Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows is a product line of proprietary graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and sub-families that cater to particular sectors of the computing industry -- Windows (unqualified) for a consumer or corporate workstation, Windows Server for a server and Windows IoT for an embedded system. Defunct families include Windows 9x, Windows Mobile, Windows Phone, and Windows Embedded Compact.

Microsoft Windows
DeveloperMicrosoft
Source model
Initial releaseNovember 20, 1985 (1985-11-20)
Latest release23H2 (10.0.22631.3155) (February 13, 2024 (2024-02-13)) [±]
Latest preview
Release Preview Channel

23H2 (10.0.22631.3227) (February 15, 2024 (2024-02-15)) [±]

Beta Channel

23H2 (10.0.22635.3209) (February 16, 2024 (2024-02-16)) [±]

Dev Channel

24H2 (10.0.26058.1100) (February 14, 2024 (2024-02-14)) [±]

Canary Channel
24H2 (10.0.26058.1000) (February 14, 2024 (2024-02-14)) [±]
Marketing targetPersonal computing
Available in110 languages
Update method
Package managerWindows Installer (.msi, .msp), App Installer (.msix, .msixbundle), Microsoft Store (.appx, .appxbundle), Windows Package Manager
PlatformsIA-32, x86-64, ARM, ARM64
Previously: 16-bit x86, DEC Alpha, MIPS, PowerPC, Itanium
Kernel type
Default
user interface
Windows shell
LicenseProprietary commercial software
Official websitewww.microsoft.com/en-us/windows

The first version of Windows was released on November 20, 1985, as a graphical operating system shell for MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs).

Windows is the most popular desktop operating system in the world, with a 70% market share as of March 2023, according to StatCounter. However, Windows is not the most used operating system when including both mobile and desktop OSes, due to Android's massive growth.

As of 2024, the most recent version of Windows is Windows 11 for consumer PCs and tablets, Windows 11 Enterprise for corporations, and Windows Server 2022 for servers. Still supported are some editions of Windows 10, Windows Server 2016 and later (and exceptionally with paid support down to Windows Server 2012 and Windows Embedded POSReady 7).

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