With every product release of Windows Operating Systems, it seems that the hardware requirements keep on getting raised. Microsoft has decided to supply badges to OEMs which tell customers whether their PC is Vista compliant.

Microsoft Windows Vista Capable PCs guarantees the installation of Windows Vista. It does not, however, guarantee that all features will work. For example, the advanced Aeroglass effects could be disabled for a PC that is only Vista Capable.

The minimal requirements for Windows Vista Capable PCs are:

• A modern processor of at least 800 MHz
• 512 MB of system memory
• DirectX 9 class graphics card

The Vista Premium Ready tag, contrary to the capable one, allows for much more Vista functionality. The tag guarantees full usability of Vista and certifies the hardware to be capable of handling the features of Windows Vista. The minimum requirements are as follows:

• At least a 1GHz processor that is either 32 bit (x86) or 64 bit (x64).
• 1 GB of system memory.
• A DirectX 9 class graphics card with at least 128 MB of graphics memory that supports the new Window Display Driver Model
• 40 GB of available hard disk with 15 GB of space available.
• A DVD-ROM
• Audio functionality
• Internet Access

In order to give users a better idea of whether they will be able to run Windows Vista, Microsoft has created a utility that checks whether your hardware is Vista compatible. The utility checks what settings your hardware could handle with Windows Vista and whether your graphics chip supports the Aero theme.