Upgrade Advice: Let the Software Guide You
Microsoft loves when you upgrade. Salespeople are constantly pushing the latest (which hopefully is the greatest); volume licenses, especially Software Assurance, are designed to drive migration; and Microsoft has the Infrastructure Optimization Model, a framework that justifies the adoption of lots of new software.
But upgrading isn't as simple as cranking up a few Windows installers. You have to make sure the new stuff really works. That's where the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit Version 4.0, now in beta, comes in. The new kit focuses on Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, and helps IT see if existing hardware, peripherals and applications will still work. Sounds like it's worth a look.
Posted by Doug Barney on June 29, 2009