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    LANGALIST PLUS


    Win7’s XP Mode virtual disk can grow huge

    By Fred Langa

    Although Win7’s free XP Mode is excellent for running old software, its virtual hard drive can become overly large. But there are ways to control it. Plus: Getting XP-era software to run on Windows 8, and a warning about “silent failures” in Win8’s File History.

    The full text of this column is posted at windowssecrets.com/langalist-plus/win7s-xp-mode-virtual-disk-can-grow-huge/ (paid content, opens in a new window/tab).

    Columnists typically cannot reply to comments here, but do incorporate the best tips into future columns.[/td]

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    • #1425398

      Hi Fred,
      One of my client’s pc’s is running XP virtual mode. I’m a bit concerned what the impact is on this system when MS stops the support on XP coming April. Especially the security part of course. Can you comment that?
      TIA
      Sjors

      • #1425466

        Hi Fred,
        One of my client’s pc’s is running XP virtual mode. I’m a bit concerned what the impact is on this system when MS stops the support on XP coming April. Especially the security part of course. Can you comment that?
        TIA
        Sjors

        Depends on if XP mode is used online or not and if data sharing is any more extensive than a simple USB port capture which can be scanned before allowing it back into host access. One doesn’t need any security or updates at all if there are no plausible vectors for infection.

        • #1426406

          tnx FUN, but the problem is he is using XP mode online.
          And of course there’s a payed internet security active and the latest xp-patches are installed.
          Given this situation what would you think is the risk continuing with XP-mode after April 2014?
          TIA
          Sjors

    • #1425441

      When I saw your sub-heading “A warning regarding Win8’s File History” I thought “Oh good, Fred’s going to pick up on the problem I’ve been having” – but unfortunately yours was a different problem. After I recently upgraded to Win8.1 I found that File History had stopped working altogether. I decided to delete the existing FH files and start again; that’s when I discovered that the backup was about ten times the size of the file system being backed up, mainly because under Win8 FH had been making multiple backups of files that were not changing at all. Then when I did restart FH, to a new destination, it backed up only files that newly changed, without making an initial copy of the complete set. At this point I gave up and reverted to using the always reliable Quickshadow, which also has the advantage that, unlike FH, it can backup files that are currently in use; this is important because, in practice, files such as Outlook data files and TrueCrypt containers are always open so FH never backs them up.

    • #1425596

      I believe that you’re safer using XP Mode the way FUN describes it, than if you use straight XP; however, I believe that you should still run whatever XP updates are available in your virtual machine. The more caution you use, the less your risk will be.

      Also, the same thing applies with anti-virus software. You should run a decent A/V program in your XP virtual machine, and you should keep it updated.

      Group "L" (Linux Mint)
      with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server
    • #1425673

      Fred, many thanks for a very timely and topical article on XP Mode in Win 7 / 8. I’m using it on a laptop and can’t afford the hard drive space utilization; now I have a workable way to control it and several viable alternatives. Very nice, very much appreciated. Keep up the good work!

      Regards,

      Don Hirst

    • #1425787

      Fred,
      Excellent column, as always.
      Wondering if you could elaborate on how you back up to the other machines on your network. I’ve thought of this for some time but not sure what the best method might be.
      Thanx for all your great columns.

      • #1425800

        Fred,
        Excellent column, as always.
        Wondering if you could elaborate on how you back up to the other machines on your network. I’ve thought of this for some time but not sure what the best method might be.

        The destination just has to be a shared resource, could be mapped onto the source machine but not necessary if whatever program or utility or command is used for backup can see shared network locations on other machines or NAS devices.

        • #1425818

          The destination just has to be a shared resource, could be mapped onto the source machine but not necessary if whatever program or utility or command is used for backup can see shared network locations on other machines or NAS devices.

          Thanx for the reply – I get that part, but I was wondering what exactly you use/recommend for a synchronization program or utility for backing up to other network machines/devices. Do you simply do image backups to other machines? Do you use a specific backup utlity or just run a batch file? Do you only backup certain files to those machines, such as incremental backups between images? I guess I’m looking for more info on your strategy with regard to the other machines. Thanx again.

          • #1425896

            Thanx for the reply – I get that part, but I was wondering what exactly you use/recommend for a synchronization program or utility for backing up to other network machines/devices. Do you simply do image backups to other machines? Do you use a specific backup utlity or just run a batch file? Do you only backup certain files to those machines, such as incremental backups between images? I guess I’m looking for more info on your strategy with regard to the other machines. Thanx again.

            Ya I was skirting that part since there can be many strategies depending on what one wants exactly. I only image my OS and programs, not data, others might have a sufficiently small amount to make imaging regularly more practical. I’ve used Snycback free for a long time now on all recent Windows platforms, I like that uniformity instead of using the “flavor of the month” Microsoft tool, which we found out from the article, wasn’t working so good in one instance.
            All good one to one data backup programs should have the same basic modes as Syncback which are straight backup, synchronize and mirror and some will keep versions of the same data files, something I’ve never needed; I just rename a file via save as… if I think I’ll ever need an earlier version. I also don’t just do a straight backup which keeps every file that’s ever been created and saved in the backup. I mirror data on my slowly changing repository data, like the drive I keep all my downloaded programs and utilities on going back to 2000 or maybe even earlier, it only changes now and then so a monthly backup is plenty and anything I delete from the source I don’t want hanging around in the backup drive on the designated network system drive.
            I also don’t want to use synchronization in such instances because for the most part I don’t want older versions of the same program being restored to the source. However I do utilize synchronization extensively for data backup/exchange between two active systems. That way it doesn’t matter which system I use to interact with the data files, creating new ones and altering existing ones, the changes get updated to the other system’s data files. Backups are updated going both ways, the only thing one must remember in that case is to delete a file in both (all) locations or it will be restored from the other data set the next time a profile is run, which also means if one accidentally deletes something permanently from one system, no problem, it’ll be back the next time the backup is run.

