Microsoft Windows Vista Business Edition - Where Are The Games?

won’t this only work if you have admin rights?

Hello Matt,
Yes, you must have admin rights to make the change.

Thanks for this article, i was wondering what happened to the games, in Business edition, that keep me entertained. Solitaire, aka the real success of windows imo…

Hi Matt,
Your welcome. Glad it worked.

FINALLY - thank you so much for the info. I didn’t believe windows could be launched without the classics

Ver,
You are welcome. Glad this info. helped.
All the best, Ron

[...] While I’m doing a bit of ranting, I noticed on my copy of Vista Business edition that when I searched for games using the new searching feature (which I love, or at least like that it provides pretty much the same functionality as my beloved launchy does on XP) no games popped up.  It seems as though for the Business edition games are not installed by default.  Fair enough, thats probably a wise thing for Microsoft to do, I’m sure many a business owner requested they do that.  There is an easy way to enable the games though, so get back to Solitaire!! [...]

one more quick question - is windows dvd maker also hidden the same way the games were???

thx

Hi ver,
It is only be available for the Home Premium and Ultimate Vista’s editions, and not for Home Basic, Business and Enterprise versions of the operating system.
Hope this answers your question. Ron

Thanks a lot. I knew the games had to be somewhere. Way to be on the spot for the real business needs.

Hi Peter,
Enjoy! Ron

Hi there Ron,

Thanks for the write up, this was driving me crazy!

Solitaire in Vista looks a lot nicer

- Matt P

Oh my god! I love this article. When I bought my new laptop it came automatically with Vista professional. I can’t make it through my classes at law school without spider solitaire. Thank you so much!

Hi Cary,
Glad it helped. Ron

Thanks Ron, my boss quit smoking several years ago and Spider is her replacement! Installed Vista for her yesterday while she was out of town and she was in immediate withdrawal this morning. Your help saved the day!!
Ed

Hi Ed,
You’re welcome.
Ron

I ran Vista Ultimate for awhile at home and had Hold’em poker game. I understand Vista business is not to get that. Anyway of getting Hold’em on my Vista Business????

Anyone?????

haha, and i was just complaining about how i got no games with business!

Ahmed,
Enjoy! Ron

Is Media Center hidden too? if so, any idea how to reveal it?

Thanks for the gaming tip - was beginning to get withdrawal symptons!

Hi Eddie,
I haven’t heard anything about MC being hidden. But if I do, I’ll let you know.
Ron

Excellant tutorial thanks for that

Hi Rob,
You’re welcome. Ron

thank you for posting this i was wondering where they went i was like whats the point of upgrading if i dont have my solitaire to play lol

I was just about to stab my Bill Gates voodoo doll and luckily came across this tip. I might stab it anyway. WTF is the problem with having games enabled by default Thanks Ron!

Hello tommy and Wilba,
I’m glad this tip helped. No clue why games are not enabled.
Regards, Ron

thanks so much! I have been trying to figure this out for a long time, even tried to download them!

Hi Jessica,
Enjoy, Ron

Thankyou, thankyou, I was heartbroken when I found this laptop was pre-loaded with Vista Business and there seemed to be no games…I’ve got Vista Home Premium on a desktop replacement..the kids and I love Spider Solitaire..you are a total sanity saver!

Hi Jo,
You are welcome.
Thanks for the comment.
Ron

Wahhhh.. thanks!!!

Your welcome,
Ron

Thanks, my wife is happy again! On the computer, that is.

Hi Chuck,
You are welcome.
Ron

hello! doesn’t seem to work on my vaio sz that’s preloaded with vista business. any ideas?? for awhile i had the games explorer with 0 items. and now its disappeared (after the tinkering of one of the countless shops i went back to)

Hi Hanna,
Hopefully someone else who is using business will have a thought to hare. What I posted is the only workaround I know of.
Makes me wonder if the ‘tinkering’ has caused a problem.
Ron

Same problem, Sony VAIO Vgnsz483nc straight out of the box with no tinkering. Followed the advice and Games appeared toi install but when looking in the Games explorer - no luck!.

