Microsoft Windows
“Windows” redirects here. For the part of a building, see
window. For other uses, see Windows (disambiguation).
server computers and workstations. It now consists
of three operating system subfamilies that are released almost at the same time and share the same
kernel
Microsoft Windows (or simply Windows) is a metafamily of graphical operating systems developed, marketed,
and sold by Microsoft. It consists of several families
of operating systems, each of which cater to a certain sector of the computing industry. Active Windows families include Windows NT, Windows Embedded and Windows Phone; these may encompass subfamilies, e.g. Windows Embedded Compact (Windows CE)
or Windows Server. Defunct Windows families include
Windows 9x and Windows Mobile.
• Windows: The operating system for mainstream personal computers. The latest version
is Windows 8.1. It is almost impossible for
someone unfamiliar with the subject to identify the members of this family by name because they do not adhere to any speciﬁc rule;
e.g. Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows
RT are members of this family but Windows
3.1 is not. The main competitor of this family is OS X by Apple Inc. (c.f. Usage share of
operating systems § Market share by category)
Microsoft introduced an operating environment named
Windows on November 20, 1985 as a graphical operating
system shell for MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs).[6] Microsoft
Windows came to dominate the world’s personal computer market with over 90% market share, overtaking
Mac OS, which had been introduced in 1984. However,
since 2012, it sells less than Android, which became the
most popular operating system in 2014, when counting
all of the computing platforms Windows runs on (same as
Android); in 2014, the number of Windows device sold
were less than 25% of Android devices sold.
• Windows Server: The operating system for
server computers.
The latest version is
Windows Server 2012 R2. Unlike its clients
sibling, it has adopted a strong naming scheme.
The main competitor of this family is Linux.
(c.f. Usage share of operating systems § Market share by category)
• Windows PE: A lightweight version of its Windows sibling meant to operate as a live operating system, used for installing Windows
on bare-metal computers (especially on many
computers at once), recovery or troubleshooting purposes. The latest version is Windows
PE 5.1.
As of April 2014, the most recent versions of Windows for personal computers, smartphones, server computers and embedded devices are respectively Windows
8.1, Windows Phone 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2 and
Windows Embedded 8. A specialized version of Windows runs on the Xbox One game console.
• Windows Phone: An operating system sold only to
manufacturers of smartphones. The ﬁrst version was
Windows Phone 7. The latest version is Windows
Phone 8.1. The main competitor of this family is
Android by Google. (c.f. Usage share of operating
systems § Market share by category)
The next version of Windows is Windows 10 and is currently available as a technical preview; it is set for release
for phones, tablets, laptops, and PCs in late 2015.
1
Genealogy
1.1
• Windows Embedded: Initially, Microsoft developed Windows CE as a general-purpose operating system for every device that was too resourcelimited to be called a full-ﬂedged computer. Eventually, however, Windows CE was renamed Windows Embedded Compact and was folded under
Windows Compact trademark which also consists
of Windows Embedded Industry, Windows Embedded Professional, Windows Embedded Standard,
Windows Embedded Handheld and Windows Embedded Automotive.[7]
By marketing role
Microsoft, the developer of Windows, has registered several trademarks each of which denote a family of Windows operating systems that target a speciﬁc sector of the
computing industry. As of 2014, the following Windows
families are being actively developed:
• Windows NT: Started as a family of operating system with Windows NT 3.1, an operating system for
1
2
2
VERSION HISTORY
The following Windows families are no longer being de- Notepad, Paint, Reversi, Terminal and Write. Windows
veloped:
1.0 does not allow overlapping windows. Instead all windows are tiled. Only modal dialog boxes may appear over
• Windows 9x: An operating system that targeted other windows.
consumers market. Discontinued because of subop- Windows 2.0 was released in December 1987 and was
timal performance. (PC World called its last ver- more popular than its predecessor. It features several imsion, Windows ME, one of the worst products of provements to the user interface and memory manageall times.)[8] Microsoft now caters to the consumers ment. Windows 2.03 changed the OS from tiled windows
market with Windows NT.
to overlapping windows. The result of this change led
• Windows Mobile: The predecessor to Windows
Phone, it was a mobile phone operating system. The
ﬁrst version was called Pocket PC 2000; the third
version, Windows Mobile 2003 is the ﬁrst version
to adopt the Windows Mobile trademark. The last
version is Windows Mobile 6.5.
2
Version history
Main article: History of Microsoft Windows
See also: List of Microsoft Windows versions
to Apple Computer ﬁling a suit against Microsoft alleging infringement on Apple’s copyrights.[10][11] Windows
2.0 also introduced more sophisticated keyboard shortcuts and could make use of expanded memory.
Windows 2.1 was released in two diﬀerent versions:
Windows/286 and Windows/386. Windows/386 uses the
virtual 8086 mode of Intel 80386 to multitask several
DOS programs and the paged memory model to emulate expanded memory using available extended memory.
Windows/286, in spite of its name, runs on both Intel
8086 and Intel 80286 processors. It runs in real mode
but can make use of the high memory area.
