View Windows 7=nt 6.1 from Windows Boot Manager

Microsoft's next-generation desktop operating system has been officially named Windows 7. However, this 7 does not represent the core version of Windows 7, which has been upgraded from Windows Vista NT 6 to NT 7, but only on behalf of Windows 7, which is the officially released desktop Windows Seventh generation product of Microsoft. The true core version of Windows 7 is just NT 6.1,windows 7 's relationship to Windows Vista is like Windows XP (NT 5.1) and Windows Watts (NT 5.0). After many years, windows and we play a word game, so that someone will be the Windows 7 Play "NT 6.1 = Windows very 6+1 =windows 7".

For a more intuitive understanding of Windows 7= NT 6+1, look at the problem from the level of Windows Startup Manager. The startup manager is always strictly differentiated from the core version of Windows system, compared to the easily confusing Windows formal product name. This is because when you configure multiple operating systems to coexist, you must be responsible for managing all operating systems with the highest version of the startup manager, which has only backward compatibility and does not have an upward-compatible boot manager. Therefore, the version of the Startup manager must be aligned in a strict order of precedence, rather than being arbitrarily set as the official name of Windows, or it may not be possible to properly configure multiple operating system coexistence.

For example, Windows 2000/xp/server 2003 is called NT 5.X because all of their boot managers are NTLDR and boot. Ini. When configuring the multiple systems Coexistence of Windows 2000/xp/server 2003, each operating system is NTLDR and BOOT. INI Unified Management, everyone is an equal relationship. Windows Vista/server 2008, which is NT 6.X, uses the new boot manager for BOOTMGR and BCD, configuring Windows Vista/server 2008 with Windows 2000/xp/server 20 03 of multiple systems coexistence, BOOTMGR will be fully responsible for the start of the Computer Management work, NTLDR will be reduced to BOOTMGR substitutes. For example, assuming that we have configured Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 20,034 operating systems to coexist, the BOOTMGR boot menu does not take Windows XP and Win Dows Server 2003 is listed in the Startup menu, but it is uniformly displayed as "earlier versions of Windows." Only Windows Vista, which is NT 6.X, and Windows Server 2008 qualify to appear as standalone options in the BOOTMGR boot menu. You can continue to choose whether you want to start Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 only if you have selected the earlier versions of Windows option, and the BOOTMGR will transfer the startup control to NTLDR and automatically switch to the NTLDR menu. In other words, the NTLDR boot menu is like a submenu of the BOOTMGR boot menu.

Now that we have a look at Windows 7, when we install the released Windows 7 Preview in a computer that has Windows Vista/server 2008 installed, Windows 7 adds itself to the BCD, with the original Windows Vista /server 2008 implements coexistence, and the BOOTMGR boot menu displays three options for Windows 7, Windows Vista/server 2008, and earlier versions of Windows (if any). In other words, the boot manager used by Windows 7 is still BOOTMGR and BCD, and it is an equal relationship with Windows Vista/server 2008.

If the core version of Windows 7 is called NT 7, then it should come up with a new boot manager with a higher version than BOOTMGR and BCD, and the new boot manager will take over the work of BOOTMGR and BCD. Of course, in reality there is no such a startup manager, we might as well assume it as Loader v7. Then, when we install the Windows NT 7 system, Loader V7 will automatically replace the BOOTMGR and BCD responsible for the startup management of the computer, when only the NT 7.X version of the Windows system is eligible for the independent option to appear in the Loader V 7 menu, Windows Vista/server 2008 will be uniformly displayed as "earlier versions of Windows", and Windows Xp/server 2003 will be displayed as "earlier versions of Windows" (and, of course, if a few years later really has Loader V7, whether it will be able to backward compatible with Windows Xp/server 2003 I am afraid it is hard to say. Now, although the official name of Windows 7 is 7, it does not come up with a more advanced Loader V7 boot Manager, still relies on BOOTMGR and BCD, and Windows Vista/server 2008 as equals, so windows 7 The core version number is not yet eligible for elevation to NT 7, at a maximum of NT 6.1.

Although Windows 7 now only releases a preview version of what will change before the formal release is not easy to say, but from the current core version has been identified as NT 6.1, I think the Windows 7 Startup manager will not be a big change. It can be foreseen that our computers will use BOOTMGR and BCD for a long time in the next 35 years. Just as Windows 2000/xp/server 2003 can be tied together to become the NT 5.X series, Windows Vista/server 2008 (including Future R2)/windows 7 can also be tied together to form a relatively complete NT 6.X family.

In fact, before the Windows 7 Core version number is determined, I personally still want Windows 7 to be able to design a new boot manager instead of BOOTMGR and BCD, and really become NT 7. The existing BOOTMGR and BCD, although already very good, but one of the biggest flaw is that it is always based on the pure character interface, not a support for mouse operation GUI interface, called Windows is somewhat unworthy. Other operating systems are already a graphical way to start the manager, which has to say is a pity. Imagine if post can appear a graphical start interface, through the mouse click button to choose the operating system and security mode options such as how good, look forward to NT 7 in the future can be achieved. Only Third-party boot Manager software, such as the ERD Commander, is currently available for this purpose.