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This newsletter contains archived content. No warranty is made as to technical accuracy of content or currency of URLs.
Updated WDF Co-installers Are Available for Testing
Windows Driver Foundation (WDF) co-installers in previous versions of the Windows Driver Kit (WDK) 6001 worked only on Windows Server 2008, which meant that developers could not use build 6001 to develop drivers for earlier versions of Windows, even for testing purposes. The WDF 1.7 co-installers in the Windows Server 2008 WDK RC1 release have been updated so that they work for all versions of Windows that support WDF. For details on how to obtain Windows Server 2008 WDK RC1, see “ How to Get the Windows Driver Kit and the Windows Logo Kit.”
More information regarding the different versions of WDF and supported Windows versions can be found on this MSDN blog.
From the Editor
Lots of new information is being highlighted this month at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). You can catch Bill Gates' keynote at CES on the Web if you missed it. It includes a video about his last day at Microsoft. It’s hard to imagine Microsoft without him, but this is a very funny look at how he’ll be spending his time now. The Ultra-mobile PC of the future?
Origami Experience 2.0 debuted at CES. This upgrade to the original Origami Experience adds a host of new touch features for UMPC users. Touch logon, receive-side scaling (RSS), and browsing are just a few of the goodies in this addition. You can see a preview of the latest version on the Origami Experience team blog. — The WHDC Web team
Hardware Criteria for the Windows Server 2008 High Availability Program
The Windows Server 2008 High Availability Program describes hardware and testing requirements for 64-bit server systems running Windows Server 2008 versions for Enterprise and Datacenter x64 and for Intel Itanium-based systems. Find out more about hardware compatibility requirements in “ Hardware Criteria for the Windows Server 2008 High Availability Program” on WHDC. This guide is the authoritative source for information for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) about hardware compatibility requirements for server systems and devices that run the Windows Server 2008 operating system and can be sold and supported under the Windows Server 2008 High Availability Program.
Notes and Tips for Driver Developers
Custom Power Settings and Signed Drivers
In Windows Vista and later versions, device and driver vendors can integrate custom device-specific power settings with the Windows Vista power plans. A new driver tip on the WHDC Web site outlines the definition and establishment of such custom power settings and explains the types of changes that require a new package signature. New Windows Server Symbol Packages
The symbol packages for Windows Server 2008 RC1 and Windows Vista SP1 RC1 are available on the WHDC Web site. These packages contain the full set of symbols that are required to debug Windows Server 2008 RC1. Windows Vista SP1 adds support for UEFI
The Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) is an emerging industry standard for the firmware that boots a computer's operating system. Windows Server 2008 fully supports UEFI, and Windows Vista SP1 adds that UEFI support to the 64-bit version of Windows Vista.
The SP1 installation media will be available from different sources depending on whether you work for an OEM, work for a company that has a volume license agreement, or purchase Windows from a retail distributor.
For background, the UEFI support and requirements are summarized in “ UEFI Support and Requirements: Microsoft Windows Server 2008” on the WHDC Web site.
What's New on the Blogs for Hardware and Driver Developers
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I recently sat down with Technical Fellow and SysInternals founder Mark Russinovich to dig a bit into what's new in the Windows Server 2008 kernel. Of course, we talked about many things including HyperV, application virtualization, and kernel architecture. (Not everybody defines an operating system kernel in the same way--tune in to understand why this is the case. Mark has his own definition that may not be the same as yours...) More...
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I saw a book, Advanced Windows Debugging, in the Microsoft company store and quickly read through it. It looked pretty awesome in the level of detail and the breadth that it covered. I ordered my own copy, and I think it would be an invaluable resource for anyone who develops drivers or applications on Windows. I learn something new every time I read it. More...
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