Select the product you need help with

How to troubleshoot program compatibility issues in Windows Vista

Article ID: 927386 - View products that this article applies to.

Summary

This article contains steps to troubleshoot issues that occur when a program is installed, but the program will not run on Windows Vista.

Back to the top | Give Feedback

INTRODUCTION

This article contains steps to help you troubleshoot issues for the following scenarios:

You successfully upgrade an earlier version of Windows to Windows Vista. A program that used to run as expected before you upgraded to Windows Vista no longer runs as expected.
Note If a program compatibility issue is preventing the installation of Windows Vista, follow the steps in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 931360
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931360/ )
to troubleshoot your issue.
You successfully install a program on Windows Vista. After you install the program, you cannot start the program, or the program runs but does not run as expected.
Note If a program compatibility issue is preventing the installation of a program, do not follow the steps in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 931361
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931361/ )
to troubleshoot your issue.

Back to the top | Give Feedback

More information

To troubleshoot program compatibility issues in Windows Vista, try Method 1. If Method 1 does not resolve the issue that you are experiencing, try each successive method in order.

Method 1: Visit the Windows Vista Compatibility Center

Visit the Windows Vista Compatibility Center to perform the following tasks.

Determine which software and devices are and are not compatible with Windows Vista.
Locate links to drivers and upgrades that will make your computer compatible.
Provide input to help us improve the upgrade experience.

To get started, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

Windows Vista Compatibility Center

(http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-vista/default.aspx)

Method 2: Run the program in compatibility mode

When you select the compatibility mode option, Windows Vista emulates the selected operating system when you run that particular program.
To run the program in compatibility mode, follow these steps:

Click Start
Collapse this imageExpand this image
, and then type the name of the program in the Start Search box.
In the Programs list, right-click the program name, and then click Properties.
On the Compatibility tab, click to select the Run this program in compatibility mode for check box.
In the list, select an operating system, and then click OK.

If the program still does not work correctly, go to the next method.

Method 3: Run the program as an administrator

To run the program as an administrator, follow these steps:

Click Start
Collapse this imageExpand this image
, and then type the name of the program in the Start Search box.
In the Programs list, right-click the program that you are troubleshooting, and then click Run as administrator. If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the password, or click Continue.

If the program now runs correctly, the program requires administrative permissions to function. For more information about how to force a program to automatically run with administrative permissions, see the "Step 2: Run the program as an administrator" section of the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

931362

(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931362/ )

Advanced methods to troubleshoot a program that does not run as expected after it is installed on Windows Vista

If the program still does not work correctly, go to the next method.

Method 4: Contact the program vendor or the hardware manufacturer

If a program will not run in Windows Vista, or a piece of hardware does not function as expected after you install Windows Vista, contact the program vendor or the hardware manufacturer for guidance about how to troubleshoot the issue. Typically, the software vendor's Web site provides a support section that you can use, for example, to search for an error message that you may receive from the program.

Frequently, the software vendor will be able to resolve the incompatibility issue by providing one of the following resolutions:

An update to make the current version of the program compatible with Windows Vista
A version of the program that is compatible with Windows Vista
Information about any configuration changes to make the program compatible with Windows Vista

For information about your hardware manufacturer, visit the following Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/gp/vendors/en-us

(http://support.microsoft.com/gp/vendors/en-us)

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

Advanced troubleshooting

This section is intended for advanced computer users. If you are not comfortable with advanced troubleshooting, you might want to ask someone for help or contact support. For information about how to do this, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/

(http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/)

If you are an advanced user who has tried the steps in this article, and your issue is still not resolved, follow the steps in the following Microsoft knowledge Base article:

931362

(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931362/ )

Advanced methods to troubleshoot a program that does not run as expected after it is installed on Windows Vista

Back to the top | Give Feedback