In addition to full Windows-packages, there were
The term Windows collectively describes any or all of sev- runtime-only versions that shipped with early Windows
eral generations of Microsoft operating system products. software from third parties and made it possible to run
their Windows software on MS-DOS and without the full
These products are generally categorized as follows:
Windows feature set.
The early versions of Windows are often thought of
as graphical shells, mostly because they ran on top of
MS-DOS and use it for ﬁle system services.[12] HowMain articles: Windows 1.0, Windows 2.0 and Windows
ever, even the earliest Windows versions already assumed
2.1x
many typical operating system functions; notably, havThe history of Windows dates back to September 1981,
ing their own executable ﬁle format and providing their
own device drivers (timer, graphics, printer, mouse, keyboard and sound). Unlike MS-DOS, Windows allowed
users to execute multiple graphical applications at the
same time, through cooperative multitasking. Windows
implemented an elaborate, segment-based, software virtual memory scheme, which allows it to run applications larger than available memory: code segments and
resources are swapped in and thrown away when memory
became scarce; data segments moved in memory when a
given application had relinquished processor control.
2.1
Early versions
Windows 1.0, the ﬁrst version, released in 1985
when Chase Bishop, a computer scientist, designed the
ﬁrst model of an electronic device and project “Interface
Manager” was started. It was announced in November
1983 (after the Apple Lisa, but before the Macintosh)
under the name “Windows”, but Windows 1.0 was not
released until November 1985.[9] Windows 1.0 was to
compete with Apple's operating system, but achieved
little popularity. Windows 1.0 is not a complete operating system; rather, it extends MS-DOS. The shell
of Windows 1.0 is a program known as the MS-DOS
Executive. Components included Calculator, Calendar, Cardﬁle, Clipboard viewer, Clock, Control Panel,
2.2 Windows 3.0 and 3.1
Main articles: Windows 3.0 and Windows 3.1x
Windows 3.0, released in 1990, improved the design,
mostly because of virtual memory and loadable virtual
device drivers (VxDs) that allow Windows to share arbitrary devices between multi-tasked DOS applications.
Windows 3.0 applications can run in protected mode,
which gives them access to several megabytes of memory
without the obligation to participate in the software virtual memory scheme. They run inside the same address
space, where the segmented memory provides a degree of
protection. Windows 3.0 also featured improvements to
2.4
Windows NT
3
vices, support for ACPI, hibernation, and support for
multi-monitor conﬁgurations. Windows 98 also included
integration with Internet Explorer 4 through Active Desktop and other aspects of the Windows Desktop Update (a
series of enhancements to the Explorer shell which were
also made available for Windows 95). In May 1999, Microsoft released Windows 98 Second Edition, an updated
version of Windows 98. Windows 98 SE added Internet
Explorer 5.0 and Windows Media Player 6.2 amongst
other upgrades. Mainstream support for Windows 98
ended on June 30, 2002 and extended support for Windows 98 ended on July 11, 2006.[19]
Windows 3.0, released in 1990
the user interface. Microsoft rewrote critical operations
from C into assembly. Windows 3.0 is the ﬁrst Microsoft
Windows version to achieve broad commercial success,
selling 2 million copies in the ﬁrst six months.[13][14]
Windows 3.1, made generally available on March 1,
1992, featured a facelift. In August 1993, Windows for
Workgroups, a special version with integrated peer-topeer networking features and a version number of 3.11,
was released. It was sold along Windows 3.1. Support
for Windows 3.1 ended on December 31, 2001.[15]
2.3
Windows 9x
Main article: Windows 9x
The next major consumer-oriented release of Windows,
Windows 95, was released on August 24, 1995. While
still remaining MS-DOS-based, Windows 95 introduced
support for native 32-bit applications, plug and play hardware, preemptive multitasking, long ﬁle names of up
to 255 characters, and provided increased stability over
its predecessors. Windows 95 also introduced a redesigned, object oriented user interface, replacing the
previous Program Manager with the Start menu, taskbar,
and Windows Explorer shell. Windows 95 was a major
commercial success for Microsoft; Ina Fried of CNET remarked that “by the time Windows 95 was ﬁnally ushered
oﬀ the market in 2001, it had become a ﬁxture on computer desktops around the world.”[16] Microsoft published
four OEM Service Releases (OSR) of Windows 95, each
of which was roughly equivalent to a service pack. The
ﬁrst OSR of Windows 95 was also the ﬁrst version of
Windows to be bundled with Microsoft’s web browser,
Internet Explorer.[17] Mainstream support for Windows
95 ended on December 31, 2000 and extended support
for Windows 95 ended on December 31, 2001.[18]
On September 14, 2000, Microsoft released Windows
ME (Millennium Edition), the last DOS-based version
of Windows. Windows ME incorporated visual interface
enhancements from its Windows NT-based counterpart
Windows 2000, had faster boot times than previous versions (which however, required the removal of the ability to access a real mode DOS environment, removing
compatibility with some older programs),[20] expanded
multimedia functionality (including Windows Media
