Still in Love with Your Win7 Clients… Convert and Keep Them

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Is your organization still in love with your old Windows 7 PCs? Your loyalty is understandable — you’ve grown comfortable over the years and switching to Windows 10 means your organization has to learn a new operating system. Or perhaps some of your proprietary applications do not have guaranteed compatibility. And if your machines see relatively localized usage, the switch may not seem worth the effort.

But sometimes, relationships must evolve whether you want them to or not. And with Windows 7 due for end of support in early 2020, you will have little choice but to rethink your commitment.

The good news is you can keep the things you know and love about Windows 7 while making your old PCs even more secure, even if they aren’t Dell machines. You just need a little help from Wyse Converter for PCs.

Get converted

Wyse Converter for PCs is a Dell software solution that repurposes your Windows 7 (or Windows 10) PCs to operate like thin clients. And it’s great for organizations that want to transition to virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) with little upfront investment.

The software locks down a device’s operating system and converts it into a secure thin client that you can manage remotely via the Wyse Management Suite. The exciting news for Windows 7 fans is that the converted endpoint looks and functions in much the same way you’re used to but with a secure experience that keeps your data isolated and safe even after Windows 7 support ends.

What’s new in version 2.0?

We recently released an updated version called Wyse Converter for PCs 2.0 that enables you to put PCs in “kiosk mode.” You can use kiosk mode to lockdown a PC and use it as a standalone machine running VDI or specific local applications. For example, customer-facing locations like doctors’ offices, banks and hotels can remotely configure PCs to become visitor check-in kiosks where the customer is prevented from doing anything other than checking in.

We also introduced a Write Filter for Windows 7 that ensures no new information is saved on the PC once it’s restarted. Of course, your admin can enable or disable this function based on your individual needs using the PC’s administrative login. To make things easy, admins have the right to configure the PC and retain desired changes using Wyse Management Suite, irrespective of the Write Filter status.

Getting started is easy!

One of the features our customers like most is that Wyse Converter for PCs 2.0 comes with Wyse Easy Setup, a free utility that enables your IT admins to quickly and painlessly configure your newly-converted thin clients to your organization’s specific IT policy. Administrators can replicate a single device configuration across other devices using compatible operating systems for quick setup. They can also tailor end-user experiences to have configurable access to local applications. Moreover, individual users can control things like monitor, keyboard, mouse and Wi-Fi settings on their own, so they don’t have to bother IT.

Perhaps the best part is that with Wyse Converter for PCs, IT admins don’t have to spend time searching for OS-compatible drivers — they simply install the software and it just works.

Wyse Converter makes it possible to hang on to the technology you already have, and love, while updating it to be highly secure with a new lease on life. As far as Valentine’s gifts go, that’s much better than a box of chocolates.

Learn more about Wyse Converter for PCs.

About the Author: Sameera Gandikota

Sameera Gandikota joined Dell in 2017 as a Product Manager on the Cloud Client Computing team. Her work involving Wyse thin clients has been focused on Fixed Compute software. Prior to joining Dell, Sameera earned her MBA at Santa Clara University – Leavey School of Business, interning with Dell during her studies. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from National Institute of Technology – Tiruchirappalli, India, and actually began her career as an Engineering Project Manager at a major steel manufacturing company leading construction projects. Her valuable combination of engineering and business experience plays out in her innovative product planning and management.
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