            So in short, it really depends on what you want or expect to do with your data. I actually synchronize with three systems, keeping the profile run times so they don’t overlap. One other strategy using another system might be if one were using an online backup service like Carbonite. One might backup data from all the other systems to an internal drive on that one system tied to Carbonite so all the data from all systems would be backed up online under just one account.

            • #1425941

              Great info!

              Like you, I also use “save as…” quite often if I think there ever might be a need to backtrack. For some time now, I’ve imaged my primary computer, a Win 7 laptop, weekly to two rotating USB drives and have often thought of mirroring to one of my desktops for both convenience and ‘what-if’ disaster scenarios.

              Thanx for your time, I will definitely check out Syncback.

              -Marty

    • #1425991

      My Canon CanoScan 8000F is incompatible with Win 8, and I’m wondering if XP Mode works with hardware, which, after all, is controlled by its spftware. This is assuming that XP Mode is included in Win 8.

      • #1425992

        My Canon CanoScan 8000F is incompatible with Win 8, and I’m wondering if XP Mode works with hardware, which, after all, is controlled by its spftware. This is assuming that XP Mode is included in Win 8.

        Unfortunately, XP Mode is only available with Windows 7.

        You could try a different VM technology, though, like VirtualBox, but you will need a valid XP licence for the VM.

      • #1428229

        My Canon CanoScan 8000F is incompatible with Win 8, and I’m wondering if XP Mode works with hardware, which, after all, is controlled by its spftware. This is assuming that XP Mode is included in Win 8.

        No, this would require at least a Windows XP Virtual Machine. Under Windows 8, any form of backward compatibility is limited by the availability of Windows 8 drivers for the device. Drivers are software, but they are a special case. Compatibility Modes usually do not resolve driver issues in my experience.

        -- rc primak

    • #1426004

      I’m not sure how you’d get a copy of XPMode but where there’s a will there’s usually a way and it does run in Windows 8 using VirutalBox according to this article.

      • #1426006

        I’m not sure how you’d get a copy of XPMode but where there’s a will there’s usually a way and it does run in Windows 8 using VirutalBox according to this article.

        Would that usage be a license violation?

        Anyway, technically that’s not XP mode, but just a VM with XP running in VirtualBox.

    • #1426023

      Technically I’m sure it is a violation, but I always weigh the possible economic damage a violation might invoke. MS hasn’t sold a retail XP license in approximately 5 years and 3 months and at this point, how much risk is there in acquiring a legitimate, malware free copy on the open market? Also in this case, using a copy of XP Mode in Win 8 amounts to an enhancement that can make the user’s Win8 experience slightly more enjoyable and efficacious, possibly leading to acceptance of Windows 8 in more personally purchased and owned devices.

      I don’t see any downside for MS at all.

    • #1426471

      I think the risk will creep up ever so slowly as one would expect but I also think there is a relational perspective to consider as well. That being the user’s usage habits and history.
      I would assign about 90% user responsibility, 9.99% security software reliance, and .01% patch reliance. So after April 2014 the risk can go up 100% or even 400 or 500% and still only be a slight fraction of the overall risk. Also, that risk is the third line of defense, after something gets by both the user and the security software, which is why it is assigned such a low level of importance. Further, unless sharing and networking paths are opened up, XP Mode is probably the only OS at risk and that is easily replaced with a copy if infected, and finally, one can actually sandbox the online portions of XP Mode with something like Sandboxie.
      I personally don’t have the slightest qualms about running XP or XP virtual without patches, I’ve already been doing so successfully for a decade, but the habits and history of the user in this case is a known factor to me. :p

    • #1432708

      Decided to just hose my XP Mode; rarely use it and now that I have no need for the only program that I couldn’t get to work in Virtualbox XP, I followed Fred’s procedure and removed XP Mode. Haven’t removed VirtualPC yet but will more then likely do that too. XP mode was taking 20Gs from my C drive so now I have a little more playing room on my C drive. 🙂

      • #1433582

        Fred’s solution of restoring XP Mode to its native state is not for me, as I like to keep the many program installations, security patches (unavailable via Windows Update after April 2014!) and tweaks I’ve taken a good deal of effort to install. But Fred’s article prompted me to research online how to compact XP Mode.

        I spent the best part of two days working it out fully, the process is not intuitive, and involved downloading two special freeware programs (one of which has to be the correct version).

        XP Mode compacting is now working for me, and I can lower the virtual hard disk size to 6-7GB even when it has swollen to much larger from large file creation/deletion.

        This takes a number of steps and an hour or two initially, but the next compacting (probably in a few months) will be pretty fast and easy, only taking a few minutes.

        I’m currently documenting the whole process step-by-step. I’ll post it in a topic on this board in a day or two, and provide a link to it in this topic.

        Asus N53SM & N53SN 64-bit laptops (Win7 Pro & Win10 Pro 64-bit multiboots), venerable HP Pavilion t760 32-bit desktop (XP & Win7 Pro multiboot), Oracle VirtualBox VM's: XP & Win7 32-bit, XP Mode, aged Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy Tab A 2019s (8" & 10.1"), Blu-ray burners, digital cameras, ext. HDDs (latest 5TB!), AnyDVD, Easeus ToDo Backup Home, Waterfox, more. Me: Aussie card-carrying Windows geek.

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