Windows may be looking for the CD to install games but there is no CD with the Sony.

please look at this URL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flFegmgWM3c
and you can see that games in windows vista are hidden

Hello freeelancer,
Thanks for the link.
Ron

thanks, you just made my day … i’ve just installed vista business & was wondering where are the game

Thank you! This makes my day =)

Thanks for geezer, much appreciated.

That worked–thanks! I was confused and frustrated to find a button called Games, but then no Games. Your article was clear, simple, and solved the problem.

Much appreciated.

Steven

I got the same question as Chris, the Sony VAIO SZ483N can’t use this solution to fix this issue. I followe this instruciton tried many time and got the saem result - doesn’t work. Can anyone help me out? thanks.

THANK YOU VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY much

I try to install games on my window vista business edition, after I go through this proceduce “Click on the Start button, then go to Control Panel. Click on the icon Programs and Features. Look to the left of the screen for Turn Windows Features On or Off. Select this option and then accept the Users Account Control. Look through the listing and and find Games. Place a check mark next to Games and click OK… After I finish this proceduces, if i go to games folder, they won’t be any games there and when I go back to control panel, programs and features, Turn Windows Features On or Off, it will be unchecked, please help me on this….

Hello Joseph,
I’m not sure if this will help or not, but next to the Games box is a PLUS sig. Click on that to expand the list of games and place a check mark in each one. Click OK and see what happens.

Second thought, if this is a company box your admin may have disabled changes from being made. Just a guess.

Hope this helps.

I’ve tried what you ask me to do, same thing… I am using Ibm lenovo 3000 N100… Maybe this will help… My computer is a standalone, I enter as a guest, it was just bringing error.. Is there anything I can do, please help…

after going through that same procedure, when i checked all or select it one by one and click ok, is going to give me an error, but when i enter as admin, it wouldn’t give an error, it will do as if, it was installing, after finish if i went to go and check the game directories, there’s nothing will be there…

Hello Joseph,
I have heard that some of the Vista Business Editions for Sony systems have a ‘bug’ in them from the factory install. I am just wondering if this could be your case as well.

I would check on Lenovo’s site for assistance.

Regards, Ron

Hello Ron,

Thank you so much for your concern, I really appreciate it… I will be looking forward to hear from you after you check on Lenovo’s site…

Thanks…

Regards

Hello Joseph,
There is nothing I could find on Lenovo’s site.
Sorry. But it does appear to be a glitch of some type.

If I restore it to factory default, with my recovery disc.. Do you know maybe the error will be corrected…

Thanks…

Hello Joseph,
It may fix the problem. Make sure you backup your stuff. Also any software you have installed may need to be reinstalled again as well.

Two other things:
First try the install Games with the DVD in the drive.

Also check out this video from UTube and confirm you are doing the procedure correctly as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flFegmgWM3c

Hope this helps, Ron

Thank You!!! I thought Windows Vista did away with all the games since the Business version is all I have! Now it’s all good again!!!!!!!

This fix worked great. I got all of my lost games back i.e. Spider Solitaire.
Thanks!

Thanks alot Just what I was looking for.

You rock man! I bought a laptop from the HP Small Business site, and it came with Vista Business installed. I thought the games were not installed. Now I can play my games again! Thanks!

Hi, Thanks for the tip but I’m stilling having probelms. I put a check next to the games and click ok but when i go back to check it, the tick is not there. What should I do?

Is this workaround only for the classic windows games or will it get you the new “premium” games (Mahjong Titans, Inkball, etc) as well? I don’t have Vista yet, but I’m trying to decide if I want Vista Business or Vista Home Premium. The only thing I want from Home Premium that isn’t in Business are the new games…and I don’t need all that extra media center junk in Home Premium.

Thank you, worked like a charm!

Thank you so much! Your entry is #1 at Google for the search “Microsoft games for Vista Business”! Good job!

