VMware ThinApp 4.5 Eases Application Conflict Through Isolation

by Cameron Sturdevant

Here is an overview of the steps for creating a virtual application. In this case I’m capturing Adobe’s Creative Suite 5, a very large application.

Like many other packaging applications, ThinApp takes a capture of the registry and initial hard drive state before the application is installed.

ThinApp monitors the files, registry changes and other settings during application installation. In this case I’m installing CS5. ThinApp 4.5 is running silently in the background.

ThinApp rescans the registry and file system so it can assess the difference in machine state after the application to be virtualized is installed. Here you see the wizard looking at the Adobe file structure.

Because CS5 is a large application, ThinApp has automatically recommended using a .dat file as the data container. ThinApp 4.5 makes it easier to package files in excess of 2GB, as is the case with Adobe CS5.

Here you see two virtualized instances of Microsoft Word running side by side on a Windows 7 PC. Word 2003 is on the left, Word 2000 is on the right. ThinApp makes it possible to run multiple versions of the same application without interference.