Compatibility on Anything About IT

The “This website needs Internet Explorer” Message

Tue, 15 Sep 2015 21:45:51 +0000

As you probably know by know, Microsoft Edge is now the default Browser on Windows 10, but IE11 can still be used. While using the Microsoft Edge browser I’ve noticed that now and then when opening a website, the following message is displayed.

So where does this message come from, and how does Microsoft Edge know that the page works best in Internet Explorer? For Enterprise users Microsoft has extended the functiionality of the Enterprise Mode Site list manager.

The Internet Explorer Compatibility List

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 22:47:18 +0000

In today’s blog post I’d like to share some basic information I gathered today about the Internet Explorer Compatibility list option that is available within the Compatibility View Settings in Internet Explorer 8 and 9. By default this setting is enabled and causes websites that are listed within the Compatibility list to render properly in newer versions of Internet Explorer.

When you have the Include updated website lists from Microsoft option enabled, you should have a file called IECompatData.xml stored under %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\IECompatData\

Running an Application as Administrator or in Compatibility Mode

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 22:55:43 +0000

Today someone in a forum asked how to programmatically configure an application so that it runs in compatibility mode. Configuring this manually is easy, just open the file’s properties, select the Compatibility tab and apply the required settings. On Windows 7 this then looks as shown in the picture below.

Now whatever we configure here, it all gets written to the following location in the Windows Registry:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\Layers

Inside the Windows 7 Driver Store–Part 2

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 01:03:03 +0000

Since I wrote my previous post Inside the Windows 7 Driver Store, I continued exploring the content of the Driver Store. The results are as following:

Classes & Unique Hardware IDs

 **Windows 7 Enterprise 32 Bit** **Windows 7 Enterprise 64 Bit** **Class Description** **Hardware Ids** **Class Description** **Hardware Ids** 61883 Device Class 4 61883 Device Class 4 AVC Devices 15 AVC Devices 15 Batteries 11 Batteries 11 Bluetooth Radios 69 Bluetooth Radios 69 Computer 2 Computer 1 Disk drives 31 Disk drives 31 Display adapters 499 Display adapters 500 DVD/CD-ROM drives 5 DVD/CD-ROM drives 5 Floppy disk drives 12 Floppy disk drives 12 Floppy drive controllers 1 Floppy drive controllers 1 Human Interface Devices 204 Human Interface Devices 205 IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers 87 IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers 87 IEEE 1284.4 compatible printer 100 IEEE 1284.4 compatible printer 100 IEEE 1284.4 devices 118 IEEE 1284.4 devices 118 IEEE 1394 Bus host controllers 17 IEEE 1394 Bus host controllers 17 Imaging devices 594 Imaging devices 594 Keyboards 136 Keyboards 136 Media Center Extender 4 Media Center Extender 4 Medium Changer devices 225 Medium Changer devices 225 Memory devices 1 Memory devices 1 Mice and other pointing devices 104 Mice and other pointing devices 104 Microsoft Common Controller For Windows Class 6 Microsoft Common Controller For Windows Class 6 Modems 3935 Modems 2695 Monitors 1797 Monitors 1797 Multifunction adapters 52 Multifunction adapters 52 Network adapters 3903 Network adapters 3641 Network Protocol 6 Network Protocol 6 Other devices 2 Other devices 2 PCMCIA adapters 98 PCMCIA adapters 98 Portable Devices 64 Portable Devices 64 Ports (COM & LPT) 100 Ports (COM & LPT) 92 Printers 2151 Printers 2151 Processors 55 Processors 55 SBP2 IEEE 1394 Devices 1 SBP2 IEEE 1394 Devices 1 SD host adapters 12 SD host adapters 12 Security Devices 4 Security Devices 4 Sensors 1 Sensors 1 Smart Card Filter 1 Smart Card Filter 1 Smart card readers 22 Smart card readers 22 Smart cards 4 Smart cards 4 Sound, video and game controllers 437 Sound, video and game controllers 413 Storage controllers 2085 Storage controllers 2086 Storage volume shadow copies 1 Storage volume shadow copies 1 Storage Volumes 1 Storage Volumes 1 System devices 1479 System devices 1448 Tape drives 303 Tape drives 303 Transfer Cable Devices 40 Transfer Cable Devices 40 Universal Serial Bus controllers 530 Universal Serial Bus controllers 530 Unknown device class 17 Unknown device class 17 Windows SideShow 6 Windows SideShow 6 **Total** **19'352** **Total** **17'789**

Manufacturers

The below table shows those Manufacturers that have the most unique Hardware IDs within the Driver Store. I had to do some data consolidation, as some vendors seem to use several ways for writing their company name within the INF file. (Some room for improvement here).

