Windows Archive

Microsoft To Modify Windows Genuine Advantage Anti-piracy Scheme

Submitted by Flatline 2007-12-04 Windows 29 Comments

Microsoft is doing away with “reduced functionality mode” for individuals that its WGA activation and validation scheme deems to be running “non-genuine” software. The company also is plugging two WGA loopholes that pirates have been exploiting successfully.Microsoft is attributing the changes it is making to “feedback from customers and partners.”

Surveys Show Vista Struggling One Year on

Thom Holwerda 2007-11-23 Windows 143 Comments

"Almost a year on from the release of Microsoft's Windows Vista, only 13 percent of companies say they expect to move all desktops to the operating system, according to a survey released this week. Furthermore, adoption of Linux continues to gather pace, with a particular emphasis on the desktop emerging." As always, be sure to read these with a bag of salt on your desk.

Vista SP1 a Performance Dud

Submitted by Research Staff 2007-11-19 Windows 147 Comments

Some testing by the exo.performance.network research staff shows that SP1 provides no measurable relief to users saddled with sub-par performance under Vista.

Vista SP1 Release Candidate Released

Thom Holwerda 2007-11-15 Windows 57 Comments

Microsoft has released a preview release candidate for Windows Vista SP1 to a large group of beta testers. The RC preview beta , which was released late Nov. 14 and includes changes to the setup and installation experience made as a result of tester feedback, was made available to 15000 pre-selected beta testers, just 3000 more than the first beta. Additionally, Microsoft has released a new build of Windows Server 2008.

Microsoft HPC Server 2008 Goes Into Beta

Thom Holwerda 2007-11-14 Windows No Comments

Microsoft has released the first public beta of Microsoft Windows HPC Server 2008, a server operating system for the high-performance computing market. The company has also announced the Parallel Computing Initiative, a programme aimed at creating a set of common development tools across multi-core desktops and clusters. The beta is available for download here and the final version is scheduled for launch in the second half of 2008.

Windows Server 2008 Versions Announced, with Few Changes

Thom Holwerda 2007-11-12 Windows 71 Comments

The breakdown for the various editions of Windows Server 2008 was revealed this morning by Microsoft, and the big news there is the almost total lack of change: Retail server software editions for the next Windows Server will fall right in line with the current Windows Server 2003 R2 editions, including the number of client access licenses provided in the basic package.

Submitted by DanPhilpott 2007-11-03 Windows 19 Comments

A Community Technology Preview of Microsoft's PowerShell has been announced. PowerShell is a re-imagining of the command line interface in a fully object oriented environment. Run libraries like executables, cryptographically sign your scripts, extend your functions through full .NET integration.

Microsoft Apologizes for Update Blunder

Submitted by Geonon 2007-10-29 Windows 36 Comments

Microsoft has apologized for a Windows Server update that automatically installed the Windows Desktop Search tool on users' desktops without approval. The mistake happened because Microsoft reused the same update package for when WDS was first published in February as an optional update that was only applicable to systems with the search tool previously installed.

‘Driver Updates Causing Vista to Deactivate’

Submitted by Dan Warne 2007-10-23 Windows 72 Comments

"After weeks of gruelling troubleshooting, I've finally had it confirmed by Microsoft Australia and USA - something as small as swapping the video card or updating a device driver can trigger a total Vista deactivation. Put simply, your copy of Windows will stop working with very little notice (three days) and your PC will go into 'reduced functionality' mode, where you can't do anything but use the web browser for half an hour. You'll then need to reapply to Microsoft to get a new activation code. How can this crazy situation occur? Read on for the sorry tale."

Thoughts on ‘MinWin’, Windows 7, and Virtualisation

Thom Holwerda 2007-10-22 Windows 72 Comments

Earlier today, OSNews ran a story on a presentation held by Microsoft's Eric Traut, the man responsible for the 200 or so kernel and virtualisation engineers working at the company. Eric Traut is also the man who wrote the binary translation engine for in the earlier PowerPC versions of VirtualPC (interestingly, this engine is now used to run XBox 1 games on the XBox 360 ) - in other words, he knows what he is talking about when it comes to kernel engineering and virtualisation. His presentation was a very interesting thing to watch, and it offered a little bit more insight into Windows 7, the codename for the successor to Windows Vista, planned for 2010.

Submitted by Flatland_Spider 2007-10-22 Windows 49 Comments

While newly minted Windows head Steven Sinofsky continues to play his cards close to his chest, we're seeing signs that Microsoft is rethinking its monolithic approach to not only the mass-market Windows operating system but the entire family of Windows products from servers down to CE-based embedded devices. First up is a streamlined microkernel codenamed MinWin, around which a re-engineered Windows line will be built. Described as 'the Windows 7 source-code base', in reference to the successor to Windows Vista which is slated for a 2010 release, MinWin strips back the current NT-based kernel to the barest of bare metal. Ars Technica has more, including a one hour video presentation about MinWin. Sassy quote of the day by Microsoft kernel engineer Eric Traut: "A lot of people think of Windows as this really large bloated operating system, and that may be a fair characterisation, I have to admit." My take: Maybe this will be closer to reality after all?

