RSSWinFS Resurrected for Windows Vista?
By Nate Mook | Published August 29, 2005, 10:46 AM
Microsoft's next-generation WinFS file system has been the subject of much confusion over the past two years, and that apparently hasn't changed - even with Windows Vista Beta 1 out the door. The company is reportedly putting the finishing touches on a WinFS preview release, which will be introduced at next month's Professional Developers Conference.
WinFS, or Windows Future Storage, was originally slated to sit atop NTFS and track metadata for all files on a system to improve organizing, searching and sharing of information. Applications could also store data directly in WinFS, which is based on Microsoft's SQL Server 2005 technology.
Despite all of the initial fanfare at PDC 2003, however, WinFS was shelved last year as Microsoft cut back features to ensure its next version of Windows would launch on schedule. In March, rumors swirled that WinFS would be back-ported to Windows XP, seemingly a reversal of prior plans.
But Microsoft officials downplayed such speculation, telling BetaNews, "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."
Now it appears that WinFS has been given a reprieve, and could make an appearance alongside Windows Vista. WinFS preview code, possibly a first beta release, is expected to be issued to developers at Microsoft's PDC 2005. The company has also scheduled four WinFS-related sessions for the PDC.
Sources are reporting to Microsoft Watch that WinFS is also on track with efforts to back-port the technology to Windows XP. Vista's other fundamentals, Avalon and Indigo, were ported to XP to ensure developers had enough time to test the new APIs prior to launch.
Still, Microsoft remains cagey about its WinFS plans. In March, company officials promised "we are on track to deliver a rich, comprehensive solution for programming and storage," but offered no other details or specifics of where and when.
Developers are betting PDC 2005 will at long last clear the haze around WinFS, with hopes that Microsoft will take a firm stance regarding what features will -- and won't -- make it into Windows Vista when the operating system ships in late 2006.
I haven't researched this "windows FS" much but from the brief description I seen of it - doesnt impress me. Rather than what I had hoped for, a whole new windows "FILE SYSTEM" I see a layer on top of ancient ntfs... and to boot it sounds suspiciously simular to one aspect of the "Journaled File System" used by linux and OS/2 warp, that aspect being the "metadata for all files on a system to improve organizing, searching and sharing of information." sounds somewhat close to one aspect of the jourtnaled file system that logs file data to ensure easier grepping and post crash recovery. I may be way off on this but thats what it seems. why cant microsoft do something REALLY innovative and come up with something totally brand new all on their own rather than copying whats already out there or buying technology off others and re-coding it slightly to suit their needs?
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|beta is now floating around, id rather not try any "beta 1" releases that work with my file system.
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|Ouch.
I see a definate use for VMware there.
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|This means nothing. There's nothing in the article that points to WinFS shipping as part of Windows Vista. Just speculation and rumor mongering.
Personally, I could wait to see WinFS. Hell, I could wait to see Vista, for that matter.
As for malware... Vista will be just as highly targeted as XP.
The only systems safe from malware are those never turned on. Regardless of the OS installed.
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|"The only systems safe from malware are those never turned on."
Or the ones with no Internet or network connection...
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|Nah... floppy drives are real killers.
:P
1.) Insert disk (with n boot-sector virii)
2.) watch cd-rom drive disappear.
3.) much hair-pulling and mbr formatting.
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|I would rather wait and have it stable as well as secure. You know the more stuff they add to windows, the more exploits they create for hackers. Microsoft need to be more pro-active then re-active in regards to having a secure product that is immune to viruses, worms, tojans, adware, spyware and hijacking.
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|Even if it is as perfect as you can make it, we people are still flawed enough to create flawed products as a result of it. It's just the way of nature.
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|Lets hope and pray that the feature will ship with Vista, and that another one wont be dropped.
Because arent we all getting tired of XP?
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|Actually I'm just now beginning to like XP. To be honest, I rather wait for WinFS and have it be stable.
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|Ditto. Even though Longhorn/Vista/(whatever it'll be called next) is taking some time to get right, I still can't get away from the feeling that it's going to arrive prematurely and unfinished. Market constraints are driving a new OS release but I too would prefer MS to take it's time - no matter how long it takes - and get a good finished product, not one that will require a service pack a year after it's released.
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|LOL, well even if it IS 100% perfect, expect Vista SP1 withen a year, because hackers/bored people/whomever will find a way to infect the OS without user intervention very quickly. I also would much rather the OS be perfect too, but no matter how long it takes I know it will not. Why? Because so many versions of so many software packages in so many languages running in so many software and hardware configurations--literally trillions of possible situations that Microsoft cannot predict users trying to use. Also:
Let's say a user complains that after upgrading from Windows XP to Windows Vista, Doom 3 has texture corruption. Since nothing else has changed except that he upgraded, of course it must be a bug in Windows Vista. What he doesn't know is that the issue is caused by using Winzip 8.1 SR-1 and Acrobat reader 7.02 while having the firewall enabled and ActiveX disabled, you might have texture corruption running Doom 3 at 1024X768 with 2x AA if Vista was upgraded from Windows XP Pro SP1a. I know this particular example is BS but believe me many people yell at Microsoft for problems like this because ALL THE USER KNOWS IS THAT WINDOWS VISTA BREAKS THEIR DOOM 3 GAME.
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|As a user of virtually every OS to come out since Win 3.1, I find it impossible to believe that people would use "Stable" and "WinFS" (or XP for that matter) in the same sentence.
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|We are not quite sure if this vista will not requre service pack 3 as it is going... let's wait and see.
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