Player 7, Windows Movie Maker, and the Windows Image Acquisition framework for retrieving images from
scanners and digital cameras), additional system utilities
such as System File Protection and System Restore, and
updated home networking tools.[21] However, Windows
ME was faced with criticism for its speed and instability,
along with hardware compatibility issues and its removal
of real mode DOS support. PC World considered Windows ME to be one of the worst operating systems Microsoft had ever released, and the 4th worst tech product
of all time.[8]
2.4 Windows NT
Main article: Windows NT
2.4.1 Early versions
In November 1988, a new development team within Microsoft (which included former Digital Equipment Corporation developers Dave Cutler and Mark Lucovsky) began work on a revamped version of IBM and Microsoft’s
OS/2 operating system known as “NT OS/2”. NT OS/2
was intended to be a secure, multi-user operating system
with POSIX compatibility and a modular, portable kernel
with preemptive multitasking and support for multiple
processor architectures. However, following the successful release of Windows 3.0, the NT development team decided to rework the project to use an extended 32-bit port
of the Windows API known as Win32 instead of those
of OS/2. Win32 maintained a similar structure to the
Windows 95 was followed up with the release of Windows APIs (allowing existing Windows applications
Windows 98 on June 25, 1998, which introduced the to easily be ported to the platform), but also supported
Windows Driver Model, support for USB composite de- the capabilities of the existing NT kernel. Following its
4
2
VERSION HISTORY
approval by Microsoft’s staﬀ, development continued on 2.4.3 Windows Vista and later
what was now Windows NT, the ﬁrst 32-bit version of
Windows. However, IBM objected to the changes, and After a lengthy development process, Windows Vista was
ultimately continued OS/2 development on its own.[22][23] released on November 30, 2006 for volume licensing and
The ﬁrst release of the resulting operating system, January 30, 2007 for consumers. It contained a number
Windows NT 3.1 (named to associate it with Windows of new features, from a redesigned shell and user interface
3.1) was released in July 1993 with versions for desk- to signiﬁcant technical changes, with a particular focus on
top workstations and servers. Windows NT 3.5 was re- security features. It was available in a number of diﬀerent
leased in September 1994, focusing on performance im- editions, and has been subject to some criticism. Vista’s
provements and support for Novell's NetWare, and was server counterpart, Windows Server 2008 was released in
followed up by Windows NT 3.51 in May 1995, which early 2008.
included additional improvements and support for the
PowerPC architecture. Windows NT 4.0 was released
in June 1996, introducing the redesigned interface of
Windows 95 to the NT series. On February 17, 2000,
Microsoft released Windows 2000, a successor to NT 4.0.
The Windows NT name was dropped at this point in order
to put a greater focus on the Windows brand.[23]
2.4.2
Windows XP
The next major version of Windows, Windows XP, was
released on October 25, 2001. The introduction of Windows XP aimed to unify the consumer-oriented Windows
9x series with the architecture introduced by Windows
NT, a change which Microsoft promised would provide better performance over its DOS-based predecessors. Windows XP would also introduce a redesigned
user interface (including an updated Start menu and a
“task-oriented” Windows Explorer), streamlined multimedia and networking features, Internet Explorer 6, integration with Microsoft’s .NET Passport services, modes
to help provide compatibility with software designed for
previous versions of Windows, and Remote Assistance
functionality.[24]
At retail, Windows XP was now marketed in two main
editions: the “Home” edition was targeted towards consumers, while the “Professional” edition was targeted
towards business environments and power users, and
included additional security and networking features.
Home and Professional were later accompanied by the
“Media Center” edition (designed for home theater PCs,
with an emphasis on support for DVD playback, TV
tuner cards, DVR functionality, and remote controls),
and the “Tablet PC” edition (designed for mobile devices meeting its speciﬁcations for a tablet computer, with
support for stylus pen input and additional pen-enabled
applications).[25][26][27] Mainstream support for Windows
XP ended on April 14, 2009. Extended support ended on
April 8, 2014.[28]
After Windows 2000, Microsoft also changed its release
schedules for server operating systems; the server counterpart of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, was released in April 2003.[23] It was followed in December
2005 by Windows Server 2003 R2.
On July 22, 2009, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008
R2 were released as RTM (release to manufacturing)
while the former was released to the public 3 months later
on October 22, 2009. Unlike its predecessor, Windows
Vista, which introduced a large number of new features,
Windows 7 was intended to be a more focused, incremental upgrade to the Windows line, with the goal of
being compatible with applications and hardware with
which Windows Vista was already compatible.[29] Windows 7 has multi-touch support, a redesigned Windows
shell with an updated taskbar, a home networking system
called HomeGroup,[30] and performance improvements.
