Microsoft Windows Vista Business Upgrade

This version will not upgrade from Windows 95/98/ME or earlier versions. It can only be upgraded from Windows 2000 Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Professional x64, Windows XP Media Center or Windows XP Tablet PC. Backup and clean install may be required. See manufacturer's website for more details.

Windows Vista Business is the first Windows operating system designed specifically to meet the needs of small businesses. You'll empower your entire business to work more efficiently with a stunning and improved, simple-to-use interface that makes it easier to search and find the information you need quickly and easily, both on your PCs and on the web. With powerful new safety features, you're in control and can better protect the key information that is the life of your business and that builds the trust of your customers.

And, for the growing business that always seems to be on the go, the mobile computing enhancements make it easier to stay connected to the rhythm of your business, both in and out of the office. Windows Vista Business makes all of this work for you while helping you spend less time on technology support-related issues—so you can spend more time making your business successful. Windows Vista Business simply makes it easier to manage how your employees connect to your network and to ensure that they get more out of their PCs, both in and out of the office. Be future-ready and lay the IT foundation that your business needs for today and tomorrow.

Easier, Faster Access to Information

Vista Business features Windows Aero, a new interface that delivers higher levels of efficiency for any business user. This easy-to-use interface makes it a snap to navigate through the operating system and from application to application. Most importantly, Windows Aero helps you juggle multiple tasks at once by providing a three-dimensional, real-time, animated view of all your open applications and documents.

In addition to these navigation improvements, Vista Business makes it easier than ever to manage huge volumes of business documents. By integrating search throughout the operating system and providing new ways to organize files, this software helps you quickly find exactly what you are looking for.

Collaborate and Communicate More Effectively

Vista Business helps your work teams collaborate and communicate more effectively, regardless of their location. By helping users find and use information quickly and easily, this software can dramatically improve how people in your organization access and apply essential knowledge and resources on PCs, in e-mail, from corporate servers, and on the Internet.

Improved Security and Compliance

Protecting your business information and complying with regulations places increased demands on your IT staff. Vista Business' more sophisticated data protection and auditing capabilities help simplify IT management and can help lower costs for regulatory compliance. In addition, with features like the Encryption File system, Windows Vista helps organizations manage security risks by protecting information and services in a more controllable and secure environment.

Safe Operation

For businesses of any size, Vista Business makes it possible for your IT department to configure users' systems so that they can log onto their PCs as standard users instead of as administrators. This helps minimize compatibility and usability issues that might have occurred in previous versions of Windows, while also making those issues easier to resolve. Moreover, this new capability significantly reduces the likelihood of a malicious attack causing damage to your organization's PCs.

Keep Your Network Running Smoothly

For small businesses, Vista Business includes new technology and tools to ensure your PCs are always up-to-date, more secure, and running smoothly. For instance, this software helps make your PCs safer with built-in protection against malicious software, or malware. And because Vista Business warns you of impending hardware failures early on, you don't have to worry about the devastating loss of any important business data. No matter what potential problems arise, an array of sophisticated new backup technologies helps protect your information even in the event of a catastrophic hardware failure. When it comes to management, features like Domain Join and Group Policy support improve the efficiency of your workgroups.

Small Business Resources

And for those who are not full-time IT professionals but have roles that require them to support their organizations' PCs, Vista Business includes Small Business Resources. This built-in how-to guide leads you through everyday tasks and troubleshooting in easy-to-follow, non-technical language. By giving you the ability to solve problems as they arise, you can help keep your business efficient. Vista Business also provides business specific features like fax and scan that increase productivity.

Image-Based Installation

For larger organizations, Vista Business has been designed from the ground up to improve the deployment and management of the central operating system. For instance, image-based installation is now the default method for installing the Windows Vista operating system, and the images are no longer hardware-dependent. These two key design principles enable your organization to dramatically reduce the number of images you are required to manage and streamline the process of deploying new PCs and updating existing PCs. The end result is faster, easier operation than ever before, which helps improve the overall productivity of your business.

More Mobile and Better Connected

Today, more businesses rely on an ever-expanding mobile workforce as a way to enhance their scope of service and reduce enterprise costs associated with supporting a large on-site staff. Vista Business gives mobile professionals easier and more secure access to corporate resources so they can readily collaborate with colleagues-- both on and off the network. Employees and colleagues will also find it easier to make wireless connections and synchronize mobile devices. The success of any business depends on communication, and Vista Business helps you easily and quickly connect with your organization, your customers, and your partners, whether you are in the office or on the road. This software package includes all of the essential infrastructure required to more securely connect you to your business information whether you are sitting at your desk, working at home, connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot, or even if you are using your cell phone to connect to the Internet.

To help you be more productive when you're away from your desk, Vista Business includes Windows Tablet and Touch Technology, so you can interact with your Tablet PC by using a digital pen, your fingertip, or a keyboard. Improved handwriting recognition and easier ways to browse documents and programs without using a keyboard give you added flexibility and convenience.

Easy Accessibility

Computers that include Vista Business and an auxiliary Windows SideShow display will also allow you to access critical business information even when your computer is turned off. You can also share documents and collaborate with colleagues, partners, and customers--even if a network is not available. Additionally, Vista Business helps you get the most out of your portable PC by making it quick and easy to manage key mobility settings.

Cost Effective

Meeting the increasingly complex demands that are placed on your IT systems doesn't have to be expensive. Designed to be less expensive to deploy and support, Vista Business offers you a better return on your IT investments. By empowering people to work more efficiently, this system helps keep both productivity and morale high.

Note: If your system features a 64-bit processor, you can take advantage of its advanced design in this edition of Windows Vista.

Microsoft Windows Vista: Compare Editions

Microsoft Windows Vista: 64-bit Editions

Microsoft Windows Vista: Upgrade Advisor

Microsoft Windows Vista: Upgrade Paths from Previous Versions

Microsoft Windows Vista: System Requirements Comparison

• 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• 1 GB of system memory
• 40 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
• Support for DirectX 9 graphics with:
  • WDDM Driver
  • 128 MB of graphics memory (minimum)
  • Pixel Shader 2.0 in hardware
  • 32 bits per pixel
• DVD-ROM drive
• Audio Output
• Internet access (fees may apply)

• Windows Tablet and Touch Technology requires a Tablet PC or a touch screen

Actual requirements and product functionality may vary based on your system configuration. Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor can help you determine which features and edition of Windows Vista will run on your computer.

• 800 MHz processor and 512 MB of system memory
• 20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
• Support for Super VGA graphics
• CD-ROM drive

Microsoft Windows Vista: System Requirements Comparison

Product information is advisory only. Specifications and compatibility should be checked with the manufacturer before order. Images are for illustrative purposes only.