Parallels ships Desktop Upgrade for XP to Windows 7 migrations

Parallels aims to take the pain out of upgrading to Windows 7

Parallels has finally made available its Desktop Upgrade tool designed to help PC users upgrade painlessly from Windows XP or Vista to Windows 7.

Available to purchase online today, Parallels Desktop Upgrade to Windows 7 lets users upgrade while keeping all their existing applications, files and settings intact. It supports in-place upgrades on the same PC, or helps move everything across to a new system.

The software, detailed last month, will also be available in retail outlets from 31 May.

Parallels chief executive Serguei Beloussov said that Desktop Upgrade to Windows 7 provides "a simple and safe solution for Windows XP and Vista customers who want to successfully move to Windows 7 but may be overwhelmed by the process".

The tool is designed to automate the upgrade process so that users need answer only a few questions and then leave Desktop Upgrade to do all the work.

After the upgrade, users will find all their old applications still available, although any that have compatibility issues with Windows 7 will actually be running inside a virtual machine. This will be hidden from the user, however, who just sees the application running normally.

Interactive video tutorials are also included to help users learn how to work in Windows 7.

Parallels Desktop Upgrade to Windows 7 costs £39.95 with a USB transfer cable to move to a new PC, or £34.95 for the in-place upgrade version without a cable.