Microsoft won't ship WinFS with Longhorn

Carol Sliwa   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Operating Systems Stories  

Bringing Order and Security to your Mobile Workforce: Corporate Mobility Policy and Device Management Take Control! Managing Your Application Library The Advantages of Migrating to Windows Vista® and Office 2007 Simultaneously The Trend from Unix to Linux in SAP Data Centers Get Ready for Windows Vista® Best Practices: Safe and Secure Hardware Asset Recovery SaaS Solutions for Remote Systems Management Learn-Fast Guide: Software as a Service is Growing Up Mobility @ the Speed of Business Sign up to receive Operating Systems Resource Alerts

August 27, 2004 (Computerworld) -- Microsoft Corp. today announced a significant change in plans for the next major release of Windows, code-named Longhorn. The new Windows storage subsystem code-named WinFS will not be part of the Longhorn operating system, as had been previously planned.
Microsoft said WinFS will be delivered after the Longhorn release. Greg Sullivan, a lead product manager at Microsoft, said WinFS will follow the Longhorn "client" operating system release but Microsoft doesn't know when it will be complete.
The company said only that WinFS, which provides advanced data organization and management capabilities, will be in beta testing when the Longhorn client is released.
The target date for broad availability of the Longhorn client operating systems is 2006, according to Microsoft. The company said the expected release date for the Longhorn server operating system continues to be 2007, but it provided no information on whether the WinFS storage subsystem will be ready by that time.
"We've heard loud and clear from customers that they want improved productivity, easier deployment, increased reliability and enhanced security, as well as the many innovations we've been working on. We've had to make some trade-offs to deliver the features corporate customers, consumers and OEMs are asking for in a reasonable time frame," said Jim Allchin, group vice president of Microsoft's platforms group, via a prepared statement. "Our long-term vision for the Windows platform remains the same."
Microsoft had laid out key details of its Longhorn vision during its Professional Developers Conference last October in Los Angeles. WinFS was one of three critical elements that company officials said would be part of the Longhorn release. The other two were the graphics subsystem, code-named Avalon, and communication technologies for building advanced Web services, code-named Indigo.
Microsoft said it announced during a meeting today with hundreds of its developer evangelists that the Avalon and Indigo subsystems will be made available for Windows XP and Windows Server in 2006. Avalon and Indigo are part of the new WinFX developer technologies due with Longhorn.
At its Los Angeles conference in October, Microsoft had said that a beta version of Longhorn would be available in the second half of 2004. The beta release was subsequently pushed to the first half of 2005. Sullivan said the beta remains on target for the first half of next year.
Sullivan said WinFS is being developed independently of the client and server operating systems. "We'll deliver it independently so it will then be available to users of Longhorn client and server. Exactly when that happens, we don't know," he said. WinFS could be applied and installed on one of the existing operating systems, he said.

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"There is no doubt that iPhone 2.0.x software is buggier and slower (in contact browsing for instance, not Internet speed)..." Read more... "Cisco and PostPath will finally break Exchange's iron grasp on business e-mail...." Read more... Read more Operating Systems posts or See all Blogs

Cellular operators say they're ready for Gustav Psystar calls Apple a 'monopoly' in antitrust charges Doubt cast on Seinfeld as Windows TV ads near More top stories...

IT workers hit hardest by offshore outsourcing, survey finds Microsoft: No more Windows Live Mail crashes with IE8 Beta 2 Microsoft warns of IE8 lock-in with XP SP3

