RSSMicrosoft Uncertain About WinFS for XP
By Nate Mook | Published March 9, 2005, 1:13 PM
Microsoft stopped short of confirming reports that it plans to back-port its next-generation WinFS file system architecture to Windows XP, telling BetaNews it is only evaluating the move while also acknowledging WinFS is still years off.
"We are currently evaluating making the WinFS storage subsystem available on this platform and will make the decision based on what is best for customers," a Microsoft spokesperson told BetaNews.
WinFS was originally slated to sit atop NTFS and track metadata for all files on a system to improve organizing, searching and sharing of information. Longhorn applications could also store data directly in WinFS, which is based on Microsoft's SQL Server technology.
The future of WinFS has been the subject of much confusion after Microsoft announced last August that the technology would not be ready for the next Windows release, known as Longhorn. Redmond instead opted to focus on Longhorn's other fundamentals: the Avalon user interface and Indigo communication subsystems.
In order to give developers the opportunity to become familiar with the technologies prior to Longhorn's arrival, Microsoft announced last year it would make Avalon and Indigo available for Windows XP. The move was also intended to ensure backward compatibility for Longhorn-designed applications.
Furthering the uncertainty surrounding WinFS, Microsoft's director of product management for SQL Server, Tom Rizzo, recently told Microsoft Watch that WinFS would also be back-ported to Windows XP. The news quickly spread and confounded many analysts and developers.
"I can think of no really good reason to port WinFS to Windows XP unless it ships right away, so to bridge to Longhorn," said Jupiter Research senior analyst Joe Wilcox.
But Microsoft confirmed to BetaNews that WinFS is still on the drawing board. "The full version of WinFS will be delivered subsequent to Longhorn and also will ship as a part of Windows in future releases of the operating system," a company spokesperson said.
Whenever it's released, Microsoft officials say the company remains committed to delivering the next-generation file system. "As a revolutionary technology, we want to ensure that we get it right. Feedback from ISVs is helping us to refine WinFS and have validated that we are on track to deliver a rich, comprehensive solution for programming and storage."
Why are we working on a whole new project when one should just fix the GD O/S's that they already have on the market? And no I don't need you to tell me it's because they want to make more money - I new that. But for C(&*%$t sake fix the mess you've already got. Yeah I know let's make a tire... half done...oh I know let's make a sqear... half done... oh let's make a tire... half done... oh let's make a squear. Finish what we start folks... fix the problems, and don't force folks to run out and buy your next mess.
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|If you can scrounge up some older screenshots of XP Beta, a number of the screens had "Windows XP Codename 'Longhorn'" on them. The idea that they're backporting is somewhat misleading, as most of the prototypes of things that are/were to come in Longhorn were built for XP. It's just that with WinFS, Avalon and Indigo they thought they could squeeze out another OS. And they probably could have. However, Novell, IBM and Sun pushing Suse, Steve Jobs reportedly saying three major PC manufacturers have *begged* for OS X, and Google doing who the hell knows what, while all probably minor threats now could really develop into serious threats by the time Longhorn is supposed to ship.
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|Have any clue what they are going to do. They don't even know what thy are going to do...
Why don't you just wait insted of bash? iDMan has a very constructive thought process, need more people with outlooks like yourself.
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|Amazing how many years (and millions of dollars) Microsoft can spend without accomplishing much of anything.
Several years after WinXP, Microsoft can't seem to develop a full version of it's next OS.
What a hapless giant !
The Computer Rodent
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|Does anyone know of anything similar in the unix/linux world?
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|Uh... let's see:
You've got Storage for Linux
http://gnome.org/~seth/storage/
You've got Spotlight for MacOS, which is UNIX at the core.
http://www.apple.com/macosx/tiger/spotlight.html
And you've got Reiser4 on Linux, which has some pretty unbelieveable powers that, while they don't like up with the WinFS specs, make it pretty unique and powerful just the same.
http://namesys.com/
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|Well it has been my experience that if you want to see what Microsoft is going to deliever next year you can buy a Mac today (now a Unix based system). This is a lot of marketing fluff about WinFS, if you want metadeta beyond keywords get a relational database, even Oracle. The cool thing about Apple's Tiger system (due this summer) is that each application can supply its own metadata to the system search engine (SpotLight), exposing only that which is appropriate to be made public. Sounds like Microsoft is once again going to expose a technology with so many security holes you can drive a Mac truck through it.
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|I'm beginning to wonder if they're going to be able to shoot as high as they've predicted for Longhorn. They keep changing up the plan and keep pushing things back. It'll be interesting to see how it finally rolls out.
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|What a dog's dinner.
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|"Whats a dogs dinner"
- an expression basically meaning all mixed up in no special order.
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|Safe to say, XP won't get WinFS, Microsoft will want to move people to the next gen platforms, and not having winFS availble for Longhorn at launchdate, will be a very good reason not to move, as it's one of the better technologies that Longhorn was originally going to get. If MS back port it to XP, that's just another reason to stick on the XP/2003 platforms...
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|I think security should be the top priority for the next version of windows. Im my opinion nothing else is more important, every day a new virus is out.
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|Yea but security doesn't sell millions of copies to your parents who just want to be able to, "Use that damn computer without something being different each time I turn it on." I'm not saying that security isn't a big issue because it is something i myself would like to see addressed...but i dont think that Microsoft is trying to sell the product to me...They are aiming to sell it to my parents
-Chris
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|Security with XP is so bad that it WILL drive new sales. With 1 in 3 internet connected machines infected, and people feeling the pain security will sell new os sales. Infact it will sell it self, as proof look at the sales of spyware, and virus checkers, email worm killers. If MS came out with a new os that solved ALL of these problems, Improved email program. Protected local services by default or rather forced protections. Users would RUN and not walk to buy an upgrade. The key is that it really has to fix these problems. Lines would go around the block if we could have Windows OS's that didnt crash and becom e infected after 15 minutes of being connected to the net in a default configuration. If ms screwed it up, sold the 'Secure Windows' which wasnt then they would loose even more crediablity and drive customers away for sure, most would start to public say and think that MS CAN't produce a secure version, and thus the only solution would be to move away from MS.
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|Are you comparing to Linux? Because if you are you need to get your story straight. Linux, even Enterprise Server has a greater number of patches to update a system based on security. And, no tool is equivalent to Windows Update. Facts based arguements work better than you an arguement based on your passionate dislike for Windows.
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|Are you kidding me? Windows update? RHN's up2date blows windows update away. It's more powerful. It's more flexible. And, the updates don't create hordes of dead hard drive space so that all of the new bugs can be backed out. Talk about getting your facts straight...
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|Gentoo Linux has the Portage system. I will install complete new versions of every system software that is curently installed by one command.
RedHat has the RHN. A simple way to update the system.
SuSe Linux (Novell) may even have an update progam.
Linspire has a update ability as well.
So don't say that Linux dose not have an update that the windows computer user can't use. I see linux as the next thing to take over windows (even though I have been saying that for years now)I think Dell or Gateway will soon make systems with linux installed. They just need the demand.
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|"I think Dell or Gateway will soon make systems with linux installed."
Maybe on servers, but I doubt it. If it ever does happen, it will not be soon. Dell doesn't even want to buy AMD processors and only occasionally say they will consider it so Intel lowers prices.
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|RHN up2date also isn't free...windows update is.
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