DOS Lives: Secrets of the Windows Command Prompt

Submitted by Inkslinger77 2007-10-21 Windows 52 Comments

"Buried deep within Windows' bosom is a carbon-crusted fossil from the ancient days of computing. This aged wart on Windows' soul harkens back to a more primitive time, when computers lacked the oomph to go graphical and mice were nothing but rodents. I speak of the command prompt, whose roots lie in DOS, that antique operating system of the 1980s. DOS is gone now. Yet despite Windows' glorious graphical goodness, a wispy memory of text-based computer life still exists. It's a program called CMD.EXE, and it appears in Windows as the command prompt window. Believe it or not, the command prompt to this day still serves as a useful alternative way to control your computer. Indeed, there are some things you can do in the command prompt window that in Windows' graphical interface are tedious, slow or darn near impossible. Come with me as we discover how an old warhorse like DOS can once again find purpose."

Submitted by DigitalDame 2007-10-18 Windows 22 Comments

PCMag takes a look at the Windows XP SP3 beta. "There's very little new here, but SP3 increases security and collects all those hundreds of hotfixes you might have been too busy (or cautious) to keep downloading. But make sure you understand the compatibility issues before applying SP3."

‘Home Is Where My Server Is’

Thom Holwerda 2007-10-15 Windows 49 Comments

"When Microsoft announced Windows Home Server earlier this year, it was greeted with a mixture of curious disdain and eagerness. Some questioned what the product offered over existing solutions, while others welcomed it with open arms. It's at once hard to explain and easy to understand what Windows Home Server is, but it's worth getting to know the newest addition to the Windows family."

New Features Discovered in Windows XP SP3: Is It Better Than Vista?

Thom Holwerda 2007-10-10 Windows 72 Comments

"The principal reason given for the tremendous under-the-hood changes to Windows unveiled early this year in Vista was the need to overhaul the security model. Indeed, Vista has proven to be a generally more secure operating system, though some vulnerabilities that apply to ordinary software impact Vista users just as much as any other. But now, software analysts testing the latest build 3205 of the beta for Windows XP Service Pack 3 are discovering a wealth of genuinely new features - not just patches and security updates (although there are literally over a thousand of those), but services that could substantially improve system security without overhauling the kernel like in Vista."

Review: Vista SP1 Beta

Submitted by Corinne Iozzio 2007-10-08 Windows 46 Comments

PCMag takes a look at the Vista SP1 beta, and concludes: "The actual first beta of SP1 may not deserve a fanfare, simply because - like all first betas - it has its own set of issues to resolve. But by the time you can get SP1 on the Microsoft Update site or as part of a new Vista installation DVD, you'll want your PC to have it. Nothing dramatic here, but SP1 is a solid, useful upgrade that makes the operating system a little safer and a little faster."

Windows XP SP3 Build 3205 Released

Submitted by Margret Hennesy 2007-10-07 Windows 46 Comments

The first officially-released build of Windows XP SP3 has surfaced, with 1073 patches/hotfixes and several new features. This build has been made available to testers as a part of the Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 beta program and is available in English, German, and Japanese.

Submitted by flanque 2007-10-01 Windows 69 Comments

"After several months of silence, Microsoft last month finally revealed some concrete information about Windows Vista Service Pack 1, which I translated into my Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Revealed showcase. If you haven't read that article, please do so now: This preview, which is based off of more recent beta code and an in-depth discussion with various people working on SP1 at Microsoft, builds off of that article, but provides more information and detail. Windows Vista SP1, finally, is a known quantity."

Microsoft Extends XP’s Availability

Thom Holwerda 2007-09-28 Windows 82 Comments

"Responding to feedback from customers and third parties, Microsoft has extended the availability of Windows XP to both original equipment manufacturers and retail channels through to June 30, 2008. Originally slated to be pulled from retail shelves and OEMs on January 30, 2008 - only a year after Windows Vista's debut - customers requested more time to prepare for the upgrade to Vista."

Submitted by WillM 2007-09-28 Windows 39 Comments

"Microsoft's Windows Server 2008 RC0 hit the Web earlier this week on the road to its scheduled February 2008 release, toting a new Internet Information Services role for the product's lean and mean Server Core incarnation and a laundry list of small fit-and-finish tweaks. However, the most significant component of the RC0 code drop is one that won't go gold until three or so months after Server 2008 hits general availability: Microsoft's brand-new virtualization services feature, also known as 'Viridian'."