The real reason that Microsoft is already testing a 2020 Windows release? Azure

Enlarge / Windows is now perpetually under construction. (credit: David Holt / Flickr)

The release earlier this month of a preview Windows 10 build that isn't due until 2020 was a little strange. At the time, Microsoft said vaguely that it was because of features that "require a longer lead time," with no indication of what those features are.

The well-connected Mary Jo Foley tells a different story: the release is actually a consequence of parts of Windows' development moving to the Azure group.

The core parts of Windows-the kernel, file system, networking stack, hypervisor, security subsystem, and so on-underpin a wide range of Windows variants, including Windows 10, Windows Server 2019, HoloLens, Xbox One, and Azure. According to Foley, Microsoft makes two releases of these core parts each year, in June and December. The various Windows variants build on these dual releases.

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