Windows 12 will be a different, modular monster with faster updates, AI integrations,...

nanoguy

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Rumor mill: Windows 12 is all but confirmed at this point, with several hints about what we can expect from the next major Microsoft release. One possibility is a faster update cadence than Windows 11. A more modular OS with components that will live on several different partitions is also rumored. New capabilities could also make the operating system easier to manage on lower-end devices, while offering users the full spectrum of app compatibility with seamless updates.

Microsoft has already spent years trying to modernize the Windows platform, including an attempt to build a completely separate version (Windows 10X) for users that didn't need all the legacy baggage that has accumulated in Windows over the years. When the world transitioned to hybrid work and study, the company decided to simply scrap the project and bake those ideas into Windows while removing what it considered to be superfluous apps and features.

The most recent attempt before Windows 11 was something called "Windows Core OS." The idea was to build a stripped-down, lightweight OS that would serve as the base for a modular Windows that could then be packaged with the exact features needed for the target device form factor, be it tablets, laptops, or desktop PCs.

That concept presented a lot of technical challenges, so it's no surprise that Microsoft has instead opted for a more gradual approach that we see embodied in Windows 11. Still, Windows Central's Zac Bowden reports the Redmond giant is building the successor to Windows 11 – known as Windows 12 for now, codenamed Hudson Valley – with many of the principles of Core OS in mind, all part of a project dubbed "CorePC."

Where Windows 11 mostly brought changes to the user interface and out-of-the-box experience, Windows 12 will supposedly be separated into "states" that live on different partitions on the storage drive. This will reportedly make managing and updating Windows easier for Microsoft and a less frightening experience for Windows users.

One implication of the different OS architecture is that it will be slightly easier to keep secure since system files will be separated from user files and third-party apps. At the same time, updating one part of the OS will be faster and likely won't always require a system restart to complete. For devices used in education, it may become easier to wipe them in a similar way to the "powerwash" feature found on Chromebooks.

This approach will also allow Microsoft to lower the footprint of Windows for devices that would be slow and unresponsive when running "full-fat" Windows. Bowden cites internal sources that claim a version of Windows 12 for education devices that only runs Office, Edge, Android apps, and web apps will weigh 60 to 75 percent less in terms of storage requirements when compared to Windows 11 SE.

For devices that require compatibility with legacy apps, Windows 12 will reportedly have a compatibility layer dubbed "Neon" to help ease users into transitioning to the new OS. Interestingly, there are also rumors of a version of CorePC/Windows 12 that will be devoid of legacy features and optimized for upcoming silicon from Intel, AMD, Nvidia, and Qualcomm, with a huge focus on AI-based features that sound a lot like a supercharged Clippy following you around the OS with contextual suggestions.

The CorePC project is still in its infancy at this point, so a lot could change before Microsoft decides to ship it to users. The plan is to debut the concept with Windows 12 sometime in 2024, but that may well be delayed if the company faces any major roadblocks along the way.

In the meantime, Microsoft has already increased the feature release cadence for Windows 11 so it will now be able to deliver them in the form of "monthly quality updates" as opposed to bundling them together as part of annual updates. We saw the first such update earlier this month, and it won't be long before the next one drops as the company is scrambling to add more AI-powered features and integrations to the OS and apps like Teams, Edge, and the Microsoft 365 suite.

Masthead credit: Johny Vino

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"A more modular OS with components that will live on several different partitions is also rumored"

What the ???? Because up till now, Windows XYZ is not bad enough grabbing a chunk of whatever drive one forgot to disconnect while installing Windows!!

Now Windows 12 wants more partitions??

Hell no!!
 
Oh great, now windows will want multiple partitions to screw up and corrupt with random updates. Just great.

I can't wait to see how MS royally screws this up. Maybe the different modules will override one another causing crashes? Or maybe the AI will Autoban my windows account and forward all my documents to the FBI if I disagree with the government or say a naughty in Minecraft? Oh, maybe ms can find a way to force you to use edge to access anything within windows so you can't even see your own filesystem anymore!
 
<facepalm> Multiple partitions, frequent updates, AI driven behavior, more telemetry/less privacy, and reduced Microsoft QA headcount… what could possibly go wrong? <facepalm/>

<rant>
Also, while I get that the software development is being done in “Agile” sprints, I truly just want a stable product that isn’t being tweaked (and broken) constantly. Especially when said product is my operating system.
<rant/>
 
Isn't Windows 11 still pretty early in it's life?

Yeah, but it was DOA because its nothing but a GUI skin for Windows 10. And not a very good one.

So what I'm hearing from all this is that Mcirosoft really, really wants to be Apple. Well, we knew that. The difference is that they may have finally found the right way to go about it. The universal UWP apps thing was never going to fly - enough has been written about that boondoggle. A Windows that actually adapts to your hardware on the fly? Well, that's a different story. I've owned a few Surface devices and always sent them back because the OS doesn't have a true touch mode. Sorry, but it absolutely doesn't...there are almost no programs that make even a token attempt at touch themselves and there is no touch mode in Windows 10 at all, or if there is, its incredbily well hidden and I can find a word about it anywhere. And I'm not talking about using a stylus, which is only good for drawing. The thing is, the iPad doesn't really do any better of a job. If anything its worse than Windows on a touchscreen because of controls being put in dumb places (a tiny 3-dot menu at the top-middle of the screen, etc). The crazy gestures are also annoying..give me a taskbar and start button any day. So there is massive room for improvement when it comes to the desktop and palmtop OS's of tomorrow no matter who makes them.
 
