Future versions of windows to be more UNIX-y

ZDNet UK article [link|http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2133899,00.html|here.]

I got the following from the [link|http://sage.org/|SAGE] email list:

####### Microsoft: Future versions of Windows to be more UNIX-y

Apropos of the recent release of Windows Server 2003, ZDNet UK
reporter Rupert Goodwins interviews Microsoft VP Rob Short about how
the Windows architecture is evolving -- in some cases to be more like
UNIX.

It's not a formal product announcement, but Short confirms that there
will eventually be a command line-only version of Windows:

"We're looking longer term to see what can be done, looking at
the layers and what's available at each layer and how do we make
it much closer to the thing the Linux guys have -- having only
the pieces you want running. That's something Linux has that's
ahead of us, but we're looking at it."

Microsoft is also working to improve the ability to patch servers
without a reboot:

"That's an area where the Unix guys are ahead of us, because of
the way they do redirection -- they can patch a file and then
change the symbolic link. That's an area where we've got a
problem, and we'll fix it in the near future when possible."

Short also discusses improvements to security and file system
performance. All of the security news, however, may not be positive.
In Windows Server 2003, some components of the IIS web server have
been moved into the kernel in order to increase performance. The
drawback to such a move, of course, is that "We have a lot of parsing
in there, and that opens you up to buffer overruns and attacks,"
although he claims that the code has been thoroughly scrutinized for
flaws.

A CLI-only version of Windows? I can't see that happening.

Ah, and moving 'components of the IIS web server' into the kernel? What the HELL are they smoking up there in Redmond-land? I, for one, HOPE they do this.

-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----\nVersion: 3.12+\nGAT d+ s+:++ a C++++ UBHLO++++ P+ L+++ E---/E---- W+++ N+ o--\nK--- w--- O+ M+ V-- PS-- PE Y+ PGP++ t+ 5++ X+ R tv+ b+++ DI+++\nD++ Q2+++ Q3A+++ UT+++ UT2K3+++ G e* h--- r+++ z+++*\n------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------

--\n-------------------------------------------------------------------\n* Jack Troughton jake at consultron.ca *\n* [link|http://consultron.ca|http://consultron.ca] [link|irc://irc.ecomstation.ca|irc://irc.ecomstation.ca] *\n* Kingston Ontario Canada [link|news://news.consultron.ca|news://news.consultron.ca] *\n-------------------------------------------------------------------

but it certainly is a hard sell for many people. However, if you have a custom app that you want to stick on a box and have it sit in a corner and just work, OS/2 still bears consideration; while it was considered fat "back in the day", nowadays it qualifies as a lean mean operating machine.

Of course, if you're considering eComStation, I'd also point out [link|http://www.bmtmicro.com/BMTCatalog/os2/ecomstation.html|http://www.bmtmicro..../ecomstation.html] for the US, and [link|http://www.finnsoft.com/html/ecomstation.html|http://www.finnsoft..../ecomstation.html] if you're ordering in Canada, or if you want a preloaded system. Since you're in the UK, you'd probably want to go to Mensys in the Netherlands: [link|http://shop.mensys.nl/catalogue/mns_ecomstation11.html|http://shop.mensys.n...comstation11.html].

"I'm not dead yet!" ;)

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