Deciphering the Windows Experience Index
Microsoft's new Windows Experience Index hopes to simplify your software purchases.
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28.1.2007 Google, Yahoo, Microsoft adopt same Web index tool
Search engine rivals Google, Yahoo and Microsoft are teaming up to make it easier for Web site owners to make sure their sites get included in the Web indexes, the companies are expected to announce Thursday.
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16.11.2006 Engineering the Windows 7 Windows Experience Index
Were busy going through tons of telemetry from the many people that have downloaded and installed the Windows 7 beta around the world.
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20.1.2009 Windows 7 Performance Tools - Performance Tools Kit 4.1.1
Internet Explorer 8 will be not only an apex of performance, but also the next major iteration of the Windows client, according to Microsoft.
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1.9.2008 Windows Performance Blog
As I said in yesterdays introduction, my job as an engineer on the Windows Vista team is to improve performance. I wanted to look at a study that measure a key area that we focused on for Windows Vista consistent responsiveness during the times that matter most to users (when starting up their machine, after being idle, and when you are under the gun running tons of apps, etc.).
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29.12.2006 Windows 7 Performance Pillars
Attempting to avoid the rather sluggish experience that has become inherently associated with Windows Vista RTM, Microsoft promised, through the voice of Steven Sinofsky, that Windows 7 would not set a single bit out of Redmond until it would meet a set of performance criteria.
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29.8.2008 Windows 7 Performance, Explained
From startup to the way it handles hardware resources available, power consumption and applications, Windows 7 has been applauded as delivering a level of performance superior to that of Windows Vista, even as early as pre-Beta Build 6801.
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29.11.2008 Windows Vista Performance and Tuning
Windows Vista and SP1 focus on delivering greater performance and overall system responsiveness. By striking a balance between speed and responsiveness, Windows Vista and SP1 deliver a level of performance that has the greatest positive impact on the systems usability.
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31.7.2008 Windows 7 -- Approach to System Performance
Many folks have commented and written email about the topic of performance of Windows. The dialog has been wide rangingfolks consistently want performance to improve (of course).
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28.8.2008 Squeezing Every Drop of Performance Out of Windows 7
In the sense in which Microsoft is building Windows 7 as the evolution of Windows Vista, the next iteration of the Windows client will perform as if on steroids, compared to its precursor.
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17.12.2008 Windows 7 beta 1 performance test
How does Windows 7 beta 1 compare to Vista and XP in terms of performance? Thats a question thats been hitting my inbox regularly over the past few weeks. Lets see if we cant answer it!
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2.1.2009 Windows Vista Imaging and Installation Performance
Ideally, installation of an operating system is two fairly simple steps. First, copy all the OS files to the hard disk.
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4.10.2006 Windows 7 on Steroids Next-Generation Performance Boosters
Yes, the silence around Windows 7 is certainly deafening, disconcerting and certainly a source of frustration for end users, but Microsoft is building the next iteration of Windows.
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20.5.2008 The Raw Performance Parallel Universe of Windows 7
Windows 7 more so than any other Windows client will be at the core of the transition to manycore hardware.
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11.10.2008 Windows 7 Increased Performance and Optimal Use of Available Hardware
icrosoft is optimizing Windows 7 in order to increase performance, and, in this context, the dispatcher lock is one of the components that has got cut off.
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6.1.2009 Building a High Performance Windows 7 PC
With Windows 7 release candidate just around the corner, the other day I was asked to spec out a high performance PC suitable for Windows 7 64-bit, This system would also be a great Vista system.
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15.4.2009 Understanding Windows 7 New Levels of Performance and Reliability
For an operating system that required unmatched hardware resources, Windows Vista failed to translate the horsepower available into sheer speed. The same is not the case for Windows 7, as the evolution from Vista brings new levels of performance and reliability.
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11.8.2009 Final Names for Windows Vista Performance Features
Windows PC Accelerators is the new term that encompasses Windows Vista's new performance-enhancing technologies.
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7.4.2006 12 Tweaks - Squeeze Every Last Drop of Performance Out of Windows Vista
Windows Vista is a resource hog. Microsofts latest operating system will swallow every last bit of hardware resources you throw at it in the race for a top user experience, a concept synonymous with high performance.
