One of the big issues with the Windows operating system is boot times. While some PC makers have tried to speed up the time between turning on the power to seeing the desktop, it can still take a little while to get the OS to start working from a cold start up. Now Microsoft has filed for a new patent that it claims will speed up operating system boot times.
The patent, as discovered by Electronista.com, is titled "Fast Machine Booting Through Streaming Storage". Microsoft describes a cloud-based networked system that would allow an operating system like, say, Windows to be streamed into a PC and then stored into memory on that PC. The system sounds a little bit like how OnLive streams its PC games to be played by PC gamers with only a small download file and near instant playing.
The patent states, "The technology facilitates fast boot because the virtual disk is available for use immediately, rather than needing to download an entire operating system image before booting from that downloaded image. For example, during a boot operation, only a relatively small amount of data is needed from the boot disk, which is available from the far data and/or the near data."
So is Microsoft designing a future version of Windows that would be based on the cloud, much like its Office 365 office software suite? And if so would the PC have to be connected to the Internet in order to boot up in the first place? It's an interesting system that we think is still years away from being launched, if ever.
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