Windows 8, the successor to Windows 7, was released
generally on October 26, 2012. A number of signiﬁcant changes were made on Windows 8, including the introduction of a user interface based around Microsoft’s
Metro design language with optimizations for touchbased devices such as tablets and all-in-one PCs. These
changes include the Start screen, which uses large tiles
that are more convenient for touch interactions and allow for the display of continually updated information,
and a new class of apps which are designed primarily for
use on touch-based devices. Other changes include increased integration with cloud services and other online
platforms (such as social networks and Microsoft’s own
SkyDrive and Xbox Live services), the Windows Store
service for software distribution, and a new variant known
as Windows RT for use on devices that utilize the ARM
architecture.[31][32][33][34][35][36] An update to Windows 8,
called Windows 8.1, was released on October 17, 2013,
and includes features such as new live tile sizes, deeper
SkyDrive integration, and many other revisions.[37]
On September 30, 2014, Microsoft announced Windows
10 as the successor to Windows 8.1. It will be released in
late 2015 and addresses shortcomings in the user interface
ﬁrst introduced with Windows 8. Changes include the
return of the Start Menu, a virtual desktop system, and
the ability to run Windows Store apps within windows on
the desktop rather than in full-screen mode.[38]
2.4.4 Multilingual support
Multilingual support is built into Windows. The language
for both the keyboard and the interface can be changed
through the Region and Language Control Panel. Com-
2.5
Windows CE
ponents for all supported input languages, such as Input
Method Editors, are automatically installed during Windows installation (in Windows XP and earlier, ﬁles for
East Asian languages, such as Chinese, and right-to-left
scripts, such as Arabic, may need to be installed separately, also from the said Control Panel). Third-party
IMEs may also be installed if a user feels that the provided one is insuﬃcient for their needs.
Interface languages for the operating system are free for
download, but some languages are limited to certain editions of Windows. Language Interface Packs (LIPs) are
redistributable and may be downloaded from Microsoft’s
Download Center and installed for any edition of Windows (XP or later) - they translate most, but not all, of the
Windows interface, and require a certain base language
(the language which Windows originally shipped with).
This is used for most languages in emerging markets. Full
Language Packs, which translates the complete operating
system, are only available for speciﬁc editions of Windows (Ultimate and Enterprise editions of Windows Vista
and 7, and all editions of Windows 8, 8.1 and RT except Single Language). They do not require a speciﬁc
base language, and are commonly used for more popular
languages such as French or Chinese. These languages
cannot be downloaded through the Download Center, but
available as optional updates through the Windows Update service (except Windows 8).
5
forms except the third generation x86 (known as IA-32)
or newer in 32-bit mode. The client line of Window NT
family still runs on IA-32, although the Windows Server
line has ceased supporting this platform with the release
of Windows Server 2008 R2.
With the introduction of the Intel Itanium architecture
(IA-64), Microsoft released new versions of Windows
to support it. Itanium versions of Windows XP and
Windows Server 2003 were released at the same time as
their mainstream x86 counterparts. Windows XP 64-Bit
Edition, released in 2005, is the last Windows client operating systems to support Itanium. Windows Server line
continued to support this platform until Windows Server
2012; Windows Server 2008 R2 is the last Windows operating system to support Itanium architecture.
On April 25, 2005, Microsoft released Windows XP Professional x64 Edition and Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions to support the x86-64 (or simply x64), the eighth
generation of x86 architecture. Windows Vista was the
ﬁrst client version of Windows NT to be released simultaneously in IA-32 and x64 editions. x64 is still supported.
An edition of Windows 8 known as Windows RT was
speciﬁcally created for computers with ARM architecture.
2.5 Windows CE
The interface language of installed applications are not
aﬀected by changes in the Windows interface language.
Main articles: Windows CE and Windows Phone
Availability of languages depends on the application deWindows CE (oﬃcially known as Windows Embedvelopers themselves.
Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 introduces a new
Language Control Panel where both the interface and input languages can be simultaneously changed, and language packs, regardless of type, can be downloaded from
a central location. The PC Settings app in Windows 8.1
and Windows Server 2012 R2 also includes a counterpart settings page for this. Changing the interface language also changes the language of preinstalled Windows
Store apps (such as Mail, Maps and News) and certain
other Microsoft-developed apps (such as Remote Desktop). The above limitations for language packs are however still in eﬀect, except that full language packs can be
installed for any edition except Single Language, which
The latest current version of Windows CE, Windows Embedded
caters to emerging markets.
Compact 7, displaying a concept media player UI.
2.4.5
Platform support
ded Compact), is an edition of Windows that runs on
minimalistic computers, like satellite navigation systems
and some mobile phones. Windows Embedded Compact
is based on its own dedicated kernel, dubbed Windows
CE kernel. Microsoft licenses Windows CE to OEMs and
device makers. The OEMs and device makers can modify and create their own user interfaces and experiences,
while Windows CE provides the technical foundation to
do so.
Windows NT included support for several diﬀerent platforms before the x86-based personal computer became
dominant in the professional world. Windows NT 4.0
and its predecessors supported PowerPC, DEC Alpha
and MIPS R4000. (Although some these platforms implement 64-bit computing, the operating system treated
them as 32-bit.) However, Windows 2000, the successor of Windows NT 4.0, dropped support for all plat- Windows CE was used in the Dreamcast along with
6
4 USAGE SHARE
Sega’s own proprietary OS for the console. Windows CE
was the core from which Windows Mobile was derived.
