Microsoft's Allchin Touts x64, Longhorn

Microsoft Group Vice President of Platforms Jim Allchin told CRN that Windows XP Professional x64, Windows Server 2003 x64 and Longhorn are major milestones for Microsoft, not incremental upgrades, and the company will invest "massively" in marketing them.

The expected debut of x64 and a new Longhorn build at WinHEC next week signifies the end of the pure 32-bit Windows era, which began 10 years ago with the introduction of Windows 95.

The latest build of Longhorn is engineered with a visualize and organize tool dubbed Virtual Folder. The tool, an advanced version of indexing in Windows XP and 2000, goes beyond search and allows users to view, store, index and retrieve graphical representations of their related application files that are neatly stacked and readily accessible from large graphical folders.

Virtual Folder is reminiscent of early UI builds of WinFS technology, but is based on original Cairo technology planned for NT and advanced indexing technology currently in Windows XP and 2000. WinFS is now planned for release beyond Longhorn, Allchin said.

Aside from Virtual Folder, the Longhorn client will offer a simplified tool for managing corporate images, advanced remote assistance for help desks, support for peer-to-peer computing, IPv6, secure startup, anti-malware and a mobile synchronization manager.

Microsoft's first 64-bit Windows debuted for the Itanium processor in late 2001, but it largely failed since Itanium was very expensive and did not support 32-bit applications. Both the x64 and Longhorn versions of Windows will support 64-bit applications and offer 32-bit compatibility. "x64 is a really big deal. It's not inconsequential," Allchin said.

Longhorn also isn't just "Windows XP Service Pack 3," Allchin said. "It's not incremental. The world, in my opinion, thinks this is perhaps the next version of the service pack," Allchin told CRN. "I think the world generally thinks that. It's not. It's a very big deal."

To address security beyond Windows XP SP2, Longhorn will offer seamless and safe user switching between intranet and Internet use. Even as it removed its SP2 blocking tool last week, Microsoft also released several critical security bulletins for Windows.

One VAR said Longhorn is interesting but feels it is too early to drive customer demand. The first beta is due to ship this summer, and final release of the client is slated for end of 2006.

"There is certainly some excitement around Longhorn, however, customer awareness is not very high at this point since it is still very far out," said Michael Cocanower, president of ITSynergy, a solution provider in Phoenix. "I am really looking forward to the value points we will be able to offer customers with that, especially around extranet scenarios."

BARBARA DARROW contributed to this story.