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Windows on ARM Will Be Stripped of Some Business Features

It won't offer the same manageability capabilities

Feb 29, 2012 12:57 GMT  ·  By
Windows 8
   Windows 8

Today, Microsoft is set to unveil to the world the Consumer Preview flavor of its Windows 8 platform at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Some more info on the platform has just made it online, only hours before the launch. The said document was published on Microsoft’s website to inform businesses on the features and capabilities they can take advantage of in the upcoming Windows 8 platform.

According to this Windows 8 Consumer Preview Product Guide for Business, Windows 8 will offer different business features on x86/x64 architectures than it would on ARM devices.

As AllThingsD notes, customers will benefit from different manageability features in the next major Windows release, depending on the type of device they will use.

“Although the ARM- based version of Windows does not include the same manageability features that are in 32-bit and 64-bit versions, businesses can use these power-saving devices in unmanaged environments,” Microsoft notes in the said document.

The lack of these capabilities will certainly determine many businesses move away from WOA. Not to mention that the platform won’t offer support for traditional desktop applications.

However, Microsoft did design Windows 8 thinking of what enterprises needed, and the said document mentions a Windows To Go feature through which workers will benefit from access to Windows 8 and corporate apps on a thumb drive.

“Growing mobility and consumerization trends pressure IT professionals to provide users with secure access to a corporate operating system and apps in situations when a device or network is out of the IT department’s control,” the document reads. Windows 8 will offer a full corporate copy of Windows, on a USB storage device, in addition to user’s business apps, data, and settings. Moreover, the drive can be accessed on Windows 7 computers as well.

“When users insert their device into any Windows 7 or Windows 8 compatible PC and restart the PC, they get their entire personal environment, and operate as a fully managed device. When they sign out, they can remove the USB device, and it is ready to use on another PC,” the document reads.