Its successor, Windows Phone 7, was based on components from both Windows CE 6.0 R3 and Windows CE
7.0. Windows Phone 8 however, is based on the same
NT-kernel as Windows 8.
Windows Embedded Compact is not to be confused with
Windows XP Embedded or Windows NT 4.0 Embedded,
modular editions of Windows based on Windows NT kernel.
2.6
Xbox OS
Xbox OS is an unoﬃcial name given to the version of
Windows that runs on the Xbox One.[39] It is a more speciﬁc implementation with an emphasis on virtualization
(using Hyper-V) as it is three operating systems running
at once, consisting of the core operating system, a second
implemented for games and a more Windows-like environment for applications.[40]
The Windows family tree
4 Usage share
Main article: Usage share of operating systems
3
Timeline of releases
Main article: Timeline of Microsoft Windows
Windows timeline: Table
Windows timeline: Bar chart
♠ ^ Not a subtotal. Not all versions are listed
in this table.
♦ ^ Also includes mobile operating systems.
4.1 Usage share as a general platform
• talk
According to Gartner, Windows (including all platforms)
sold less than a quarter of Android (the so-called mobile
operating system) in 2014,[46] and has been outsold every year since 2012. Android runs on tablets (“personal
computers”), smartphones (and traditional PCs but few
users do). In 2013, Android-based devices outsold Windows’ 2.8:1 (2:1 in mature markets) or by 573 million
units (estimating the gap to widen much in 2015 as it did
in 2014).[47][48][49]
• edit
Strategy Analytics estimates the installed base of desktop and mobile PCs (Windows is mostly used on those)
to about 1300 million at best;[50] they also estimate the
overall tablet installed base to be already of comparable
size to the PC market and predict tablets will have surpassed them by 2018. Most of the tablet installed base
• view
5.1
File permissions
consists of Android-based devices that add to the following Android smartphone numbers. To put Strategy
Analytics estimates in context: by Statistica's estimate,
Android smartphones have an installed base, in 2014,
of 1600 million Androids smartphones (75% of the estimated 2.2 billion);[51][52]
7
trast, are true multi-user, and implement absolute memory protection. However, a lot of the advantages of being
a true multi-user operating system were nulliﬁed by the
fact that, prior to Windows Vista, the ﬁrst user account
created during the setup process was an administrator
account, which was also the default for new accounts.
Though Windows XP did have limited accounts, the majority of home users did not change to an account type
with fewer rights – partially due to the number of programs which unnecessarily required administrator rights
– and so most home users ran as administrator all the
time.
Android has the largest installed base of any mobile operating system (in fact of any OS including “non-mobile”
ones); as of 2013, devices running it also sell more than
Windows, iOS and Mac OS X devices combined. In
the third quarter of 2013, Android’s share of the global
smartphone shipment market was 81.3%,[53][54] An estimated three billion Android smartphones only have been Windows Vista changes this[61] by introducing a privilege
elevation system called User Account Control. When logsold by the end of 2014.
Unlike Android, programs may not work across diﬀerent ging in as a standard user, a logon session is created and
versions of Windows, but that is planned in Windows 10. a token containing only the most basic privileges is assigned. In this way, the new logon session is incapable
of making changes that would aﬀect the entire system.
When logging in as a user in the Administrators group,
two separate tokens are assigned. The ﬁrst token con5 Security
tains all privileges typically awarded to an administrator,
and the second is a restricted token similar to what a stanConsumer versions of Windows were originally designed
dard user would receive. User applications, including the
for ease-of-use on a single-user PC without a network
Windows Shell, are then started with the restricted toconnection, and did not have security features built in
ken, resulting in a reduced privilege environment even
[55]
from the outset.
However, Windows NT and its sucunder an Administrator account. When an application
cessors are designed for security (including on a network)
requests higher privileges or “Run as administrator” is
and multi-user PCs, but were not initially designed with
clicked, UAC will prompt for conﬁrmation and, if conInternet security in mind as much, since, when it was
sent is given (including administrator credentials if the
ﬁrst developed in the early 1990s, Internet use was less
account requesting the elevation is not a member of the
[56]
prevalent.