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15.9.2007 Check PC Performance Details with WinSAT in Windows 7 or Vista
Since Windows Vista, including in Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows System Assessment Tool (WinSAT) has been added into the operating system. WinSAT is a free benchmarking tool that measures various computer performance ratings, characteristics and capabilities, and display the ratings as Windows Experience Index or WEI score.
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20.4.2009 Microsoft releases the Windows Vista Performance and Reliability fix packages
These are the fixes that leaked last week, now the fix packs are publicly available (Validation Required).
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8.8.2007 Windows XP SP3 Yields Performance Gains Over Vista SP1
After a disappointing showing by Windows Vista SP1 (see previous post), we were pleasantly surprised to discover that Windows XP Service Pack 3 (v.3244) delivers a measurable performance boost to this aging desktop OS.
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24.11.2007 Windows 7 Search Performance Superior to Vista SP1 and XP SP3
Get ready for the Windows 7 indexer on steroids, as Microsoft will deliver the first taste of the operating system to the world at the end of this month.
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14.10.2008 Windows 7 build 7057 - Performance that blasts past XP, Vista
Over the weekend Ive been spending time with the latest leaked build of Windows 7 - build 7057. While this isnt the release candidate (RC) build that some people claim it is, this build is certainly pretty close to being RC.
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16.3.2009 Access Windows Server 2008 SP2 Performance Tuning Guidelines
The need to squeeze every last drop of performance out of a specific system running Windows is even more stringent when it comes down to server infrastructures compared to client machines.
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29.7.2009 Microsoft tweaks IE 7 for performance
Microsoft has quietly released a patch aimed at improving the performance of Internet Explorer 7's phishing filter ahead of the company's regular patching schedule, which occurs on the Tuesday of every month.
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8.2.2007 Microsoft IE 8 - Great Performance
This morning, my editor asked why I hadn't blogged about Internet Explorer 8. My response: "Who cares?" Do you? Maybe we both should.
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27.8.2008 How Microsoft really does employee performance reviews
You don't need to ask your boss for a raise at Microsoft, because each year we have an annual performance evaluation where managers review employee accomplishments in a process used for deciding things like salary increases or bonuses.
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22.12.2006 Vista SP1 a Performance Dud
With the initial performance characteristics of Windows Vista leaving much to be desired (see our previous post on the subject), many IT organizations have put off deploying the new OS until the first service pack (SP1) is released by Microsoft early next year.
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20.11.2007 Another Vista Reliability & Performance Update
Vistas performance is one of those topics that wont be exhausted until Windows Seven hits RTM. It all comes down to trade-offs.
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12.12.2007Understand and improve your computer's performance using the Windows Experience Index
Columnist Stephanie Krieger
has been working extensively
with Windows Vista over the
past year. In this article,
she gives you the facts you
need to reap the benefits of
the new Windows Experience
Index...
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22.12.2006Microsoft: Another Vista Reliability & Performance Update
Vista’s performance is one of those topics that won’t be exhausted until Windows Seven hits RTM. It all comes down to trade-offs. Ever
since the features of Vista were finalized, Microsoft tried to tip the scale the other way by focusing on performance, with the obvious limitation of
not disabling any services. Updates regarding performance and stability are numerous, but most have not hit Windows Update as they are not quite ready
(preview releases). The Windows Serviceability Team wants feedback on one such update, available for download at the Microsoft Download Center, before
its expected release on Windows Update in January.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
13.12.2007Windows 7 HD and SSD Performance Analyzed
Today we're going to look at how various types of disks perform under Windows 7, both of the traditional platter based variety and new solid state
disks. We're not only curious about how disk performance changes between the operating systems, but if Windows 7's new solid-state specific
optimizations and tuning give you even greater performance compared to Vista.
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29.05.2009Another CNet Blogger Says No to Vista (SP1)
Those guys over at CNet really have it in for Vista, this time it's Robert Vamosi suggesting that users that are waiting for SP1 to make the switch
will be disappointed. In all fairness it lacks the flair of the SP2 release on Windows XP which came with new features such as a new Internet Explorer
version and several security enhancements. SP1 for Vista is no more than a roll up package of everything released on Windows Update until now.
