The first time you power up Windows 7, you may feel a sense — it looks very similar to Windows Vista. However, behind the familiar UI lies a more powerful and versatile operating system. Here are some of the most prominent new features in Windows 7. Read more...
Windows 7 operating system (OS) is packed with new features especially in the Enterprise and Ultimate versions. Such as: Read more...
A plethora of new options that make life easier for IT professionals as shown below:
AppLocker
This new feature is a control policy that allows administrators to precisely spell out what applications users can run on their desktops. It can also be used to block unauthorized or unlicensed software and applications.
Multiple Active Firewall Policies
This feature provides a big improvement over Vista, which automatically set firewall policies depending on the type of network connection you chose such as home, public, or work. Remote Vista users couldn’t connect to multiple networks while on the road, or if someone working from home used a VPN, he or she couldn't apply settings to connect to the corporate network. Windows 7's Multiple Active Firewall Policies allows IT professionals to create multiple sets of rules for remote and desktop employees.
DirectAccess
A feature provides a secure way to manage and update individual PCs remotely. It uses IPv6 and IPSec protocols to create a secure, two-way connection from a remote user's PC to the corporate network. Users benefit by not having to manually set up VPN connections and IT professionals enjoy the ease of distributing patches and updates whenever remote workers are connected to the network.
Improved Windows Search
Is a new feature which allows for faster more thorough searches, and also provides IT administrators with better per-user policy oversight and the ability to manage resource utilization by controlling how desktop search accesses network resources. Additional improvements were the seek-and-find capabilities with Federated Search, which combines desktop, SharePoint, and Internet search methods and allows users to scan external hard drives, networked PCs, and even remote data sources. Another new feature enables the user to search for identical copies of files on drives.
Upgraded Windows Recovery Environment
A feature Microsoft introduced in Vista and was a replacement of the Recovery Console in Windows XP. The new upgrade allows users to perform a range of system and data recovery functions, including checking for defective memory, repairing boot-level startup issues, returning the system to earlier configurations, and other features.
AeroSnap Desktop Feature
This is a new feature of Windows desktop. If you pull a window to either edge of the desktop, it automatically makes each screen half the screen and compares the two windows side by side.
AeroPeek Desktop Feature
This is another new feature of Windows desktop. In XP and Vista you had a button to minimize all the windows and see the desktop. The problem was that all the windows you had minimized you then had to maximize one by one. The new button to the right of the clock makes all the windows invisible when pushed. You can even click on desktop items and open them. Press the button again and all your open windows come back the way they were before you pressed the button.
Improved Backup Utility
This improved backup utility now gives users control over which folders they want to back up which was a restriction in Vista, which allowed backups on a per-volume basis only.
Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC
These two new features address issues of incompatibility for applications designed to run older XP applications. This shows Microsoft is intent on retiring XP as a supported product in the near future.
