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I successfully installed Windows XP Pro x86 in Windows 7 Pro Virtual Machine last night. I did this booting from the install CD in Windows Virtual Machine rather than just downloading the Windows XP Mode application from Microsoft's website.

However, I notice that the display resolution for my Virtual Machine is extremely small. My screen is a 27" HP monitor with 1920x1080 resolution (hope I got that right) and my Virtual Machine fully maximized only takes up about a quarter of the screen...maybe a bit more. It's way too small to be useful.

I've read that I can access the Virtual Machine through my Windows 7 Remote Desktop Connection in order to use the Virtual Machine in a full size screen, but IIRC, doesn't the Remote Desktop Connection require the Virtual Machine to have a static IP?

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You probably need to install guest extensions to get better than 800x600 i suspect - in this case for MS virtual PC - which what the VM software behind XP mode is. The XP mode package includes this - so you'd probably have to find a full copy of MSVPC to grab the extensions from if you want to get higher res.

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  • Good idea! Worth a shot
    – Dave M
    Commented Apr 27, 2011 at 16:07
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As long as you know the IP you can connect. It does not "need" to be static. However, static means you always know the ip :-) Can you set it to static? Is there a name server like DNS that would allow you to connect by Name?

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  • Oh, so every time I want to access the VM via Remote Desktop Connection, I just need to do ipconfig in the VM to determine the IP and then switch back to Windows 7 and fill in the IP and port number?
    – user76275
    Commented Apr 27, 2011 at 13:51
  • That would work. Static would be better. How does the VM get its IP?
    – Dave M
    Commented Apr 27, 2011 at 14:05
  • Unless I'm mistaken, the router is responsible for assigning local IP addresses utilizing DHCP. So, any host on my network (XBOX 360, TV, laptop, desktop, VM) receives its IP address from the router. I do have another question though. Which direction am I supposed to be going? I'm confused. Am I supposed to access the Virtual Machine via RDC using my Windows 7 desktop, or am I supposed to access Windows 7 via RDC using my Virtual Machine desktop?
    – user76275
    Commented Apr 27, 2011 at 14:15
  • Most routers will allow you to assign an IP based on the MAC address of the system. Have not tried this with your config. You would access the VM from the host system with the remote Desktop application. One added note is that video emulation in the XP VM is not that advanced (S3 I believe) so the higher res you are after could be a challenge. Have you looked at other solutions like VMware?
    – Dave M
    Commented Apr 27, 2011 at 14:25

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