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Yeah, but it was DOA because its nothing but a GUI skin for Windows 10. And not a very good one.
Crybabies don't like change. I finally switched to windows 11 after hearing everyone piss and whine about how terrible it is 2 months ago. Well I sure as hell like it more than windows 10. Once I moved the start button to the left I was golden. I also feel like it performs better. I can actually switch from a game to desktop without my system feeling like it popped a turd in it's shorts now which never happened with windows 10. I honestly thought I wasn't going to like it so I kept my windows 10 partition but I'm deleting it to make more space for games.

Plus! I can hit the start button and see all the programs I want to actually run not a list of crap I don't care about.
 
Crybabies don't like change. I finally switched to windows 11 after hearing everyone piss and whine about how terrible it is 2 months ago. Well I sure as hell like it more than windows 10. Once I moved the start button to the left I was golden. I also feel like it performs better. I can actually switch from a game to desktop without my system feeling like it popped a turd in it's shorts now which never happened with windows 10. I honestly thought I wasn't going to like it so I kept my windows 10 partition but I'm deleting it to make more space for games.

Plus! I can hit the start button and see all the programs I want to actually run not a list of crap I don't care about.
What kind of clunker are you running on? My previous gaming system is ~7 years old and can tab out instantly. Windows 11 objectively does not perform any better than 10 on the same hardware and you can configure Windows 10 Start to only display what you want.
 
Let's wait before doom and gloom

Some of these things are probably needed -many people going forward don't need this legacy stuff
ways to run Mdos
Ways to run Xp classic

Though not MS I can run flash games if I so choose

Many of people complaining maybe have complained about bloatware.
Windows light has been popular with gamers of old

We have sandbox and VM solutions

I installed some production application - and get you need to install this blah blah blah MS runtime library
 
Modular means pay-per-feature. Oh you want PCI-E 5 support that'll be $50, oh you want DirectStorage that'll be $20, oh you want access to the registry, that'll be $10. This will be like BMW and their feature subscriptions.

The AI is a worry too and how much will this push cloud garbage?
 
Microsoft is trying to "modernize" and abandon the "legacy" Win32 application format since Windows 8.x. Thus far, it failed miserably.

Win32 and "legacy" software IS Windows. It's the reason I'm still using Windows to this day. Nobody wants to play with those fancy "modern" apps of yours, Microsoft. Get over it :-D
 
Microsoft is trying to "modernize" and abandon the "legacy" Win32 application format since Windows 8.x. Thus far, it failed miserably.

Win32 and "legacy" software IS Windows. It's the reason I'm still using Windows to this day. Nobody wants to play with those fancy "modern" apps of yours, Microsoft. Get over it :-D
The day MS finally manages to bury win32 is the day windows no longer matters as an OS. Of course, Redmond will likely push that far and only realize how golden that goose was as apple, google, and the like start taking the entire market for themselves.
 
The devil is always in the details, so I have a few largish salt grains reserved. But my first test of the 'modular' claim will be whether it treats my desktop as if it were a laptop. "No MS... I do NOT own a laptop, why do you keep trying to shove a battery profile into my system?"

Now, about that AI....
 
The devil is always in the details, so I have a few largish salt grains reserved. But my first test of the 'modular' claim will be whether it treats my desktop as if it were a laptop. "No MS... I do NOT own a laptop, why do you keep trying to shove a battery profile into my system?"

Now, about that AI....

Actually, you might want a low powered state on a PC too. It can save you if the power is down and you quickly need to save or finish something important before the battery on the UPS is drained :)
 
Oh great, now windows will want multiple partitions to screw up and corrupt with random updates. Just great.

I can't wait to see how MS royally screws this up. Maybe the different modules will override one another causing crashes? Or maybe the AI will Autoban my windows account and forward all my documents to the FBI if I disagree with the government or say a naughty in Minecraft? Oh, maybe ms can find a way to force you to use edge to access anything within windows so you can't even see your own filesystem anymore!

I have 6 ssds in my system .. one for the OS ; one for swap and user temp files and windows temp after remapping ; one for steam+wow+mechwarrior online (game drive) ; one for work ; one where program files and program files x86 lives and finally a scratch drive for temp work im doing. then I have a set of 6tb raided backup drives downstairs backed up by back blaze.

I see no issue with multi-partionining windows
 
Yeah, but it was DOA because its nothing but a GUI skin for Windows 10. And not a very good one.

So what I'm hearing from all this is that Mcirosoft really, really wants to be Apple. Well, we knew that. The difference is that they may have finally found the right way to go about it. The universal UWP apps thing was never going to fly - enough has been written about that boondoggle. A Windows that actually adapts to your hardware on the fly? Well, that's a different story. I've owned a few Surface devices and always sent them back because the OS doesn't have a true touch mode. Sorry, but it absolutely doesn't...there are almost no programs that make even a token attempt at touch themselves and there is no touch mode in Windows 10 at all, or if there is, its incredbily well hidden and I can find a word about it anywhere. And I'm not talking about using a stylus, which is only good for drawing. The thing is, the iPad doesn't really do any better of a job. If anything its worse than Windows on a touchscreen because of controls being put in dumb places (a tiny 3-dot menu at the top-middle of the screen, etc). The crazy gestures are also annoying..give me a taskbar and start button any day. So there is massive room for improvement when it comes to the desktop and palmtop OS's of tomorrow no matter who makes them.
I just bought windows 11 less than a year ago. If 12 comes out anytime soon 11 users should get a free upgrade. If not I'll really take my time on adopting 12.
 
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