Windows 8 : Features by Version, System Requirements

1. Windows 8 Versions

Windows 8 comes in four different versions for four different audiences:

• Windows 8  is for home users. It is a basic version for Intel x86-32 and x86-64 systems. This version comes with the Start screen and Desktop, Microsoft accounts, Live Tiles, semantic zoom, the Windows Store, Internet Explorer 10, and the other features the majority of users will want.

 Windows 8 (left) and Windows 8 Pro (right) retail packaging

• Windows 8 Pro  (the box shown on the right) is for business and professional users. Pro adds domain support (Windows security groups), the encrypted file system, Hyper-V, virtual hard disk booting, group policy support, and BitLocker. Users will be able to add Windows Media Center as a free add-on to Pro, which is the most compelling reason for the average PC user to want this version of the product.

• Windows 8 RT is for mobile users running devices with ARM processors and is not sold separately to the public. Windows 8 RT will support tile-based apps with no Desktop support but comes with touch support and special touch-centric versions of the Microsoft Office suite.

• Windows 8 Enterprise is sold to businesses that buy desktops in bulk. The Enterprise edition adds to Windows 8 Pro additional network security features, more virtualization tools, and mobility options. Neither Windows 8 RT nor Enterprise come in retail packaging.

Individual users will most likely be interested in either Windows 8 or Windows 8 Pro, depending on whether they need features such as file system encryption, domain support, or virtual machine technology.

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Tip

Microsoft allows you try Windows and Office products free for 90 days before you must purchase them. If you want to give Windows 8 and Office 2013 a try, you will find links for trials on each product’s home page: www.microsoft.com/windows and www.microsoft.com/office.

2. Features by Version

Windows 8 has a number of new features, but not all features appear in every version of the operating system. Use Table 1 to determine if the version you are interested in has the features you need.

Table 1. Windows 8 Features

3. System Requirements

What does it take to run Windows 8? If you purchase a PC, tablet, or phone with Windows 8 already installed, you won’t have to ask this question. But for those of you upgrading a device, Microsoft’s official position is that Windows 8 will run on any device that is capable of running Windows 7. In fact, Windows 8 may run better than Windows 7 on older devices because it makes fewer hardware demands. The minimum system requirements to run Windows 8 are the following:

• CPU: 1 GHz or faster.

Note that only tile-based apps will work well at this clock speed. Any dual-core processor running at 1.4 GHz or higher would be a better choice for Desktop applications.

• RAM: 1 GB for the 32-bit version of Windows 8; 2 GB for the 64-bit version of Windows 8.

• Graphics: A card capable of running Microsoft’s DirectX 9 rendering library with WDDM 1.0 support. Tile-based applications require at least 1024 x 768 screen resolution, with 1366 x 768 required to use the snap feature.

WDDM is the Windows Display Driver Model graphics driver architecture. A better choice would be an AMD (ATI) Radeon 2000 or NVIDIA GeForce 8 series video card or better.

• Disk space: 16 GB for the 32-bit version of Windows 8; 20 GB for the 64-bit version of Windows 8.

This recommendation is for the base operating system. If you plan to add applications and data to your system, you will need more disk space. A more realistic expectation is that a boot disk with Microsoft Office and a game or two will require a minimum of 80 GB.

There are some other requirements you may want to consider in choosing a Windows 8 device:

• UEFI BIOS. If you want to use the Secure Boot feature, you will need a motherboard with a Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) BIOS.

UEFI is a software interface that is embedded in your motherboard’s startup logic and can be used to control the operating system before it starts up.

The Microsoft Secure Boot feature uses UEFI to prevent other operating systems and software from loading before the Windows startup sequence begins. This feature, which is mandated with new Intel x86 and ARM PCs, will be indicated by a Windows 8 sticker on the case. Secure Boot is somewhat controversial as there are concerns that this feature will disable operating systems like Linux from booting on Windows systems. However, what Secure Boot was really designed to do is prevent malware like rootkits from capturing your computer. The UEFI stores a Microsoft certificate and checks that there is a matching certificate in the operating system before it allows the boot loader to start up the OS. A more detailed description of the pre-OS environment and UEFI may be found at blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/09/22/protecting-the-pre-os-environment-with-uefi.aspx.

• Trusted Platform Module (TPM). If you want to use the BitLocker feature (particularly on a USB flash drive), this feature on your motherboard will make it easier.

TPM is a secure computing standard implemented in a specialized secure computing chip that calculates and stores security keys to protect data contained on the computer.

• Hyper-V Virtualization. To run Hyper-V you will need to install the 64-bit version of Windows 8 and enable virtualization in your motherboard’s BIOS.

Virtualization creates memory partitions that are configured to run as independent separate computers, emulating a physical computer. This can be useful because it allows you to run applications or services for safety, testing, and myriad other purposes.

Use the System control panel to determine if your system can run Windows 8. That control panel lists all of your system components and gives a Windows Experience Index, which is a measure of how powerful (fast) your equipment feels. As a general rule, the Windows Experience Index is limited by the slowest component you have. For example, if your lowest-rated component is a graphics board that is rated as 4.2, then that is the rating your system is given. This rating is a general guideline, but it can be useful when you are deciding which component to upgrade to improve performance.

To view the System control panel

1. Press +X or right-click the lower-left corner of your display to view the Computer Management menu; then select the Control Panel command.

2. Tap or click the System and Security link (the first group on the home page).

3. Tap or click the System link to view the System control panel .

 The System control panel lists your operating system details, your hardware, and the Windows Experience Index.