In-Depth with the Windows 8 Consumer Preview

When it released the Consumer Preview, Microsoft published a supplemental PDF highlighting some of Windows 8's potential benefits for enterprises, a demographic whose importance to Microsoft's business and historic reluctance to upgrade make it an important but tricky group to target. Many of the items in the PDF were either features introduced in Windows 7 (like the DirectAccess software), things that we've already covered (Metro, IE10), and things that pertain more to Windows Server 8 (BranchCache, AppLocker), but there were a couple of interesting new features I wanted to take a look at.

Windows To Go

This new features allows a copy of Windows to be installed to an external USB drive, but its functionality is somewhat limited—Microsoft intends it to be used in “alternate workplace scenarios” where a copy of Windows installed to a computer’s hard drive wouldn’t be appropriate, such as for a temporary worker or an employee who roams between multiple machines. As such, the software has some limitations compared to a locally-installed copy of Windows.

• First, for security purposes, access to the computer’s internal drives is disabled when booted into Windows To Go.
• Hibernation and Sleep are disabled by default to prevent data corruption, though they can be re-enabled from the Control Panel.
• While BitLocker can be used to encrypt a Windows To Go drive, it will require a password, and won’t be able to take advantage of any installed TPMs.
• The Windows Recovery Environment isn’t available.
• Windows 8’s “refresh and reset” functionality isn’t available.

Assuming none of these limitations dim your enthusiasm for the feature, a Windows To Go drive can be created by the Portable Workspace Creator included in Windows 8. Once created, the drive can easily be moved from computer to computer—at first boot on a new system, Windows will scan the computer’s hardware and install drivers as it does at first install. The drive can then be moved from computer to computer quickly and easily.

We don’t know anything about the Windows 8’s licensing situation yet, but given this feature’s enterprise-centric nature, I’d expect it to be included only in the higher-end product tiers—if Windows 8 product editions are similar to Windows 7 editions, I’d say this would be one restricted to the Ultimate/Enterprise SKUs.

The Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK)

The Windows ADK is Microsoft’s suite of Windows 8 deployment tools, and it takes the place of the old Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) and Windows OEM Preinstallation Kit (OPK). These tools are typically used in conjunction with Windows Server roles like Windows Deployment Services to create and deploy customized OS images to large numbers of PCs, but savvy home users who can wrap their heads around the tools can also use them to create customized install and diagnostic media—for the purposes of this review, I won’t get very far into what these tools do or how to use them, but if there's sufficient interest I would definitely consider writing up a guide for novice-to-intermediate users once we get to the RTM version of Windows 8.

The software, which can be downloaded for free from Microsoft, requires .NET Framework version 4.0 and can be installed on computers running Windows 8, 7, Vista, or any of their corresponding server versions.

The Business Perspective

Having worked in a few IT shops, I'd like to think that I have a modicum of insight into how they think. Let’s look at Windows 8 from the perspective of a business: many of them skipped deploying Windows Vista entirely, which means that many of them have replaced, are replacing, or will soon replace the decade-old Windows XP on their systems with the well-regarded Windows 7 before XP’s security patches and support dries up in 2014. An operating system rollout like this requires a lot of effort, both on the technical side (testing application compatibility, replacing or upgrading equipment) and the “people” side (convincing management of the benefits of upgrading and the pitfalls of failing to, soothing and possibly retraining nervous users). It’s a process that makes IT managers skittish, and this is exacerbated by the long period of stability provided by XP’s long shelf life.

When comparing Windows 7 to Windows XP, the benefits were (are) numerous and fairly obvious: a newer, more secure operating system with plenty of new features to please both users and system administrators. A more aesthetically pleasing OS that is more modern under the hood, but is sufficiently similar to XP in look and feel that most users won’t need a substantial degree of retraining (not like the jump from, say, Office 2003 to Office 2007). When comparing Windows 8 to Windows 7, you do see some underlying technical benefits, but the gap is not nearly as wide, and the risks associated with moving to the brand-new interface will scare people. Add to this the fact that Windows 7 will be receiving security patches until well after the release of Windows 9 (or even Windows 10, assuming Microsoft sticks to both its three-year development cycle and its 2020 end-date for Windows 7 extended support), and I think we'll be seeing quite a few businesses sit this one out.

Now, none of this is to say that this is the best or correct way to evaluate Windows 8 in your business, but it’s certainly representative of the way that many IT managers and administrators think, and a lot of them are going to see sticking with Windows 7 on their desktops and laptops as a way to stay reasonably current while not shocking their users with a brand-new interface—it offers most of the technological benefits without any of the potential user-facing headaches.