Compatibility Files

Windows Vista introduced several new security-related concepts - the most well known of these is UAC. One of the features of the new security system is the ability for file operations in certain protected locations to be automatically redirected to a different, non-privileged location. This system kicks into action whenever an older program that hasn't been updated for UAC tries to create or write to files in locations like the Windows directory. The file-system silently diverts the application to a different location - this means the old application doesn't break, but security is not compromised by allowing non-privileged applications write permission in important system folders.

 

Files that have been written to disk as a result of this system are known as compatibility files. Opus gives you the ability to manage compatibility files in two ways: