Is it possible to install Delphi 7 on Win 7?

Asked 27/9, 2011 at 12:56 Answered 28/12, 2013 at 4:27

Solved delphi windows-7 installation delphi-7

I am planning to upgrade my OS to Win 7 (32bit or 64bit). I would like to know whether we can install and run Delphi 7 on Win 7 successfully or not.Share your thoughts on installation of 3rd party components as well. This would help me to take decision regarding OS up-gradation.

Emphatic answered 27/9, 2011 at 12:56 Comment(10)

Do they have official support? Install it in a VirtualBox and try? – Croissant 27/9, 2011 at 12:57

check this, weblog.hansotten.com/?p=833 – Gaslit 27/9, 2011 at 13:1

I don't use D7, but D6 does install and run fine. Run the setup as administrator and (just to make sure) do not install under Program Files, but under a separate directory, such as c:\Delphi\Delphi7. Doing so has kept me out of trouble with D6, D2007 and up to XE on Win7. Also make sure you install each version chronologically, oldest first. – Gitt 27/9, 2011 at 13:15

Are you talking the 32-bit version or 64-bit version of Windows 7? I would expect it would work on the 32-bit version (running the setup as administrator, of course) but I'd bet you would have some issues installing it on the 64-bit version. I have some troubles (successful workarounds) with Delphi 2007 on Windows 7 64-bit so I'm certain there would be issues with Delphi 7. Installing it into VirtualBox or XP Mode in Windows 7 Pro should work just fine, though. And I'll second moodforaday's recommendation to install it somewhere other than Program Files to avoid security issues in Win 7. – Impressure 27/9, 2011 at 13:25

@Jerry: It works fine in 64-bit with moodforaday's info, as does D2007; I had no issues with either one on Win7 64. – Antilles 27/9, 2011 at 13:46

Yeah, D5, D6, D7 all install and work fine on all flavours of Windows 7. Just make sure that the installation is writeable for standard users. – Anatolic 27/9, 2011 at 14:8

@Ken: I installed 2007 into the standard Program Files area (C:\Program Files (x86)\CodeGear\RAD Studio\5.0) and ended up having to use some workarounds to get it to behave properly (some Googling and a debugger patch if my memory serves me correctly). I wish I had installed it into a separate folder and will if I have to reinstall again. – Impressure 27/9, 2011 at 14:45

It is officially considered uncompatible, end of story. But yes, warning could be ignored and installation completes successfully. Other problems could be fixed too. @Coder, your diary link suggests severe weakening of file system security, see my comment to answer below. – Spurry 27/9, 2011 at 15:14

@Jerry: It's been known since Vista came out that you shouldn't do that; older versions of Delphi wrote to their own folders under Program Files. You would have had absolutely no issues (other than the debugger patch, maybe - IIRC that was D2009; I don't recall any issues with 2007) if you'd installed elsewhere. :) D2010 and above work fine in Program Files, but I install to another partition anyway; I try and keep non-OS related stuff on a secondary drive. – Antilles 27/9, 2011 at 17:1

I used this article to help with the debugger issue (I'm amazed it's still around), and it was a problem for me with 2007 (I have 2010 on the same system, but no 2009). monien.net/blog/index.php/2009/07/… – Impressure 27/9, 2011 at 17:8

I am using Delphi 7.0 on Windows 7, 64 bit, without issues. I have previously installed it on Windows 7, 32 bit and used it without issues as well.

Windows will bother you about an incompatibility when you run the installer. You should probably ensure that anybody using Delphi 7 will have full write access to the folders in Program Files that need to be writeable by Delphi 7.

I have my copy installed in Program Files, and I only use it from an account with admin priveleges, so I can write/modify files inside the Delphi installed folders, without problems. Some people think it's better to install to C:\Delphi7.

Nobody can know for sure about your components, but you should just try them.

Dynamism answered 27/9, 2011 at 14:28 Comment(15)

Negative, this workaround ignores security model forced into resisting users by Microsoft. And gives Win32/Induc.A a cordial welcome, of course. – Spurry 27/9, 2011 at 15:10

I also have Delphi 7.0 running fine on Windows 7 64 bit - I just have it set to run as administrator. – Prolusion 27/9, 2011 at 15:58

It's fine to move to a different directory. – Dynamism 27/9, 2011 at 18:12

Giving write access to Program Files is a violation of security, and should be highly discouraged by anyone who deals with computers for a living. It also makes it impossible to properly test your app for UAC compliance during development (so does doing your development with an admin user account). Sorry, Warren - -1 from me on this one. – Antilles 27/9, 2011 at 18:28

From what I recall you only need to grant rights to just a couple of files in the program files tree. .dsk files maybe? – Anatolic 27/9, 2011 at 20:8

@David: Nope. D7 wants to install built packages in that tree, and stores various configuration files and so forth. The best solution is to understand that D7 was designed prior to UAC, and therefore best installed in another location altogether. – Antilles 27/9, 2011 at 20:17

@Ken I've done this with D6. It was no more than a handful of ACLs that were required. – Anatolic 27/9, 2011 at 20:19

@David Heffernan, yes, loosening restriction on selective basis is much better. And virtualization works for D7 toо! – Spurry 28/9, 2011 at 11:17

@Ken White, that not fully correct. UAC didnt introduce this security policy, but enforces an existing one. Therefore, "pre-UAC" times is not an excuse in post-Win9x times. Therefore, unstallation into root are frowned upon too (hello, Lazarus!). – Spurry 28/9, 2011 at 11:29

So where should it be installed? D:\ ? – Dynamism 28/9, 2011 at 13:18

@Downvoter: Where did I say UAC introduced it? I said D7 was designed prior to UAC, which is absolutely true. D7 was introduced pre-UAC, and at the time of it's release MS was still saying you should install there, and it was very common to write configuration files to the app's own folder. – Antilles 28/9, 2011 at 13:26

@Warren: At home, where I have two separate drives on both my laptop and desktop, I install everything not OS-related on D:. At work, where I have a single drive, I install RAD Studio in C:\RAD Studio\. I also have a C:\Code\ tree, where my applications are stored in subfolders separately from the IDE's location. It makes it easy for SVN (short paths to remember <g>) and backups. – Antilles 28/9, 2011 at 13:35

@Warren P, of course you can do that, its your computer after all :-) However it will work under Power User (or even multiple ones to some extent due virtualization) from within %ProgramFiles%. Still superior compared with Lazarus which fails to comply in Windows 6.0+. – Spurry 28/9, 2011 at 21:12

@Ken White, you are giving excuses again. After UAC or before UAC writing configurations in the directories designated to binaries was bad practice since introduction of user profiles in Windows going multi-user. And MS never encouraged developers to store configuration files in %ProgramFiles%. – Spurry 28/9, 2011 at 21:22

Looking back at this, I'm still not sure what the whole argument really was suggesting as an alternative. Modify Delphi itself? Some people say it's bad to change permissions in ONE subfolder of Program Files (on the theory that it's better to put that same folder somewhere else) which makes NO sense. And other people say no, you can't put in in C:\ Either. Nobody makes any sense. – Dynamism 31/8, 2016 at 16:46

I'm using Windows 7 64 bit. When installing delphi 7 it prompt for compatibility issue. Just accept it, click run. Then delphi 7 installed succesfully without problem. I'm installed it on X:/app/Delphi7. 3rd party component added without problem, example i'm adding AlphaSkin component without problem.

Haemagglutinate answered 28/12, 2013 at 4:27 Comment(0)

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