Telecommuting: 6 questions to ask before you say yes Telework can change office dynamics in ways you hadn't anticipated. Proceed cautiously. Wi-Fi tweaks for speed freaks Got a painfully slow connection or random dead spots? Our tips will help you get the most out of your wireless network. 5 ways to drive your best workers out the door Listen up, managers: Employees don't quit the job; they quit you. Ultraportable laptops: Their rise and possible fall Netbooks, ultraportables, mini-notebooks — whatever you call them, they've been grabbing headlines. Are they here for the long term or just a flash in the pan? Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland Security Apple's iPhone Ask a Premier 100 IT Leader Bill Gates steps down BlackBerry Legal Battle Data Security Breaches Electronic Voting Firefox H-1B Visas HP's Boardroom Scandal Handheld Devices Hurricane Katrina Aftermath Microsoft Legal Issues Microsoft's Vista Open Source RFID Technology SCO's Linux Fight Sarbanes-Oxley Act Spam Voice Over IP Wi-Fi Windows Meta File Vulnerability Windows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class 2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2006 Salary Survey 2007 Best Places to Work in IT 2007 IT Forecast 2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders 40 Years of Computerworld ASPs, Take Two Best Places to Work in IT 2003 Best Places to Work in IT 2004 Best Places to Work in IT 2005 Best Places to Work in IT 2006 Business Intelligence Home Runs Business Intelligence: Smarter BI Business Intelligence: The Future of BI CRM Goes Vertical CRM: Sober CRM Career Planning Guide 2005 Careers: IT Profession 2010 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005 Data Management: Mining for Gems Data Management: Taming Data Chaos Development: Hard-Workin' Web Sites Development: New Tools New Choices Development: The New World of Application Development Development: The Web Services Tsunami Development: Web Services Hurdles Disaster Recovery: Preparing for the Worst E-commerce Grows Up E-mail/Groupware: Big Decisions Faces of Mobile IT Forecast 2006 Global Mobile Hardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple Challenges Hardware: On-Demand Un-Hyped Hardware: The Shape of Things to Come Horizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge Technologies IT Management: Guide to Managing Vendors IT Management: Navigating Global IT IT Management: Recovery Ahead IT Management: The Future of IT IT Management: The Resourceful Project Manager Innovative Technology Awards 2004 Management: Reinventing IT Microsoft in Transition Mobile/Wireless Leaders and Laggards Mobile/Wireless: The Untethered Worker Mobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge Costs Network Management: Taking Control Networking: Turbulence Ahead! Networking: VoIP Goes Mainstream Operating Systems: In the Slow Lane Operating Systems: Linux Goes Global Operating Systems: Should You Nix Unix? Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's Guide Outsourcing: Outsourcing Dangers Premier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in Class Premier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in Class ROI: Do the Math! Salary Survey 2003 Salary Survey 2004 Salary Survey 2005 Security Action Plan Security: Compliance Headaches Security: Proactive Security Security: Risk and Reward Security: Tips From Security Pros Souped-up Security Storage: Battling Complexity Storage: Cheap & Secure Data Stores Storage: Stretching Your Storage Dollars Storage: The Lean Storage Machine Storage: The New Rules of Storage Storage: The Ultimate Backup Guide Supply Chain: Missing Links Supply Chain: RFID Reality Check The Business of Security Web 2.0 Security Wireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone The File Data Management Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone Windows Protection Zone Identity & Security Management Zone See your link here

Energy Logic: Cutting Data Center Energy Costs By 50 Percent or More Energy Logic: Cutting Data Center Energy Costs By 50 Percent or More View this webcast now! Go to the webcast  Linux Rising Get this Computerworld report free (a $195 value) for a limited time, compliments of Novell. Linux is now firmly entrenched in the enterprise. Computerworld's new Executive Bulletin on the open-source operating system will get IT managers up to speed on the latest Linux developments, ranging from its impact on database sales to competition with other operating systems. Download this executive briefing  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Archiving Compliance with Sunbelt Exchange Archiver The Impact of Messaging and Web Threats Advanced Load Balancing: 8 Things You Need to Handle Today's Network Traffic View more whitepapers

• Cellular operators say they're ready for Gustav
• IT workers hit hardest by offshore outsourcing, survey finds
• Psystar calls Apple a 'monopoly' in antitrust charges
• More top stories 

SQL Anywhere Developer Edition Download SQL Anywhere is the industry-leading mobile and embedded database. Designed for database-powered applications that operate in frontline environments without onsite IT support, SQL Anywhere offers enterprise-caliber features in a database that is easily embedded and widely deployed in server, desktop, remote office and mobile applications. Download the free SQL Anywhere Developer Edition

Customer Satisfaction with Email Archiving Systems Osterman Research conducted a primary survey asking organizations about a variety of archiving systems to understand the level of satisfaction that customers of Sunbelt Exchange Archiver (SEA) and other email archiving offerings report on a variety of metrics related to product and vendor performance. Download this white paper now!

Best Places to Work in IT Where can you earn top dollar, get the best benefits, the latest IT and more? Find out in our 14th annual survey.