Windows

Four Windows products are of primary interest to enterprise customers:

• Windows—the Windows client OS for devices with an AMD or Intel x86 or x64 processor
• Windows 10 Mobile—the Windows client OS for smartphones, currently in preview
• Windows Server—the Windows server OS for servers with AMD or Intel x64 processors
• Edge and Internet Explorer (IE)—Microsoft’s Web browsers.

Customers need to track the status of Windows software and related Windows-based devices in order to plan for the deployment and maintenance of desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, and servers as well as the deployment of other server products, such as SQL Server and Exchange Server or the Office desktop suite, which all have dependencies on specific versions of Windows.

Windows Client

The Windows client OS is Microsoft’s primary OS for laptop, desktop, and tablet computers (collectively, clients). (See the illustration “Windows Client Overview“.) Windows 10, the latest version, became generally available to consumers on July 29, 2015, and volume licensing customers on Aug. 1, 2015. Windows 10 will bring a new servicing model with different patterns of updates and support life cycles among the OS editions. This will likely require organizations to reconsider how they will license and service the OS over time. For example, some organizations have traditionally waited for a first service pack, an option that will likely not prove viable with Windows 10, because the OS will not receive formal service packs.