Microsoft Windows 7 Pro – Retail Key (1 PC)

Windows 7 Pro built on the home edition with features that businesses look for: domain join, incoming Remote Desktop, network backup and, most notably, Windows XP Mode. This Retail licence covers 1 PC.

Support has ended

Microsoft no longer supports Windows 7, so no security updates are released. Using it as a main, Internet-connected workstation leaves the PC open to unpatched vulnerabilities. We would rather say so openly. This licence is meant for the specific situations below.

Where it still makes sense

• Older business software certified only for Windows 7, run on a workstation isolated from the network.
• Virtual machines for a Windows 7 test or development environment in Hyper-V, VMware or VirtualBox.
• Older computers whose drivers exist only for this generation of Windows.
• Computer-controlled equipment such as workshop machines or measuring and laboratory instruments whose control software has not moved on.

What the Pro edition adds

• Windows XP Mode, a virtualised XP environment for even older applications.
• Incoming Remote Desktop, so the PC can accept remote connections.
• Active Directory domain join and group policy.
• Backup to a network location and the EFS encrypting file system.
• The full Aero interface, including Aero Peek, Aero Snap and taskbar previews.

Good to know before you order

• 1 GHz processor, 32-bit or 64-bit
• 1 GB of RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
• 16 GB of disk space (20 GB for 64-bit)
• DirectX 9 graphics card with a WDDM 1.0 driver

Enter the key during installation or under Control Panel › System › Activate Windows. On a system this old, activation may have to go through Microsoft's voice service.

Odin Key sends the key by e-mail within 24 hours of payment, together with the activation steps, and an official invoice is included. Support in English by e-mail and live chat.