Building applications in 2021 for Windows versions prior to 10

[Mads]

LabVIEW 2020 could originally build applications and installers for Windows 7 SP3 and newer (regardless of what OS you run the IDE on), but if NI Package Manager is updated to the latest version it renders LabVIEW 2020 unable to build applications for anything but Win10. Is this something that will become the norm with 2021 as well, or will the capability to build for previous (pre 10) versions of Windows return?

[crossrulz]

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@Mads wrote:

LabVIEW 2020 could originally build applications and installers for Windows 7 SP3 and newer (regardless of what OS you run the IDE on), but if NI Package Manager is updated to the latest version it renders LabVIEW 2020 unable to build applications for anything but Win10. Is this something that will become the norm with 2021 as well, or will the capability to build for previous (pre 10) versions of Windows return?

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As of May 2021, no NI product is supported on pre 10 versions of Windows.  This has been in the readme files since at least 2019.

NI Support for Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012 R2, and All 32-Bi... 

Main paragraph:

On May 1, 2021, NI software will drop support for Microsoft Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012 R2, and all 32-bit Windows operating systems. NI hardware and software released after May 1, 2021, will not install or execute correctly on those operating systems.

[Mads]

Yes, I think you have mentioned this elsewhere before. Not many people read those Read Me files. 😉

Cutting support starting with a new version like 2021 is a lot cleaner than what was done with the NIPM-side-effect though, so I am less disappointed now than with the NIPM update (which we have refrained from applying due to this issue).

20% of the Windows-installations in the world are still 7.x/8.x so it does remove 1/5 of the current market for our built applications, that is a pity (especially considering how few features you get by upgrading LV). Hopefully Windows 11 will reduce the pre-10 market share to something more ignorable.