Microsoft's giving power users a turbocharged version of Windows 10
Microsoft's Windows 10 runs on everything from powerful desktop gaming PCs to laptops to the Raspberry Pi. And later this fall there's going to be a new edition with better support for power users running server-grade PCs.
The new OS, which comes alongside the Fall Creators Update, is simply called "Windows 10 Pro for Workstations" and according to Microsoft is designed to "meet the needs of our advanced users deploying their Workstation PCs in demanding and mission-critical scenarios."
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There are four key areas where Windows 10 Pro has been made better for professionals using beefy workstation PCs.
First, it comes with ReFS (Resilient file system) to protect your data from corruption, which is especially important when you're handling large storage volumes on a server. ReFS can detect when data's screwed up on a mirrored hard drive and then use another non-corrupt backup to automatically fix the bad one, ensuring your data's always undamaged.
Second, the special version has "persistent memory" using non-volatile memory modules (NVDIMM-N) so you can read and write files lightning-quick. Your files remain stored in the RAM even when you turn your workstation off so you can resume your work quicker than before.
Image: microsoft
Third, Microsoft says it's added faster file sharing using a feature called SMB Direct. Using network adapters with Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) support, users can transfer large amounts of data quickly without using much CPU processing power. This means the CPU can be freed for other tasks.
And lastly, the new update works with Intel's and AMD's server-grade hardware. It supports workstations using Intel Xeon and AMD Opteron processors that can be configured with up to four CPUs and up to 6TB of memory. Previously, workstations only supported up to two CPUs and 2TB of memory.
Windows 10 Pro for Workstations is a solid update to look forward to if you're a professional with a workstation or manage servers for a living. For us normals, though, it's nothing we need to bother with. The Fall Creators Update will bring lots of new consumer-friendly features like Pick Up Where You Left Off, which lets you start a task on a Windows PC and then resume on your iOS or Android phone.
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