1. Setup a Windows 7 Homegroup
2. Download a Windows 7 Theme.  If you need help, then read this guide to installing Windows 7 Themes
3. Make Windows 7 Faster
4. Read our guides to configuring the amazing Windows 7 Taskbar
5. Read 7 ways to make Windows 7 faster
6. Make Windows 7 Search Better
7. Remove all the ‘crap‘ from your new Windows 7 installation
8. Setup Windows 7 Libraries
9. Enable Windows 7 Aero Features
10. How To Use Windows 7 Federated Search

Under Windows 7 you can forget about setting up a conventional network system as Windows 7 Homegroup is simpler and easier to set up. This new feature works with all computers running Windows 7.

What is Windows 7 Homegroup?

Homegroup allows you to connect wirelessly to other computers allowing you to share documents, photos, music and other files as well as your printer. As the initiator of Homegroup you can ensure the security of your files by making them read-only. However, you also have the option of allowing other members of your Homegroup to modify your files.

Setting up a HomeGroup

To create a Windows 7 HomeGroup you need two or more computers running Windows 7.  This exercise will involve setting up a HomeGroup for two computers, a Desktop computer and a Laptop computer.

The Desktop computer takes the first step in setting up a Homegroup. This involves deciding whether to share library files and printers and then generating a Homegroup password so other user(s) can join the Homegroup network.

The Desktop Computer

1. Click the Start button or press the Windows key.



2. When the Start Menu opens, select Control Panel.



3. When the Control Panel window opens, in the section labelled Network and Internet, Choose “Homegroup and Sharing Options.”



4. The Homegroup window opens, click the button labelled, Create a Homegroup.



5. The “Create a Homegroup” window opens, displaying the features you can share – Pictures, Documents, Music, Printers and Videos.



6. Check the boxes for those items you wish to share.



7. Click the Next button.
8. Next, Windows 7 generates a password to allow other computer user(s) to join the Homegroup.



9. Click Print password and instructions.
10. Give the Password information sheet to the other computer user(s).
11. Click the Finish button.

+Note: Your part is now over. The other computer user(s) now has to register their computer to join the Homegroup.

In Creating a Homegroup Part 2 you will learn about registering your Laptop.

The article is divided into three parts. The first can be seen as an introduction. It outlines the configuration of media streaming in Windows 7. One interesting aspect here is that it has been integrated into the Homegroup feature which basically means that media streaming is enabled by default for most network configurations. Windows Media Player for instance comes with three options that deal with streaming media:

• Set up your home PC so you can access your media libraries while away from home
• Allow other Windows 7 PCs and devices to push media to your Player and control it
• Quickly authorize all home PCs and devices to access your media collection

HomeGroup introduces the concept of “shared libraries” for music, pictures, and video. As described in a previous blog post, these shared libraries are accessible from within the navigation pane of Windows Explorer and Windows Media Player, and from the “shared” view of each media category within Windows Media Center (see figures below).

The second part is about security, specifically access to shared libraries. Options are provided to select the type of media that the user wants to share as well as to allow access to all devices in a Homegroup or only selected ones.

The third and final part details how to use Windows 7 as a Universal Remote Control for a media collection.

In addition to playing media streamed from other shared media libraries within Windows Media Player, Windows 7 can now send media to be played on other Windows 7 PCs and DLNA-certified digital media renderers. We call this feature “Play To.” With “Play To,” you can browse or search from within Windows Media Player or Windows Explorer to find your desired media, and then choose where you want it to be played. A versatile remote control window is presented for each “Play To” session, providing you with the ability to control the entire experience.

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Driver Protection is a new feature that “helps prevent the operating system from starting drivers that are known to cause stability problems” by consulting a Driver Protection List database that is stored locally and updated via Windows Update. The Driver Protection List database contains the drivers that are known to cause problems. Driver Protection is also used during installation of the operating system. Windows 7 will notify the user about the problematic driver. The user has the option to install an alternative driver or continue with the installation. Microsoft states that “Windows might disable the driver in order to complete the installation”. It remains to be seen how restrictive this feature is and if it can be overruled by the user. Microsoft states that it is possible to prevent updates to the Driver Protection List database by not using Windows Update and Dynamic Update but does not provide information if the feature can be disabled completely.

Driver Protection helps prevent the operating system from starting drivers that are known to cause stability problems. These drivers are listed in a Driver Protection List database that is stored on your computer. The Driver Protection List is updated through Windows Update and Dynamic Update (below). Driver Protection checks this database while the operating system is running. These checks are performed to determine whether to start a driver. For more information, see the Driver Protection List article online at the Microsoft website.

Dynamic Update is the name of another new feature. It is being used during installation to connect to Windows Update to find updates and new drivers which will be downloaded and installed automatically.

Dynamic Update enables Windows 7 to perform a one-time check with the Windows Update website to get the latest updates for your computer while Windows is being installed. If updates are found, Dynamic Update automatically downloads and installs them so your computer is up to date the first time that you log on or use it.

The Privacy Supplement does mention one of the first new features of Windows 7 as well. Homegroup will offer the possibility to link Windows 7 computers in a home network to share pictures, music, videos, documents and devices.

A HomeGroup allows you to easily link Windows 7 computers on your home network so that you can share pictures, music, videos, documents and devices. It also makes them ready to stream media to devices on your home network such as a media extender. You can help protect your HomeGroup with a password, and you can choose what you want to share.

Internet Printing makes it possible to use printers located anywhere by “sending print jobs using Hypertext Transfer Protocol”:

When you print using this feature, you must first connect and authenticate yourself to an Internet print server. The information that you will need to submit to the print server will vary depending on the level of security that the print server supports (for example, you might be asked to provide a user name and password). Because the print job is unencrypted, it may be possible for others to see the content being sent. Once you are connected, you are presented with a list of available printers. If your computer does not have a print driver for your selected printer, you may choose to download a driver from the print server. If you choose to use a print server hosted by Microsoft, Microsoft does not use the information that you provide to identify you or contact you.

The Online Print Ordering Wizard is a similar function which simplifies the process of sending pictures to an online photo printing service. It is likely that the photo printing services have to support that feature before the user can select them.

The Online Print Ordering Wizard enables you send digital pictures stored on your computer or network drive to an online photo printing service of your choice. Depending on the service, you can have your pictures printed and then delivered using postal mail, or you can pick up the prints at a local store.

People Near Me makes it possible to sent invites for programs to other people in the local network. The document does not define the word programs in the context, only that the user who is invited needs to have it installed on the computer as well.

People Near Me is a service that identifies people nearby on your local network who are using computers and allows those people to send you invitations for programs. They can only invite you to participate in programs that are installed on your computer. To use People Near Me, you have to sign in to the service.

Trusted Platform Module (TPM) Services is an implementation of Trusted Computing which can be used by full disk encryption applications such as Bitlocker. It got bad press in the last years because of privacy concerns and that it could in theory implement DRM and software license protections without the user’s consent. According to Wikipedia however it is not possible to activate the feature by software alone.

The Trusted Platform Module (TPM) security hardware is a microchip built into some computers that, if present and initialized, enables your computer to take full advantage of advanced security features such as BitLocker™ Drive Encryption.

Speculations have been running wild already, some suspected that it would be implemented in addition to the Workgroup feature which is already implemented in all newer Windows operating systems.

Others however have been looking back to Windows Longhorn and the year 2003 where Microsoft announced a feature for Windows Longhorn which was named Castle.

What it basically means is a simplified way of connecting computers without having to worry to much about the technical aspects. If that is indeed what Windows 7 Homegroup is all about it will be a welcome new feature that could make networking for all users a much easier and better experience.