What Robert fails to mention is that a few
performance
enhancements are also included in the update that significantly speed up the OS and are only available through Microsoft Downloads, which requires
the Windows Genuine Advantage Check. Service Pack 2 for XP was a one-off, due to the repeated set backs of Vista, Microsoft were forced to include
technologies already planned for Windows Vista, before SP2 Microsoft stressed time and time again that Service Packs usually do not offer new
features.
SP1 will be a welcome update for those that opted to switch when Vista became available, performance and reliability have always
been a talking point from the very beginning and I am confident that SP1 fixes those issues (even for those that have already
applied the updates)
Read full story.....
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04.10.2007Windows Vista 3D graphics performance
A couple of weeks ago, we investigated how ATI's high-end DirectX 10 part is performing comparatively in Windows Vista against Windows XP
Professional, and overall we were very much pleased with what we saw, with little in the way of major driver issues or performance problems causing us
any trouble under Microsoft's new Operating System. In other words, things were pretty much exactly as they should be.
So, for
the final part of our investigation into Windows Vista's 3D graphics performance, we reach NVIDIA's DirectX 10 level boards, and in particular the
hugely popular GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB. NVIDIA have been given a rough ride with regard to their Windows Vista driver development from both the media
and enthusiasts since the new Operating System launched, but much of this criticism has been answered with a slew of driver releases, claiming to fix
vast numbers of bugs. So, with almost eight months under their belts, how are things looking as we enter an autumn packed with more high-profile game
titles than you can shake a whole tree at, never mind a stick? Let's find out.
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24.09.2007A new way to monitor your Windows systems' performance
Windows Sentinel is a joint project with the exo.performance.network, founded by InfoWorld Contributing Editor Randall C. Kennedy, that enables
InfoWorld readers to monitor system, process, and network performance while contributing to a global repository of information that will yield an
unprecedented, real-time image of Windows-based system performance and behavior.
Register below to download the Windows Sentinel
software agent, which enables you to monitor the performance of up to three Windows desktop or server systems (including Vista systems) and set alerts
for when your thresholds are exceeded. You can display this performance information on a personalized Web page, a desktop widget, or a widget that
works on iPhone, iPod Touch, and Symbian devices.
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15.04.2008Engineering Windows 7 Graphics Performance
Steven Sinofsky: One of the areas of any release of Windows that receives a significant amount of testing and scrutiny is the performance of
graphicsdesktop graphics all the way to the most extreme CAD and game graphics. The amazing breadth of hardware supported for Windows and the broad
spectrum of usage scenarios contributes to a vibrant ecosystem with many different goalsfrom just the basics to the highest frame rates on multiple
monitors possible. In engineering Windows 7 we set out to improve the real world performance of graphics as well as continue to improve the most
extreme elements of graphics...
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26.04.2009Engineering the Windows 7 "Windows Experience Index"
Steven Sinofsky: We're busy going through tons of telemetry from the many people that have downloaded and installed the Windows 7 beta around the
world. Were super excited to see the excitement around kicking the tires. Since most folks on the beta are well-versed in the hardware they use and
very tuned into the choices they make, weve received a few questions about the
Windows Experience Index (WEI) in Windows 7 and how that has
been changed and improved in Windows 7 to take into account new hardware available for each of the major classes in the metric. In this post Michael
Fortin returns to dive into the engineering details of the WEI.
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19.01.2009Overview Series: Windows Vista Performance and Tuning
Windows Vista and SP1 focus on delivering greater performance and overall system responsiveness. By striking a balance between speed and
responsiveness, Windows Vista and SP1 deliver a level of performance that has the greatest positive impact on the systems usability. This guide looks
at the following areas of performance improvement:
- Making configuration changes that help a computer feel more responsive when you
use it.
- Using hardware to boost the actual physical speed of a computer.
- Making configuration changes that help a computer to start
faster.
- Making the computer more reliable may help increase performance.
- Monitoring performance occasionally so that you can stop
problems before they get too big.
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29.07.2008Windows Performance Tools Kit v4.1.1 Update Available
The Windows Performance Tools (WPT) Kit contains performance analysis tools that are new to the Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 and .NET Framework
3.5. The WPT Kit is useful to a broad audience, including system builders, hardware manufacturers, driver developers, and general application
developers. These tools are designed for measuring and analyzing system and application performance on Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and
later.
Version 4.1.1 is an update to WPT Kit v.4.1.0, which was released as part of the
Windows Server
2008 SDK. Version 4.1.1 contains fixes for the following issues:
- Windows Performance Analyzer does not start when
double-clicking an ETL file.
