The Next Few Years of Windows: Longhorn, BlackComb, and XP Second Edition

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With Microsoft having developed Windows Server 2003, we will be hearing a lot more about three new operating system products: Longhorn, BlackComb, and XP Second Edition. So what should we expect in the coming years? The .NET platform and Web services will continue to dominate future releases for the foreseeable future. As the technology matures, we can look forward to better and simpler modes of integration and greater information sharing.

XP Second Edition

On the desktop and enterprise desktop side, the successor to Windows XP is looming on the immediate horizon. Microsoft's new licensing program, Licensing 6, puts pressure on the company to issue a new enterprise desktop version over the next two years or face the wrath of customers who have been paying ahead for upgrades on an annual basis, under two- or three-year contracts. This means, though, that Microsoft has to come up with the goods, and that is where XP Second Edition comes in. XP Second Edition should be available either late in 2003 or early in 2004, though, historically, such estimates are undependable. The XP operating system was once going to represent the integration of the operating system code used for servers and desktops, but that goal appears to have been shelved once again in favor of getting an improved desktop operating system out in the required time frame. The amount of work required to align desktop and server code bases means that it is unlikely to happen for another few years.

Longhorn and BlackComb

Depending on whom you talk to, Longhorn is either the next major upgrade of the Microsoft server arsenal or it is will be a purely client-side release. The consensus appears to be with the latter option, however. Another area of uncertainty is the time line. Longhorn is scheduled for release around 2005, but it may possibly be delayed until a little later. Longhorn is expected to provide new features for intelligent auto configuration, such as BIOS and firmware, self-healing technology, a more "componentized" architecture, filtertype monitoring services, a new file system, enhanced storage capabilities, new graphics capabilities, and more APIs.

More than likely, then, Longhorn will supercede XP Second Edition as an enterprise desktop system, while the BlackComb release will be later and will focus on an overhaul of the server operating system. BlackComb is slated to encompass a complete revision of the Windows user interface while fully embracing XML Web services. The releases of Longhorn and BlackComb may or may not tie into another project that Microsoft has going, code-named Yukon, an upgrade to SQL Server that appears to be a key component in plans to offer a unified storage architecture foundation. XML and file streams will be introduced as native types for storage designed to improve storage functionality and enhance management.

Over the long term, Microsoft intends to create a federated operating system infrastructure where all operating systems are built on the same basic code with variations to suit their functions. The XML protocol framework, GXA XML, will be the main driving force in this federation strategy. GXA XML will provide a consistent model for building protocols for Web services and applications. The intention is to achieve interoperability among Microsoft products as well as competitive offerings.

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