This article shows how to run Windows 7 on a new virtual machine using Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization software.
Windows 7 is an operating system designed by Microsoft for use on home and office desktop computers.
After the development of this system was completed on July 22, 2009, the official release date was confirmed as October 22, 2009.
Windows 7 has a more accessible interface for the user and new applications that make tasks easier and faster.
You can install Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system on your physical computer or run it on the virtual machine by following this video or the steps below.
Step 1: To install Hyper-V virtualization software on your Windows 10 operating system, turn Windows Features On or Off, select the Hyper-V option, click OK, and restart your PC after the installation.
Step 2: Find Hyper-V Manager software in the start menu and run it. After running the virtualization program, you must create an External Switch that you will use on guest machines before installing a Windows operating system. The Default Switch connects virtual PCs to your local network using the NAT (Network Address Translation) adapter, but often this adapter can cause network problems. Using an External Switch to get an IP address from your local network and improve the network connection is better. Open the Virtual Switch Manager from the Actions section to create the external adapter.
Step 3: Select External in Virtual Switch Manager and click the Create Virtual Switch button, and then after creating the External adapter, select the External Network setting in its settings, select the Ethernet or Wi-Fi adapter of your physical computer, and click OK to close the window.
Step 4: Click Actions / New / Virtual Machine to start the virtual machine creation wizard.
Step 5: When the Before You Begin window opens, click Next to continue creating a manual virtual machine.
Step 6: In the Specify Name and Location window, type the name of the Windows operating system you will install and click the Browse button to back up the VM in an external location, then specify the folder on your external storage device.
Step 7: There are two types of firmware in the Specify Generation window, Generation 1 and Generation 2. Generation 1 supports BIOS firmware to install older operating systems such as Windows 7. Generation 2, on the other hand, supports UEFI firmware to install newer operating systems such as Windows 10. Select Generation 1 for the BIOS type, as Windows 7 does not officially support the UEFI system.
Step 8: In the Assign Memory window, you must assign the RAM size to the Windows 7 virtual computer. If you run multiple VMs simultaneously in Hyper-V, you can enable the Dynamic Memory feature to use the RAM resource more efficiently in the VMs. However, uncheck Dynamic Memory and assign a fixed size of 4096 MB (4 GB) to the VM if you use only one guest machine.
Step 9: Select the External network adapter you created in the Configure Networking window.
Step 10: You can adjust the virtual hard disk size depending on your usage in the Connect Virtual Hard Disk window. Hyper-V defaults to 127GB disk capacity for the Windows 7 virtual machine, but you can set this value to the recommended minimum of 50GB.
Step 11: In the Installation Options window, select the Install an operating system from a bootable image file option to add a Windows 7 ISO file to the virtual machine. Click the Browse button to add the image file you downloaded to your computer.
Step 12: In the Summary window, you will see the virtual machine’s settings. If there is a setting in the VM that you want to change, you can return to the previous settings or click Finish to close the wizard.
Step 13: After creating the Windows 7 virtual computer, open its settings and set the number of virtual processors to 4 or higher according to the hardware power of your host.
Step 14: Finally, connect to Windows 7 and start the installation by clicking the Start button.
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