- Windows Performance Analyzer does not perform power state transition analysis.
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11.02.2008Windows XP Service Pack 2 and
Gaming Performance Benchmarks
Columnist Joel Durham ran a
series of benchmarks comparing
gaming performance on a system
running Windows XP SP1 to one
running Windows XP SP2...
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04.01.2006Windows XP SP3 Yields Performance Gains Over Vista SP1
After a disappointing showing by Windows Vista SP1 (see previous post), we were pleasantly surprised to discover that Windows XP Service Pack 3
(v.3244) delivers a measurable performance boost to this aging desktop OS. Testing with OfficeBench showed an 10% performance boost vs. the same
configuration running under Windows XP w/Service Pack 2.
Since SP3 was supposed to be mostly a bug-fix/patch consolidation release - unlike
w/Vista SP1, Microsoft made no promises of improved performance for XP - the unexpected speed boost comes as a nice bonus. In fact, XP SP3 is
shaping-up to be a "must have" update for the majority of users who are still running Redmond's not-so-latest and greatest desktop
OS.
Of course, none of this bodes well for Vista, which is now more than 2x slower than the most current builds of its older sibling.
Suffice to say that performance-minded users will likely choose to stick with the now even speedier Windows XP - at least until more "Windows
7" information becomes publicly available.
Read full story.....
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24.11.2007Windows 7 -- Approach to System Performance
Steven Sinofsky: Many folks have commented and written email about the topic of performance of Windows. The dialog has been wide rangingfolks
consistently want performance to improve (of course). As with many topics we will discuss, performance, as absolute and measurable as it might seem,
also has a lot of subtlety. There are many elements and many tradeoffs involved in achieving performance that meets everyones expectations. We know
that even meeting expectations, folks will want even more out of their Windows PCs (and thats expected). Weve re-dedicated ourselves to work in this
area in Windows 7 (and IE 8). This is a major initiative across each of our feature teams as well as the primary mission of one of our feature teams
(Fundamentals). For this post, I just wanted to frame the discussion as we dig into the topic of performance in subsequent posts. Folks might
find this post on
IE8 performance relevant along with the
beta 2 release of IE 8.
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28.08.2008Announcing the Windows Search 4.0 Preview
Nick White: <...> The Windows Search Team is making available
Windows Search 4.0
Preview - a preview of the next version of desktop search for Windows.
Windows Search 4.0 introduces several improvements
I'd like to call out making search even better in Windows Vista:
- With Windows Search 4.0, the Windows Search Team has fixed
most of the reported bugs causing a majority of distractions users have seen since Windows Vista RTM - many of those bugs were reported by you.
- Great improvements have been made with regards to performance.Even now as Preview, Windows Search 4.0 has query response time about 33%faster
than search queries in Windows Vista RTM.
- The Windows Search Team has extended Remote Index Discovery for PC-to-PC search to work onevery
supported version of Windows. This makes finding information on other PCs running Windows Search 4.0 quick and less resource-consuming. Now Windows
Search can find information shared on a remote PC by accessing an index on that PC - and you will open files only when relevant to your search. This
will also work if the user's profile is redirected.
- The Windows Search Team has implemented Rollback Recovery where your search index
will roll back to the last known good state (this is good in handling disc write errors). If an error occurs, your index isn't rebuilt from scratch;
only the newly changed files are added to the index, making recovery from system errors not as disruptive to the machine or the user
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28.03.2008Ubuntu 8.04 vs. Windows XP: Application Performance Benchmark
Several open source applications are available on both Linux as well as Windows. This gave Mohammed Saleh the idea of
comparing the performance of
various of these applications on both Ubuntu 8.04 as well as Windows XP SP3, to see which of the two performed better with certain applications.
The results were rather interesting.
The tests he performed could be more or less grouped into multimedia related tests (Blender,
Avidemux, etc.) and hard disk performance tests (the command line RAR utility and ClamAV). The results seem to indicate that Windows XP beats Ubuntu
hands-down when it comes to multimedia related applications, and Ubuntu has the advantage in IO intensive applications.