administrators group), start the process using the unreThese design issues combined with programming errors stricted token.[62]
(e.g. buﬀer overﬂows) and the popularity of Windows
means that it is a frequent target of computer worm and
virus writers. In June 2005, Bruce Schneier's Counter- 5.1 File permissions
pane Internet Security reported that it had seen over 1,000
new viruses and worms in the previous six months.[57] All Windows versions from Windows NT 3 have been
In 2005, Kaspersky Lab found around 11,000 malicious based on a ﬁle system permission system referred to as
programs—viruses, Trojans, back-doors, and exploits AGLP (Accounts, Global, Local, Permissions) AGDLP
written for Windows.[58]
which in essence where ﬁle permissions are applied to the
Microsoft releases security patches through its Windows ﬁle/folder in the form of a 'local group' which then has
Update service approximately once a month (usually the other 'global groups’ as members. These global groups
second Tuesday of the month), although critical updates then hold other groups or users depending on diﬀerare made available at shorter intervals when necessary.[59] ent Windows versions used. This system varies from
In versions of Windows after and including Windows other vendor products such as Linux and NetWare due
2000 SP3 and Windows XP, updates can be automatically to the 'static' allocation of permission being applied didownloaded and installed if the user selects to do so. As rectory to the ﬁle or folder. However using this proa result, Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, as well as Ser- cess of AGLP/AGDLP/AGUDLP allows a small numvice Pack 1 for Windows Server 2003, were installed by ber of static permissions to be applied and allows for easy
users more quickly than it otherwise might have been.[60] changes to the account groups without reapplying the ﬁle
permissions on the ﬁles and folders.
While the Windows 9x series oﬀered the option of having
proﬁles for multiple users, they had no concept of access
privileges, and did not allow concurrent access; and so 5.2 Windows Defender
were not true multi-user operating systems. In addition,
they implemented only partial memory protection. They On January 6, 2005, Microsoft released a Beta version
were accordingly widely criticised for lack of security.
of Microsoft AntiSpyware, based upon the previously reThe Windows NT series of operating systems, by con- leased Giant AntiSpyware. On February 14, 2006, Mi-
8
7 SEE ALSO
crosoft AntiSpyware became Windows Defender with
the release of Beta 2. Windows Defender is a freeware
program designed to protect against spyware and other
unwanted software. Windows XP and Windows Server
2003 users who have genuine copies of Microsoft Windows can freely download the program from Microsoft’s
web site, and Windows Defender ships as part of Windows Vista and 7.[63] In Windows 8, Windows Defender
and Microsoft Security Essentials have been combined
into a single program, named Windows Defender. It is
based on Microsoft Security Essentials, borrowing its features and user interface. Although it is enabled by default,
it can be turned oﬀ to use another anti-virus solution.[64]
Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool and the optional Microsoft Safety Scanner are two other free security products oﬀered by Microsoft.
5.3
Third-party analysis
In an article based on a report by Symantec,[65] internetnews.com has described Microsoft Windows as having
the “fewest number of patches and the shortest average
patch development time of the ﬁve operating systems it
monitored in the last six months of 2006.”[66]
A study conducted by Kevin Mitnick and marketing communications ﬁrm Avantgarde in 2004 found that an unprotected and unpatched Windows XP system with Service Pack 1 lasted only 4 minutes on the Internet before
it was compromised, and an unprotected and also unpatched Windows Server 2003 system was compromised
after being connected to the internet for 8 hours.[67] This
study does not apply to Windows XP systems running
the Service Pack 2 update (released in late 2004), which
vastly improved the security of Windows XP. The computer that was running Windows XP Service Pack 2 was
not compromised. The AOL National Cyber Security Alliance Online Safety Study of October 2004 determined
that 80% of Windows users were infected by at least one
spyware/adware product. Much documentation is available describing how to increase the security of Microsoft
Windows products. Typical suggestions include deploying Microsoft Windows behind a hardware or software
ﬁrewall, running anti-virus and anti-spyware software,
and installing patches as they become available through
Windows Update.[68]
6
the Windows API, allowing one to run many Windows applications on x86-based platforms, including UNIX, Linux and OS X. Wine developers refer
to it as a “compatibility layer”[69] and use Windowsstyle APIs to emulate Windows environment.
• CrossOver – a Wine package with licensed
fonts. Its developers are regular contributors
to Wine, and focus on Wine running oﬃcially
supported applications.
• Cedega – proprietary fork of Wine by
TransGaming Technologies, designed specifically for running Microsoft Windows games
on Linux. A version of Cedega known as
Cider allows Windows games to run on OS
X. Since Wine was licensed under the LGPL,
Cedega has been unable to port the improvements made to Wine to their proprietary codebase. Cedega ceased its service in February
2011.
• Darwine – a port of Wine for OS X and
Darwin.
Operates by running Wine on
QEMU.
• Linux Uniﬁed Kernel – A set of patches to
the Linux kernel allowing ﬁrst-class Windows
executable ﬁles in Linux (using Wine DLLs)
to use Windows drivers and be faster than interpreted Wine.
• ReactOS – an open-source OS intended to run the
same software as Windows, originally designed to
simulate Windows NT 4.0, now aiming at Windows
7 compatibility. It has been in the development stage
since 1996.
• Linspire – formerly LindowsOS, a commercial
Linux distribution initially created with the goal
of running major Windows software. Changed its
name to Linspire after Microsoft v. Lindows. Discontinued in favor of Xandros Desktop.
• Freedows OS – an open-source attempt at creating a Windows clone for x86 platforms, intended to
be released under the GNU General Public License.
