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Why Microsoft won't reconstruct Windows based on Linux kernel? I believe many inexperienced people don't know what to do about it. Therefore, this paper summarizes the causes and solutions of the problem. Through this article, I hope you can solve this problem.

A few weeks ago, Eric S Raymond, an open source software enthusiast, made a heated argument that Microsoft should reconstruct Windows based on the Linux kernel. He believes that as the PC business continues to decline, Windows is no longer Microsoft's pillar business and can maximize profits through restructuring. However, Hayden Barnes, who was involved in the development of Windows Subsystem for Linux's Ubuntu port, opposes this, arguing that Microsoft will not ReFactor Windows based on Linux.

Hayden Barnes is a well-known developer who walks between Microsoft and the Linux community and has helped promote Ubuntu development on Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). As a result, he was able to communicate with many Linux developers, open source projects, community members, and Microsoft employees. Moreover, he participated in various briefings on Microsoft's products and strategies as MVP (Microsoft's most valuable expert).

As for the popular saying that "Microsoft should migrate the core of Windows system to the kernel of Linux", he said that from a product and engineering point of view, Microsoft could not do so under any circumstances.

Before explaining the specific reasons, Barnes believes that the reasons for this view keep popping up on Slashdot and Hacker News:

● can attract users to click.

● is a long-standing fantasy for open source and Linux advocates.

● currently, the role played by Windows is changing. Especially in the current world where Android, iOS, macOS, Chrome OS and Ubuntu are all based on Linux

● is becoming more and more reasonable with the increasing usage of Linux in Azure and WSL. Overton window (The Overton Window) has been transferred.

In response, Barnes believes that Microsoft will not reconstruct Windows based on the Linux kernel for the following reasons

1. Kernel

The NT kernel in Windows systems provides a certain degree of backward compatibility, long-term support and driver availability, while Linux is still in the process of improvement. If you want to refactoring based on Linux, it must cost millions of dollars. Microsoft has many paying customers who can continue to support Windows as it is, some for decades.

Refactoring Windows based on Linux does not help Microsoft save money as Raymond claims. Many profitable companies exist to serve existing operating systems. Even if it is ultimately based on Linux, it can lead to poor kernel homogenization.

The competition between Windows and macOS can make Linux a better operating system. A better result is that open source innovation can spread across all operating systems, and open source contributors to Windows and Linux can share the essence of both ecosystems.

two。 Compatibility

It is not clear whether Windows user space will maintain good compatibility if it is migrated from NT to the Linux kernel, especially those with mission-critical applications and paid access.

Windows does not distinguish between kernel space and user space as strictly as Linux does. The NT kernel has approximately 400 recorded syscalls and approximately 1700 recorded Win32 API calls. This is a huge amount of work to redeploy to ensure that Windows developers and their work achieve the desired compatibility, which completely exceeds the correction contribution provided by Wine.

Linux has only 313 syscalls on arm64, and another reason is that Microsoft has moved from the syscall translation layer (translation layer) in WSL 1 to the virtualized kernel in WSL 2, so it is painful to reimplement dozens of non-standard ways to leverage Linux ABI. It is one thing to provide a NT-related compatibility layer for Microsoft-owned SQL Server on Linux, another to provide guarantees for millions of other developers' applications.

3. Microsoft invested a lot of money

In recent years, the manpower and material resources that Microsoft has invested on Windows can no longer be calculated. Microsoft has made optimized investments in Windows 10 in terms of usability, new features, performance improvements, and so on, and has paid off. On the basis of these improvements, the cooperation with OEM manufacturers and the launch of the Surface brand have helped to revitalize the PC market.

Microsoft has been trying to make Windows an excellent development platform, and its projects include Windows Terminal, PowerToys, Windows Subsystem for Linux and Visual Studio 2019. The Windows Insider project was also very successful.

At present, Windows is an important carrier system for many products, including Surface, which is also a key business of Microsoft. The internal restructuring in 2018 and 2020 shows that the future of Surface and Windows is inextricably linked. Windows provides power for Xbox, and we are in the recovery phase of a major Windows-based PC game.

Microsoft also has the idea of Windows 10X, which is the next operating system concept after Windows 10 (I think we will get it gradually), and future hardware such as Surface Neo is also under consideration.

4. There's no need.

Microsoft can maintain relevance without having to ReFactor Windows based on Linux. After abandoning the mobile market, Microsoft is aware of the change in the device landscape.

Microsoft recognizes that human beings use a variety of systems and platforms, including Android, Ubuntu, iOS, macOS, Chrome OS and so on, and there is ARM in addition to x86.

Microsoft has said it can adapt to this diverse world, launching relevant products and services on these platforms, while ensuring the competitiveness of Windows in traditional areas. At present, Microsoft is promoting innovation in the mobile field based on Android and iOS, transplanting not only Microsoft Office, but also many excellent applications, including Microsoft Launcher, and recently launched Surface Duo phones with Android systems.

On Ubuntu, Microsoft has launched a number of tools for Linux workstations, such as Code, .NET, Azure tools, Teams, PowerShell, Sysinternals for Linux, and the upcoming Edge browser. Do you want to run Ubuntu on Azure? Microsoft is ready for you and works closely with Canonical to give you a wonderful experience.

Instead of worrying about whether Microsoft is refactoring Windows based on Linux, the more interesting question is how far Microsoft can go in open source. We have seen that Windows Terminal, PowerToys and other Windows components are open source. A more logical and realistic goal is that Microsoft will continue to open up Windows components and the Windows development process, even beyond the scope of the Windows Insider project, to provide benefits to other systems.

After reading the above, do you understand why Microsoft will not reconstruct Windows based on the Linux kernel? If you want to learn more skills or want to know more about it, you are welcome to follow the industry information channel, thank you for reading!

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