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21.05.2008Windows Embedded CE 6.0 Gets a 200% Boost with Datalight Software
Datalight, Inc. today
announced support for the
Microsoft Windows Embedded CE
6.0 platform within its
patented data management
software. Datalight Reliance
and FlashFX Pro can double
performance on Windows
Embedded CE 6.0 when
implemented together.
As embedded device
memory requirements grow more
complex, the case for
professional data management
software becomes more
compelling. Datalight FlashFX
Pro is a flash media manager
that offers drop-in support
for over 200 different flash
parts. Reliance is a file
system that gives developers
control over performance
without risking data
corruption. When used
together, Reliance and FlashFX
Pro create a seamless flash
file system that vastly
outperforms native and "home
grown" solutions, with
performance increases for some
operations of over 200%.
FlashFX Pro
is ideally suited for projects
where performance cannot be
sacrificed. Test results have
shown that when using FlashFX
Pro in a Windows Embedded CE
6.0 environment, write
performance on NAND flash can
be increased by more than
200%, while read performance
improves by at least 20%...
winbeta.org -
08.08.2007Inside CNET Labs: Windows Vista SP1 performance
The long-awaited Service Pack 1 update for Windows Vista brings with it a number of significant bug fixes and other improvements. Microsoft promises
that with it you will also see a number of noticeable performance improvements as well. In
our initial round of testing, we saw a mixed bag of results:
we saw a few notable performance improvements under some conditions as well as significant performance degradations in others. For the most part,
however, we saw little difference in performance between Vista and the Vista SP1 update.
As we dug a little deeper into
Microsoft's claims, we discovered that many of the performance improvements being touted aren't actually directly attributable to SP1. Many
of the claimed performance improvements, such as improved boot-time, are actually more a function of improved third-party drivers and applications
that are benefiting from a year's worth of programming for Vista and from the programmers getting continued feedback and guidance from Microsoft. So
as long as you have been diligent about keeping your Vista system current with the latest Windows updates and third-party drivers, you likely
already have many of the potentially performance improving enhancements.
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14.02.2008Microsoft study: Vista improves networking
Companies that deploy Windows
Server 2008 and Windows Vista
in tandem could see more than
a threefold increase in
networking performance for
file transfers, downloading
roaming profiles for mobile
users and accessing files on a
portal, according to a
Microsoft-commissioned study
conducted by the Tolly Group.
In a 38-page white
paper titled "Enhanced
Network Performance with
Microsoft Windows Vista and
Windows Server 2008," the
Tolly Group compares the
networking performance for
file access on WANs and LANs
using various configurations
of Windows Server 2003 R2 or
2008 on the backend and XP SP2
or Vista on the frontend.
Not surprisingly, the
combination of the newest
operating systems brings the
best gains in network
performance in large part,
Tolly concludes, because of an
upgraded TCP/IP stack and
updates to thefile-sharing
Server Message Block (SMB )
protocol...
winbeta.org -
07.06.2007Windows Vista & ReadyBoost: Does it Make a Difference?
PC Stats has an interesting six page review regarding Microsoft Windows Vista's ReadyBoost feature. ReadyBoost is supposed to allow the user to plug
in a fast USB stick into their system to speed up work the OS needs to do and effectively improve the computer's performance by storing non-essential
information on the drive. The review concludes that this is not the case with current USB keys on the market. Although ReadyBoost does improve overall
performance on the system, it is not enough to make a significant difference or to raise some eyebrows. It seems that on older computers with little
memory (512MB), ReadyBoost can help out much more than on newer systems - probably the systems Vista would be installed on anyways. Surprisingly
enough, however, ReadyBoost did make a slight mark even on video game performance and system startup time.
neowin.net -
27.08.2007Engineering Windows 7: Continuing our discussion on performance
Steven Sinofsky: We've talked some about performance in this blog and recently many folks have been blogging and writing about the topic as well. We
thought it would be a good time to offer some more behind the scenes views on how we have been working on and thinking about performance because it
such an interesting topic for the folks reading this blog. Of course I've been using some pretty low-powered machines lately so performance is top of
mind for me as well. But for fun I am writing this on my early holiday present--my new home machine is a 64-bit all-in-one desktop machine with a quad
core CPU, discrete graphics, 8GB of memory, and hardware RAID all running a pretty new build of Windows 7 upgraded as soon as I finished the out of
box experience. Michael Fortin and I authored this post.
winbeta.org -
16.12.2008
