf.sys device driver
is
not installed in Windows 7 by default. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/926171/en-us for
more information. |
| Network
Map | In Windows 7, Network Map
does not display computers that are running Windows XP.
This
occurs because the Link-Layer Topology Discovery (LLTD)
Responder component is not installed on most Windows
XP–based
computers. You can download and install this component on
your
Windows XP computers from the Microsoft website. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/922120/en-us
for
more information. |
| Networking
programs | Third-party networking
programs that use NDIS drivers no longer function after
you
upgrade to Windows 7. To resolve this issue, you must
reinstall
the networking program. This will ensure that the
third-party
NDIS driver is installed and configured
correctly. |
| Playing
DVDs | A DVD+RW or DVD-RW video
disc that was formatted on a Windows 7–based computer is
not
recognized by a DVD player that supports DVD+RW or DVD-RW
video
discs. This problem can occur if Windows 7 uses a version
of the
UDF that the DVD player does not support. |
| Playing
DVDs | A video DVD does not
appear in the correct aspect ratio in Windows Media Player
on a
Tablet PC. This problem may occur when you view the DVD in
portrait mode. To resolve the problem, set the display to
landscape mode. |
| RAW image
files | You cannot view RAW image
files after you copy them from a camera to your computer.
This
issue occurs if you do not have a RAW image codec for your
camera model installed in Windows 7. To resolve this
issue,
install a Windows 7–compatible RAW image codec that either
supports the camera model or is from the camera
manufacturer. |
| Recording
DVDs | You cannot record more
data to a recordable DVD after you format and then eject
the
disc. This issue occurs because Windows 7 automatically
closes a
disc when you eject it. Closing a disc lets you use it in
another computer or device. |
| Slide show
playback | On a Tablet PC, the
screen goes black when you switch the screen orientation
during
slideshow playback. To resolve this problem, exit the
slideshow
before you change the screen orientation, and then restart
the
slideshow. Or press the Esc key to restore the original
screen
orientation. |
| Sound Recorder | You
do not hear any sound
when you play back a recording that was recorded with the
Sound
Recorder. This can occur because the default volume of
microphones is 0 dB. |
| Speech Recognition | Speech
Recognition does
not appear to be using the correct language. Speech
Recognition
is only available in U.S. English, U.K. English, French,
German,
Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese versions of Windows 7.
Because of
the way in which Speech Recognition is integrated into the
operating system, the feature cannot be removed from
versions of
Windows 7 for which Speech Recognition is
unavailable. |
| Speech Recognition
commands | You cannot use Speech
Recognition in Windows 7 to select commands on floating
toolbars
in Microsoft Office. With Speech Recognition, you can
select
commands on docked toolbars in Microsoft Office. Dock the
toolbars to resolve the problem. |
| USB audio devices | You are unable to hear
the audio from a newly connected USB audio device in
Windows
Media Player. To resolve this issue, restart Windows Media
Player. |
| USB drives | A USB drive does not
appear in the Windows Connect Now window. This behavior
occurs
if the USB drive uses the NTFS filesystem format and you
do not
have permission to write to the root directory of the
drive. To
avoid this problem, use a device that uses the FAT
filesystem
format. |
| USB
storage
devices | A connected USB storage
device does not appear when you click the Safely Remove
Hardware
icon in the notification area in Windows 7. This problem
can
occur if the USB device has an embedded USB hub. In this
case,
you may be able to manage the device in the Computer
console or
you may need to shut down the computer before removing the
device. |
| User Account
Control | You encounter an
unexpected error or behavior when you try to perform a
task that
requires elevated privileges. This issue can occur if UAC
is
turned off. |
| Windows
CompleteRestore PC | You receive a version
error message when you use the Windows Complete PC Restore
program to restore a computer. If you try to restore a
computer
using a 64-bit version of Windows 7 using a 32-bit
installation
disc, you will see an error stating “This version of
System
Recovery Options is not compatible with the version of
Windows
you are trying to repair. Try using a recovery disc that
is
compatible with this version of Windows.” To resolve this
issue,
start recovery using a 64-bit installation disc. |
| Windows Explorer menu bar | When you view files and
folders by using Windows Explorer, the Windows Explorer
menu bar
is not displayed. To display the menu bar, press the Alt
key.
Press the Alt key again to hide the menu bar. |
| Windows Media Player | You see an “Invalid
File
Format” error message when you play a file in Windows
Media
Player. This can occur if you are trying to play a file
type
that Windows Media Player doesn’t support. It can also
occur if
the file is damaged. If
the file is in a supported format and is not damaged, you
may
need to reinstall Windows Media Player and then reinstall
or
upgrade to the latest version of Microsoft DirectX. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/924073/en-us
for
more information. |
| Windows
startup | In a dual-boot
configuration, Windows XP does not start if you
subsequently
format or delete the partition on which Windows 7 is
installed.
This occurs because Windows 7 uses a different startup
method
than Windows XP does. To resolve this problem, you’ll need
to
repair your Windows XP installation by starting an
installation
and selecting the Repair option. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/922809/en-us
for
more information. |
| Windows 7
startup | Windows 7 won’t start
after you install an earlier version of the Windows
operating
system in a dual-boot configuration. |
| Wireless
adapters | When running on
battery,
you experience connectivity or performance issues when you
connect to a wireless access point. This can occur if the
wireless access point doesn’t support the 802.11 power
save
protocol. To resolve this issue, connect the computer to a
power
source or change the power saving options for the wireless
adapter to use the Maximum Performance power saving mode. |
