MATLAB releases prior to R2009a are unqualified on Windows 7. MATLAB releases prior to R2010b are unqualified on Windows Server 2008 R2. See Previous Releases: System Requirements and Supported Compilers for more information.
However, you may be able to complete the installation by running the installer in compatibility mode for a previous version of Windows. If you are installing from a DVD you will need to create a shortcut to the installer first. To do so, right click on the setup.exe on the DVD and select “Create a Shortcut”. When prompted save the shortcut to the desktop. In the workaround below refer to the shortcut file rather than the actual setup.exe file.
To run the installer in compatibility mode:
- Right-click on the installer file setup.exe and select the “Properties” option.
- Go to the “Compatibility” tab or the shortcut properties.
- Check the box “Run this program in Compatibility Mode for:”.
- Set this field to “Windows Vista” or “Windows XP”. You may need to check “Change Settings For All Users” and the option to “Disable visual themes.”
- Press OK to confirm the settings.
- Double-click on setup.exe to launch the installer again.
You may also need to change the visual theme to Windows Classic to run the R2008b installer or earlier on Windows 7 or Windows Server R2008 R2:
- Right-click an empty space on your desktop and select Personalize.
- Under the Basic and High Contrast Themes, select Windows Classic to change the theme to the Windows Classic mode.