You are great RON! Thanks a lot and God bless you. Freecell and solitaire are simplest games I always wanted in Windows though this is my main business desktop.

At the same time it added one more reason why we should hate Microsoft at the same time. How mean idiots are there. Whats the point in hiding previous programs and games, as we are mostly used to them?

thanx for this about the games was wondering where they were lolx

thanks a bunch I was the laughing stock of vista home users at university. now whos laughing…. I have mahjong on my laptop!!!!

Very very thanks for tip I am very happy from your tips .Plz you ‘ll do this things in future.
Zulqadar Ahmad(IT SUPPORT)
New Delhi

Thanku Ron Schenone
By using this article of ur i could recover my games

hey, i have tried the windows turn features on or off for the games many many times and it doesn’t work. is there a reasion for this. and how can i make this work?

Hi meg,
If this is a company system it could be blocked by IT. Just a thought.

Thanks Ron, It works

Hello Mohammed,
You are welcome. Glad it worked for you.

Nice work, Ron. My gf can now relax with solitaire and she’s learning the finer points of hearts.

Thank you, thank you, thank you… starting to worry why I did not have such a wonderful game as shangai…!!!! Hehehe, now I found out.

Thanks again!!!

Thanks Ron, you definitely made me feel less miserable about upgrading.

Hi Ron,

I was able to get the games but when I click on a certain game, this message appears “Hardware acceleration is either disabled or not supported by your video card driver, which could slow game performance. Make sure you have the latest video card driver installed and that hardware accerleration is turned on.” I had Vista Home before I upgraded to Vista Business and it was working perfectly fine when I had Vista Home so how could it be a hardware problem?? Please HELP!! ;o(

Hello Connie,
It could be a hardware issue or it could be that Windows Update may have tried to update your video driver and for some reason it may have hosed the driver.

I would first update your video driver and see what happens.

Go to your OEM’s site and check for a new driver. Also you can try using Belarc Advisor to see if the driver is out of date.

Hope this helps. Let us know if you get the problem fixed or not.

Thanks! I didn’t know they were there! I really, really missed them! x)

Thank you so so so much Ron, really wonder for a long time what happened to them… Best help I’ve recieved to help me finnish my posgrad… We all need our few hours of relaxing

Bobby asked a question which I also wanted to ask. But I doubt if he has been answered. The question was about whether this remedy brings out all the games including the new ones like Titan Chess. Below i s pasted Bobby’s concern:

“Is this workaround only for the classic windows games or will it get you the new “premium” games (Mahjong Titans, Inkball, etc) as well? I don’t have Vista yet, but I’m trying to decide if I want Vista Business or Vista Home Premium. The only thing I want from Home Premium that isn’t in Business are the new games…and I don’t need all that extra media center junk in Home Premium.”

I knew the games had to be there somewhere!

Thanks a lot!

Hi Ron,
I just bought a Sony Z17GN yesterday, and it came with Vista Business. COnsidering I have ultimate on desktop, It sort of wrecked my experience a bit wih my new Sony.. till i found this. You are the man champion!

legend ron!

thanks,
i did try copy the games from other computer and didn’t work

Yeah, but you have to restart, just to turn games on? Supid, stupid monolithic kernel.

You are a god send dude, i’ve been pulling my hair out for months now trying to find out how to get the games working.

Thanks Alot Dude. I bought a new Laptop and it came with Vista Buissiness and no games were there thanks alot dude.
You are the BEST!

Best Regards,
Saad Hussain

I just bought a new PC for my wife - with Vista business - and one of the first questions I got was “Where’s solitaire?”. Your article saved my bacon - thanks!

I’m glad everyone has found this article useful.

hey thnx a lot for yr help. i really wondered why no games for the business edition but never thought they’d b hidden,
anyways now found it finally
thanks a ton

thanks sooooo much!!! i have been without games for a year! i missed them. this made my day. lol

AHH.!!! Thank you, you’re amazing.

it worked on windows 7 pro……….thanks very much