Whistler Comes Together

The next major release of Windows 2000, code-named Whistler, promises to be a significant upgrade for Windows clients and servers. Although Whistler will bring many important changes on the server side, it's particularly important on the client side because it marks the first release in which Microsoft converges the Win2K, Windows NT, and Windows 9x code bases.

Microsoft plans to release two client versions of Whistler: Windows XP Home Edition and Windows XP Professional Edition. Home Edition will upgrade the Win9x line. Professional Edition, a superset of Home Edition, will upgrade Win2K Professional and NT Workstation 4.0. The server side will have Server, Advanced Server, Datacenter Server, and Embedded versions. The Server version will replace Win2K Server and NT Server 4.0. The Advanced Server version will replace Win2K Advanced Server, and the Datacenter Server version will replace Win2K Datacenter Server and NT Server, Enterprise Edition (NTS/E). Whistler Embedded will update NT 4.0 Embedded. Figure 1, page 28, summarizes the Whistler upgrade path.

The initial Whistler release will be 32-bit, but Microsoft plans a 64-bit release—which will run on Intel's upcoming Itanium chip—for all Whistler editions except Home Edition. (For information about Itanium, see "Intel and AMD Power Up 64-Bit Processors," December 2000.) Microsoft has said that it will release the Embedded version of Whistler within 90 days of the initial release date for devices such as Windows-based terminals, point-of-sale kiosks, and network routers.

Let's examine the most significant changes slated for the client and server sides of Whistler. All the features I mention are based on the Whistler beta, so you can expect Microsoft to introduce additional changes in functionality and in the interface before the final release to manufacturing (RTM). I performed all my testing on a 400MHz single-CPU system with 320MB of RAM.

Take a Walk on the Client Side
As you might expect, incorporating the functionality of the Win2K, NT, and Win9x code bases has resulted in significant changes to the Windows client side. But make no mistake: Whistler descends from the Win2K and NT code path and marks the end of the Win9x code base.

The Whistler client versions will support upgrades from Win2K Pro, NT Workstation 4.0, Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me), Windows 98 Second Edition (Win98SE), and Win98. The primary difference between Home Edition and Professional Edition is that Professional Edition adds many features designed for business users. For example, Professional Edition supports a 64-bit version, enterprise-oriented management features such as Group Policy and IntelliMirror, and high-end workstation features such as dual CPUs.

Although Microsoft hasn't finalized the minimum system requirements for the Whistler client, Whistler's affinity to Win2K means you should expect Whistler's requirements to be much more like Win2K Pro's minimum requirements than Win9x's. Table 1 lists Microsoft's minimum and recommended system requirements for the Whistler client products.

More NT Equals More Dependability
Microsoft's goal for Whistler is that it will be the most dependable version of Windows ever. Certainly, Win9x users who migrate will get the benefits of the more stable NT code base: Microsoft has replaced all the old 16-bit DOS underpinnings with the considerably more reliable 32-bit NT code base. In addition, Whistler shares Win2K's and NT's ability to secure the system with user IDs and passwords.

Whistler also extends Win2K's system reliability by letting you roll back to the previous system state if installing a new device driver causes the system to become unbootable. However, Whistler's improved reliability comes at the cost of being able to run some legacy 16-bit DOS and Windows applications, as I explain later.

The Whistler UI
The Whistler UI is dramatically different from the Win2K UI. Many system folders sport a new Web-like look. Figure 2 shows the Category View of Whistler's Control Panel. I found the Category View to be basically the same as the standard Active Desktop. If you don't care for the Category View, you can click the link in the left portion of the folder window to go to the Classic View.

A desktop change that I'm not fond of is the new Notification Area improvements, which work essentially like Win2K's Personalized Menus for items in the taskbar. When you enable this option, taskbar icons for inactive tasks disappear. However, a closely related feature that lets you group together similar items is a good way to reduce the number of items on the taskbar. This option combines like tasks on one taskbar that, when you click it, displays a pop-up menu of the tasks. You use the Start menu's Properties page to control both of these features.

Microsoft has substantially revised Whistler's Help system. All the Help is HTML-based. As Figure 3 shows, a hyperlink navigation pane is on the left-hand side of the Help window, and Help text is in the right-hand pane. The new Help is easier to navigate and work with than Win2K's online Help is. Bear in mind that this version of Whistler is still in beta, so changes to the UI are likely.

Improved Device Support and Application Compatibility
Whistler's device support will be substantially better than Win2K's. For the first time, vendors won't need to support different code bases for Win2K, NT, and Win9x. Consequently, Whistler will enjoy the widespread device support that Win9x has always had.

Whistler will also provide better application compatibility than Win2K does. According to Microsoft, more than 300 Win9x applications that don't run on Win2K will run on Whistler. Improved application compatibility is enabled by a feature called Application Compatibility, which uses a database of applications, problems, and fixes to customize the attributes of each Win9x program's execution environment in Whistler. The Auto Update feature lets you dynamically download updates to the Application Compatibility database from the Microsoft Web site. To test Application Compatibility, I dusted off old versions of Microsoft Word 5.0 and Microsoft Excel 5.0 and a couple of DOS-based programs and games that I had lying around. I ran the applications under Whistler, and all the applications worked. I did manage to freeze up a couple of DOS games when I interrupted them by switching to the desktop and then back to the application.

Despite Whistler's improved compatibility, don't expect all old DOS-based programs to run on the new OS version. DOS is gone for good, and Whistler's NT code base won't run many older programs that rely on direct hardware access. This limitation will inconvenience few business users because most business applications have had native Win32 versions for years, and these programs will work just fine under Whistler. However, home users who never upgrade their software might face problems upgrading to Whistler.

In addition to improved legacy-application support, Whistler includes compatibility scripts that make several current office applications easier to use with Whistler Terminal Services. Terminal Server Application Compatibility scripts include scripts for Corel's WordPerfect Office 8.0 and WordPerfect Office 7.0, Lotus SmartSuite 9.0 and SmartSuite 97, and Microsoft Office 97 and Office 95.

Improved Deployment
Whistler Group Policy improvements let you fully install an application at logon rather than only on demand, as with Win2K. Although this feature can slow a user's first logon after installing an application, it also helps ensure that applications are installed properly.

Unattended-installation enhancements let you merge information in the answer file with existing system data. As a result, you can ensure that required configuration parameters are correct before you install new systems into the domain. For example, an answer file can provide all required network configuration settings and direct the Windows installation process to apply them during installation. Similarly, an unattended installation can change power-management settings so that the end user doesn't need to manually customize the default power settings. The Home and Professional versions also include a new User State Management Tool (USMT) that lets you record and later restore all desktop settings, including wallpaper, desktop scheme, and the proxy server and email server configuration values.

Other interesting client-side features of Whistler are support for fast boot, CD-Recordable (CD-R) and CD-Rewritable (CD-RW) burning, ClearType text display, and fast user-context switching. Fast boot lets the system boot up more quickly than Win2K does. On my test system, I measured the time a boot took from selecting the OS to displaying the desktop and found that Whistler booted in less than a quarter of the time that a similar Win2K AS configuration required.

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