What is Windows 10X? All you need to know about Microsoft's dual-screen operating system

What is Windows 10X? All you need to know about Microsoft's dual-screen operating system

Technology: Microsoft's dual-surface Surface Neo will use a variant of the operating system called Windows 10X. So, what's this thing?

Microsoft yesterday unveiled its dual-screen Surface Neo device at its fall event in New York. It embeds a variant of the operating system that Microsoft has named "Windows 10X". So, what's this thing? Here's all I know - or at least think I know - about Windows 10X so far.

What is Windows 10X? Is it the same as Windows Lite / Santorini?
For all intents and purposes, yes, Windows 10X is the official name of Windows Lite / Santorini. This is not a new operating system. It's Windows 10, in a more modular form, optimized for dual-screen / foldable devices.

Why is it called Windows 10X? We supposed to call it "Windows 10 10" (lol)?
No. Microsoft's lyrics seem to call this Windows 10 with the letter X. The Microsoft Panos Panay hardware manager used the word "expression" on stage to describe 10X, as "a new expression of Windows 10". So I guess that's what the "official" explanation of the name might be.

What is the connection between Windows 10X and Windows Core OS (WCOS)?

WCOS is one of the mainstays of Windows 10X. In the past, I (and others) described WCOS as the successor to Windows OneCore - Microsoft's attempt to standardize a set of basic components in Windows so that they work on different types of devices.

But WCOS is a combination of OneCore OS components, UWP / Web and Win32 applications, and composable C-Shell. (See architectural diagram above.) Together, these are the basics of Windows 10X.

Which devices will ship Windows 10X?
As Microsoft officials say, Surface Neo, the dual-screen Surface device that will be available in 2020, will run Windows 10X. All new dual-screen and collapsible Windows devices from Microsoft partners like Dell, Lenovo, HP, Asus, and others will likely ship with Windows 10X.

And just to keep things confusing, the all-new Surface Pro X based on Arm can not run under Windows 10X, despite the "X" in both product names.
A foldable phone under Windows 10X, possible?
In theory, yes. I have heard that Windows 10X will work on both dual-screen devices and 9-inch single screens that can be folded in half.

If someone wanted to call a foldable device under Windows 10X a phone because he can run the Microsoft Your Phone app and is therefore able to receive / make calls from the device via a user's Android phone I guess it could be marketed as a phone.

And HoloLens 2 and Surface Hub 2X? Devices under WCOS? Will they also work under Windows 10X?
HoloLens 2 (expected to be released shortly) and Surface Hub 2X (expected to be delivered by spring 2020, according to my sources) also use WCOS. But as they are not dual-screen devices, they will not work under Windows 10X.

I also do not believe that Microsoft will allow any existing Windows 10 device to upgrade or upgrade to Windows 10X. This operating system is intended to be preinstalled on new and next generation Windows devices, not on current Windows devices.
Windows 10X will work under Intel and Arm?
I've heard, at least in its first iterations, that Windows 10X will only work on Intel.
Does Windows 10X replace Windows 10 in S mode (formerly Windows 10S)?
No. Microsoft still seems determined to sell Windows 10 in S mode to customers who want their devices to run only Windows Store apps.

However, Windows 10X will offer some of the same benefits as Windows 10 in S mode, according to my sources, such as the "Win Rot" reduction, a better "Instant On", a reduced attack surface, and the provision of updates. more fluid.

What types of applications under Windows 10X?
Unlike Windows 10 in S mode, Windows 10X will not be limited to Store apps only. Windows 10X will be able to run UWP, PWA, web and Win32 applications. Win32 applications will run using containers, as already mentioned about Windows Lite.

Although there have been rumors of Android apps running on Surface Neo, I doubt that Windows 10X will come with such a capacity enabled. Of course, this could be done with an Android emulator, but I do not think it will be part of the Windows 10X package.
And Edge based on Chromium? This is a Win32 application, right? It will be necessary to execute it in a container?

As far as I know Chromium-based Edge (Chredge, as it is now called between friends) will not have to work in the "Vail" container supported by Windows 10X. I heard that the team has optimized Chredge to work without a container.

Running Win32 apps in containers, that makes Windows 10X a sinkhole of consumption and a fail performance side?
The way containerization of applications will work with Windows 10X is interesting. Microsoft will apparently load the Win32 subsystem if and only if a user needs to run a Win32 application.

Otherwise, this subsystem will not need to be loaded, which reduces clutter and increases performance. (See the architectural diagram above that shows how Win32 applications will work in a container.)
Tips from Windows 10X in Windows 10 Test Versions, When?
The testers of the Windows Insider program have already found references to WCOS in the existing test versions of Windows 10. But my contacts say that the "real" pieces of WCOS / Windows 10X code will not appear before Windows 10 "Manganese" , the update of the functionality planned for autumn 2020.