.NET 2003 a 'steady improvement'

Kernel improvements should boost scalability and performance of Microsoft's flagship server OS.

Although Microsoft Corp. doesn't anoint Windows .Net Server 2003 Release Candidate 2 as "feature-complete," this edition shows that Microsoft's next operating system revision will be a significant, incremental upgrade compared with the massive overhaul that took place going from Windows NT to Windows 2000.

Some of the most important benefits of Windows .Net Server 2003 RC2 come from kernel improvements, which should greatly improve the scalability and performance of Microsoft's flagship server operating system. However, these improvements probably won't be observable until the final code is ready. Microsoft hasn't specified a release date.

Microsoft is working to improve the efficiency of its scheduler by reducing the time that locks are held and by changing from global wait lists and ready queues to individual ones for each processor. Security is another likely improvement in Windows .Net Server 2003, but, like the performance boost, the system's actual security tweaks can't really be put to the test until the operating system is in production and subject to public scrutiny.

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