Virtualisation means 'end of Windows as we know it'

by admin August 28, 2006 at 3:57 am

Analyst group Gartner believes that virtualisation will allow Microsoft to create a more flexible operating system platform in the future based around modularity.

The claim, which has been rejected by Microsoft, stems from the argument that the current Windows architecture is unsustainable for Microsoft and its customers.

In a research note released last week, Vista Will Be the Last Major Windows Release as We Know It, the analyst group claims that the trend of building ever more functionality into Windows may be reversed thanks to the virtualisation technology which will soon be integrated into the operating system.

Microsoft customers need the way Windows is developed and released to change, as deploying the gargantuan operating system is too costly and complex at present. In turn, the vendor needs to accelerate the rate at which it releases and updates Windows to satisfy users who have signed up to its bulk-buy automated upgrade Software Assurance (SA) programme.

The software giant has made some attempts to slim down the OS by rebuilding Windows into a stack of more than 50 discrete layers, says Gartner. This strategy has gone some way to rationalising the complexity of the operating system but it’s not enough, the analyst group warns.

Full article: ZDNet Australia