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Microsoft has released Windows Vista Hardware Assessment 2.0. This free tool allows big companies to acquire information of whether their desktop computers are ready for Windows Vista.
Vista Hardware Assessment supports several ways to find the PCs. It can make use of Active Directory, scan the network, and import a text file with computer names.
It will then provide information about the readiness of each PC. For example, you can determine which PCs will be able to run Aero, if hardware drivers are available, and what hardware upgrades are recommended to improve performance.
When it comes to performance, the most important factor certainly is memory. How much you need depends on what kind of applications you run and how many you run at the same time. Microsoft’s tool can’t give you this information, of course. To my experience, you are on the safe side if you double at least the amount of RAM you need for Windows XP.
