Many organizations are considering a Windows 7 Upgrade with Windows XP ending it's supported serviceable life in April 2014. Without the proper migration tools, the move from Windows XP to Windows 7 will be a daunting task. Network admins will need to find an effective way to deploy Windows 7 with associated line-of-business applications while still providing end users with acceptable levels of performance and not breaking the budget.

*Content derived from AppSense, full document is available for download below

Many organizations are considering a Windows 7 Upgrade with Windows XP ending its supported serviceable life in April 2014. Without the proper migration tools, the move from Windows XP to Windows 7 will be a daunting task. Network admins will need to find an effective way to deploy Windows 7 with associated line-of-business applications while still providing end users with acceptable levels of performance and not breaking the budget.

One of the biggest barriers to a successful rollout and adoption of Windows 7 is the ability to manage multiple variables across many devices for thousands of users. The two major phases of enterprise desktop migration are planning and execution. Sounds pretty basic, but as with most IT projects, the basics are often overlooked, ending with a project that's failed to meet its primary objectives. Here are 6 guidelines to help you plan your migration:

1. Ensure Clear Communication of Migration Progression - A desktop migration affects all users so they need to be made aware of the migration, kept up-to-date on the progress and informed about when they will be affected and how their data will be moved.
2. 32- bit or 64- bit Desktop Considerations - Gartner forecasts that by 2014, more than 75% of PCs deployed will be 64-bit and so by considering 64-bit you are future-proofing your environment.
3. Clearly Define a Migration Process - The migration process needs to address the complexities of a full desktop refresh. Verifying client data locations, saving the existing user desktop settings and specifying which data will be migrated are all steps that should be included. 
4. Ensure an Efficient, Cost Effective Migration Team - Most organizations don't have deep migration expertise in place because thankfully, migrations don't happen that often. Application-specific knowledge and corporate engineers and architects should almost always be internal but most of the other migration team members can be sourced from third parties. You can look for professional services firms that can be your single point of contact for the entire initiative. 
5. Understand the Existing Application Landscape - You need to understand how much effort it will take for a migration to Windows 7 to be effective. The level of effort is determined by the number of applications that require migrating, their testing, the timeframe for application remediation, the size of the packaging team and what testing is going to be required.
6. Create a Detailed and Achievable Project Plan - Enterprise migrations are very visible because they typically touch every employee. Everyone will see delays. To avoid delays, create a plan, manage it, and hold people accountable to deliver accordingly. 
7. Don't forget about Microsoft Office Content - A Windows 7 migration often includes a migration to Office 2010, and information about relevant Office documents such as Microsoft Word. Excel. PowerPoint and Access files can all be affected by changes to Macros. 
8. Prioritize the Work and Applications - Use specialist assessment tools to understand what applications are being used, by which users, and how often. Test and package the most commonly used and important applications based on the number of usage instances and number of users executing the applications. For lesser used applications, find out their business criticality, organizational interdependence and regulatory compliance needs and sequence them based on priority. 
9. Use Virtualization Technology Where Appropriate- Enterprises can save a lot of time in deploying Windows 7 by taking advantage of virtualization technologies. Instead of having to reimage all desktops or laptops (some of which may require client side support), an organization can create, test and deploy a virtual desktop with Windows 7 in hours.AppSense will seamlessly abstract the user from their existing physical Windows XP desktop and then reapply to your new virtual Windows 7 desktops.

In summary, if you are considering a virtual Windows 7 environment, we think AppSense is a great solution. AppSense will seamlessly abstract the user from their existing physical Windows XP desktop and then reapply to their new virtual Windows 7 desktops. AppSense is the proven world leader in enabling people centric computing through their enterprise scalable user virtualization platform. Customers, analysts and partners recommend AppSense to form part of the foundations of a Windows 7 migration. If you'd like to learn more about your migration options, contact Whitehat today, we're a proud partner of AppSense. Click here if you'd like to read  AppSense and Windows 7 Migration with User Virtualization.

*Content derived from Appsense, full document is available for download