Inside the Windows 7 Driver Store

Tue, 28 Dec 2010 15:37:19 +0000

The driver store is a trusted location of inbox and third-party driver packages. This means that before a driver can be installed it must first be injected into the driver store, this process is called staging. Today I want to take a closer look at what is inside the driver store specifically the drivers that are included within Windows 7. The driver store is located under C:\Windows\System32\Driverstore.

To get list of all drivers installed (staged) within the driver store, open an elevated command prompt and enter the following command:

Windows 7 Compatibility Search

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 22:52:19 +0000

Just came across the Windows 7 Compatibility Search provider, allowing you to do a quick Windows 7 compatibility check for an application or hardware. Download and install the Windows 7 Compatibility Search Provider from here

ReadTip: How Microsoft IT deployed Office 2010

Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:15:38 +0000

If you are planning deploying Office 2010 throughout an enterprise read this.

Migrating to Internet Explorer 8

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 21:12:44 +0000

Companies that are in the process of planning a Windows 7 migration, will be required to pay some attention to Internet Explorer 8 and web site compatibility. Chris Johnson aka “The App Compat Guy” put together two video’s about how to migrate from Internet Explorer 6 to 8. The videos talk about the potential challenges , testing methods, workarounds and solutions to support companies with a smooth migration. Thrive Live! Migrating from IE6 to IE8 (Part 1 of 2) and Thrive Live! Migrating from IE6 to IE8 (Part 2 of 2)

Office 2010 Resources

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:48:15 +0000

On march 4th Microsoft communicated on their Office 2010 Engineering blog that they are on Schedule with Office 2010 and will release it to manufacturing next month. For Enterprise customers Office 2010 will be available as of May 12th, consumers will get Office 2010 in June.

Microsoft Office 2010 Site

Planning, configuration, deployment and compatibility guides can be found here

Microsoft Office ONRAMP Site

Office OnRamp is the BPIO execution package that launches Office 2010 to the Enterprise business. Office OnRamp helps you drive the conversations you need to have with TDMs, ITPros and end users to renew EAs, drive Office 2010 deployment and win new EA business. OnRamp provides a complete set of orchestrated activities and marketing materials that give you the tools you need to demonstrate the value of Office 2010 in the BPIO framework and WIN!

ReadTip: Making Applications Compatible with Windows 7 in a Virtualized Environment

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:14:13 +0000

Often people think that App-V is is an Application Compatibility Solution, it’s not. Chris Jackson has written an excellent article where he explains this in detail. Read the entire article here

Updated MS10-015 Security Update and Kernel Update Compatibility Assessment Tool

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 22:49:20 +0000

During the past weeks we have seen quite some messages about the MS10-015 security update which can cause bluescreens after being installed. According to a recent post on the Microsoft Security Response Center blog there is a revised installation package for MS10-015 that prevents the update from installing if abnormal conditions exist such as an infection of a computer virus as the Alureon rootkit. More details about the updated MS10-015 security update can be found here

Windows 7 Application Compatibility List

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:28:00 +0000

Some of you are probably involved in some sort of Windows 7 migration preparation activities and like with any operating system migration, application compatibility is one of the most important topics you will need to focus on. If you need to do a first pre-study on your application compatibility status, then I suggest you download the Windows 7 Application Compatibility List for IT Professionals and compare the content with the applications your company or client is using, this might allow you to do a first estimate on how much effort you will need to spend on Application Compatibility related tasks.

Windows Logo'd Products List Updated for Windows 7

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 22:23:58 +0000

The Windows Hardware Compatibility list (HCL) has been updated for Windows 7. So far there are no entries form the major hardware manufacturers, but I’m sure that will change within the next couple of weeks as they continue submitting their drivers for WHQL testing.

Note that you can also check the hardware manufacturers Windows 7 pages to find out if they will provide Windows 7 support for your device. HP for example has the Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program. All models that are eligible for Windows 7 are listed here (US site, select your country for other localized products).

Windows7 Application Compatibility Center

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:32:01 +0000

Source: ars technica

Microsoft currently has a placeholder page for the Windows 7 Compatibility Center, which will be launching at the same time as Windows 7. Read entire article here