Started in 1996 by Reece K. Sellin, the project was
never completed, getting only to the stage of design
discussions which featured a number of novel concepts until it was suspended in 2002.[70][71][72]
Alternative implementations
Owing to the operating system’s popularity, a number
of applications have been released that aim to provide
compatibility with Windows applications, either as a
compatibility layer for another operating system, or as a
standalone system that can run software written for Windows out of the box. These include:
• Wine – a free and open-source implementation of
7 See also
• Architecture of Windows NT
• Wintel
• De facto standard
• Dominant design
9
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[47] “Gartner Says Sales of Tablets Will Represent Less Than
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[62] Kenny Kerr (September 29, 2006). “Windows Vista for
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Text
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Lord British, Jimthing, Rsantmann, Rhesusmonkeyboy, Oxymoron83, Faradayplank, Dragonhelmuk, Jdaloner, Lightmouse, Iain99, Techman224, Dimre01, SimonTrew, Ceeon, Eggsacute, BenoniBot, Aqair, Qxl32, Whiteford8, Mr White, David1409, Silvergoat, Bimmerosx,
Gustyfalcon, Illegal Operation, BrianGo28, Markie2, Ageha Winds, Dust Filter, Skiwi, Treekids, TubularWorld, Jkonline, MikeZuniga, Llalala, Escape Orbit, Jordan015, Cvinoth, ImageRemovalBot, WikipedianMarlith, Faithlessthewonderboy, Zer0431, Felipe Aira,
Deepen03, Dinjired, Martarius, Sfan00 IMG, Elassint, ClueBot, LAX, Moonridersaregay, Spencerperry, Vincent.premysler, Neelchauhan,
Patrolman89, Slashuer, Cp111, Frmorrison, Mild Bill Hiccup, Aria1561, Lantay77, Swabjob, Timberframe, Mastershake86, McLovin34,
Jesus5555, Methanegas, Jesus764, September 11 terrorist, LonelyBeacon, Wlklpedla is meant to be vanda1ized, The Disco Times, Hbomb
phd mom, Trivialist, XrXeJoeXaXpXeXr, ChandlerMapBot, Badwolf2212, Chmpoure, Jesuss, DragonBot, Petaluma Paranormal, Turionaltec, Aaleksanyants, Googlesucks56789, Cgnabod, Hungupbg, Crem23, PixelBot, Mvmarier, CitronManden, Foo1995, Bobwrit, Jotterbot, WalterGR, BlueCaper, Afro Article, IXella007, Jaericho, Shelmac, Bbriggs1, Fiskegalen92, Dj789, Thingg, Andy16666, DaDrumBum, Anthall1991, Piratesmack, Padsquad43, Rasmasyean, BNSF Man, Johnuniq, Ryan t moua, I8189720, Azrael Nightwalker, Akiraotomo, SF007, Ginbot86, DumZiBoT,
, Emmette Hernandez Coleman, Vanished user k3rmwkdmn4tjna3d, Ximian99, Ost316,
WikiRedactor, Twickline, Rreagan007, Darremon, SilvonenBot, Stevenh123, Airplaneman, Kbdankbot, Addbot, Xp54321, Ghettoblaster,
ConCompS, Rincewind32, Alexandra Goncharik, Blubberboy92, Ente75, Jan Hofmann, Tothwolf, Southpark20, Geek45, Nintendog
master 54, Older and ... well older, Rcmouse1010, Nickenzi, Scientus, 03jmgibbens, SoSaysChappy, Buddha24, ILOVELOL32, Favonian, Jasper Deng, Rodeo90, RedXII, Numbo3-bot, Newfraferz87, John Goettle, OlEnglish, Wmplayer, Nicolas Love, Legobot, Luckasbot, Yobot, Bunnyhop11, Falco McCloud, Enigmaaaaa, Neckername, Nallimbot, Binzisimpsons, Kittyhawk2, OregonD00d, Koman90,
AnomieBOT, The Colclough, Jacob Hnri 5, Galoubet, Angeljon121, JackieBot, Djhybrid117, Shadowfyren, Citation bot, Elm-39, Johnclow13, Deanhowell123, ArthurBot, LilHelpa, Arnoldkul, Xqbot, Lprd2007, Injust, Eivindsol, CoolingGibbon, TechBot, Person1936, Jeffwang, Tad Lincoln,
, KrisBogdanov, Tyrol5, Rbuj, S0aasdf2sf, Reallikeunreal, Solphusion, Otter Mii-kun, Loismum, Mark Schierbecker, 1nt2, Cyfraw, BenBen1234, Bo98, Shadowjams, Enco1984, Iggymwangi, Opagecrtr, Jerrysmp, JennKR, FrescoBot, Lordalpha1,
Lonaowna, , Cityscape4, MichealH, 2toy mora, HJ Mitchell, Sae1962, Endofskull, NGSF, Pokyrek, Xxglennxx, DigbyDalton, Simple
Bob, Biker Biker, Dcshank, Gnepets, Unknownperson1234, HRoestBot, Neo The User, Rameshngbot, MJ94, Tinton5, Thetehror, Jose
Concepcion, MastiBot, Tarashav, Xiejunmingsa, Beao, Pcuser42, December21st2012Freak, Gryllida, FoxBot, Mark85296341, Robert
Xia, Evosoho, JoThousand, TobeBot, Train2104, Lotje, Vrenator, Moonwolf14, Aoidh, Mkbashier, Fabsss, Tbhotch, Jesse V., Fry1989,
Supercooljs2, Yehiahassan, Rollins83, DASHBot, Abletonlive05, J36miles, EmausBot, Interframe, WikitanvirBot, Dinhtuydzao, G&CP,
TuneyLoon, Computer boy2, Kkm010, Kiralexis, Bollyjeﬀ, W1 m2, JuanC08, Blackcap95, Westley Turner, Bryce Carmony, Ichthyoid,
