10 things to try when applications won't work with windows 8

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10 10 10 10 things things things things to to to to try try try try when when when when applications applications applications applications won't won't won't won't work work work work with with with with Windows Windows Windows Windows 8 Brien Brien Brien Brien Posey Posey Posey Posey

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If applications won't work in Windows 8, try 10 ways as listed in the article.

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Takeaway: If you have problems getting an app to run on

Windows 8, all ’ s not lost. One of these strategies or

workarounds may get the application running.

Windows 8 is more forgiving with regard to application

compatibility than some of the previous versions of Windows

were, but some applications just will not work with it.

Thankfully, you don’t always have to accept defeat. Although

there is no silver bullet that guarantees application

compatibility, you can use a number of tricks to improve your

odds of getting a stubborn application to run in Windows 8.

1: Create a virtual machine

I will go ahead and get the last resort step out of the way up

front. Windows 8 includes its own copy of Hyper-V. If you can’

t get an application to function in Windows 8, you can enable

Hyper-V and create a virtual machine running a legacy

version of Windows as a way of running the application.

2: Turn off User Account Control

I haven't experienced any User Account Control

(UAC)-related compatibility problems in Windows 8 yet, but I

have run into problems in Windows 7. When I first adopted

Windows 7, there was a particular dictation application that

would not work until I disabled UAC. I have read posts on the

Internet from people who have had similar experiences in

Windows 8, where disabling UAC resolved a compatibility

issue.

3: Install .NET Framework 3.5

When you install Windows 8, version 4.5 of the .NET

Framework is installed by default. However, older apps often

require an earlier version of the .NET Framework. If you

receive a .NET Framework-related error, you can go into the

Control Panel, click on Programs, and choose the option to

turn a Windows feature on or off. Windows will display a list of

the various components you can enable or disable. One of the

items on the list is .NET Framework 3.5, which also

includes .NET 3.0 and 2.0. Installing this component will likely

correct the issue that you are experiencing.

4: Check for application patches

One of the first things you should do upon discovering an

application compatibility problem is contact the application

vendor and find out if it has a Windows 8 patch available.

Sometimes, a patch is all you need.

5: Upgrade to the next version

When I made the switch to Windows 8, I discovered that a

video-editing application I use on a regular basis would not

work with Windows 8. Although I might have been able to

resolve the problem using less drastic measures, I ultimately

decided to simply upgrade to the newest version of the

application. Not only was the latest version certified to work

with Windows 8, but it also had some other new features I

wanted to try out.

6: Upgrade your hardware drivers

One of the biggest problems I had when I upgraded to

Windows 8 was that a program I use every day wouldn’t run.

The error message I received indicated that Windows 8 did

not support OpenGL. However, OpenGL support is provided

by the video driver, not by the operating system. It turned out

that my problem was caused by an outdated version of AMD

Catalyst. When I upgraded to the latest version, the problem

went away and I was able to run the application.

7: Let Windows troubleshoot the problem

Windows 8 includes a utility called the Program Compatibility

Troubleshooter that can sometimes automatically resolve

compatibility problems. You can run the Program

Compatibility Troubleshooter by right-clicking on the

problematic application and choosing the Troubleshoot

Compatibility command from the shortcut menu.

8: Trick the application into thinking it is running on an earlier

version of Windows

Some applications are hard-coded to look for a specific

version of Windows. In these types of situations, you can

configure Windows 8 to lie to the application about what

version of Windows you ’ re running. Start by running the

Program Compatibility Troubleshooter (as described above).

When you get to the What Problems Do You Notice screen,

choose the option for programs that worked in an earlier

version of Windows. After clicking Next, you will have the

option of telling the utility which version of Windows the

application worked in.

9: Provide the application with extra permissions

Some legacy applications (especially those written for

Windows XP) fail to run due to inadequate permissions. Once

again, the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter can help.

When you get to the What Problems Do You Notice screen,

choose the option related to the program requiring additional

permissions. As an alternative, you could try right-clicking on

the application and choosing the Run As Administrator option

(assuming that you have administrative permissions).

10: Check the Compatibility Center

One last thing you can do is check the Compatibility Center for

information about the application. The Compatibility Center is

a Web site Microsoft uses to provide application compatibility

information for Windows 7 and 8. In some instances, it

provides a link to detailed instructions on what you must do to

make an otherwise-incompatible application work with

Windows 8.

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About Brien Posey

Brien Posey is a seven-time Microsoft MVP. He has written

thousands of articles and written or contributed to dozens of

books on a variety of IT subjects.

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