Alshaheen15, Dog1818, Bilbo571, Bothary, MADCastro2012, Demiurge1000, Alex Neman, TyA, JustPlaneEditing, Tomy9510, EndlessCoﬀee54, L Kensington, Gabrielpokemon, Quoladdie, TheChampionMan1234, Puﬃn, MainFrame, Colejohnson66, ClamDip, Dylan
Flaherty, Weararedjacket, Bdshort1, Macurry, PoWwOw123, Kenny Strawn, Monothleft, Dorsal Axe, Steezly, Jordanyoung17, DASHBotAV, Karlo2002, Mokk123, JohnJamesWIlson, I have wood, Ichangefacts, Dinnerface, Jekyllhide, Davey2010, Kypr8, Mrleewilliams,
Nhellviktor, Matthiaspaul, Pizza1016, David O. Johnson, Loginnigol, YannickFran, Esebi95, PoqVaUSA, Sherylanne, Gavin.perch, Miros
0571, Davidvkimball, Mawcowboybillsbrick7, Wikidexel2, Doorknob747, BG19bot, JoJaEpp, Rdococ, Puramyun31, Cosmicdense, TheGeneralUser, Gagetony8, Midnight Green, Compfreak7, Dipankan001, Cadiomals, Rgbc2000, VirusKA, Sumesh Dugar, Unixman83,
Matt99clancy, NotinREALITY, Kelton2, Kyonzuken, RyanDolan123, Wsoder, Shirudo, Pikachu Bros., Phoenixlogan123, Gabe290,
Kushared, Heroman1234, Pai Walisongo, Sciencegeek10188, Shwangtianyuan, KumardipSarkar, Imscare, Krystaleen, Otisfrog, MrTechNews123, Boogie314, JYBot, Prjrv787, Dexbot, Rezonansowy, Dissident93, Codename Lisa, Justashuman960, Rolandhelper, Badpiggy,
Nozomimous, Sri555666, Wiki nol ege, Gacelperﬁnian, PhelperRF,
1 , Kevin12xd, NightShadow23, AwesomeSaucer9, Liudant, HPD, Jdanielcampos, Cmckain14, Vanished user lalsdi45ijneﬁ4, VanishedUser sdu9aya9fs232, RyDroid, Dimeji.97, Editor605,
Ipad135, George Parastatidis, Kuyi123w, Comp.arch, Techie007, Ï¿½, Frenzie23, Timdog13, Angelgreat, Japanese Rail Fan, WinDev2014,
Nickid12, Snowbooks423, Qwertyuiop9ew9ew9ee, Thatkitten, Ejrusselllim123, Hum1969, Lbj90, ZackDickens12, Qwertyxp2000, LR
Guanzon, Snowbooks1419, PremiumBananas, Some Gadget Geek, TheTVGuy66 and Anonymous: 1016
10.2
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• File:Commons-logo.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original
artist: ?
• File:Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/48/Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg License: Cc-by-
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• File:M_box.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/M_box.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own
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• File:Wikiversity-logo-Snorky.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Wikiversity-logo-en.svg License: CC
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• File:Windows1.0.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4e/Windows1.0.png License: ? Contributors: Screenshot taken
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• File:WindowsCE7.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/bc/WindowsCE7.png License: ? Contributors: Microsoft
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• File:Windows_Updated_Family_Tree.png Source:
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Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg' class='image'><img alt='Windows 8 logo and wordmark.svg' src='//upload.wikimedia.org/
wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg/131px-Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png' width='131'
height='25'
srcset='//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg/199px-Windows_
8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg/
261px-Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png 2x' data-ﬁle-width='459' data-ﬁle-height='88' /></a>
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• File:Windows_logo_and_watermark_-_2012.svg Source:
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<a href='//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg' class='image'><img alt='Windows 8 logo and
wordmark.svg'
src='//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg/131px-Windows_
8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png' width='131' height='25' srcset='//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Windows_8_
logo_and_wordmark.svg/199px-Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/
fe/Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg/261px-Windows_8_logo_and_wordmark.svg.png 2x' data-ﬁle-width='459' data-ﬁle-height='88'
/></a>
Original artist: File:Windows 8 logo and wordmark.svg: Multiple editors; see image description page
10.3
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