At the moment, Microsoft is finalizing the features it plans to ship with Windows 10 Creators Update. This update is scheduled to roll out in April and the company is already shipping preview build for Insiders. Some digging into the code of these builds has revealed that Redmond is developing a modern and simplified version of Windows called ‘Windows 10 Cloud.’
This new variant of Windows has started appearing in the code of Cloud SKUs for recent test builds. Sources on Twitter suggest that it first appeared in Insider build #15003, which was also one of the major updates for the operating system. This preview build brought along most of the representative features for the Creators Update. This development was first spotted by Brad Sams of Petri.com.
.@bdsams @tfwboredom first saw it in SDK 15003 pic.twitter.com/kO2bey6Ofy
— WalkingCat (@h0x0d) January 29, 2017
The new variant is being referred to as ‘Windows 10 Cloud’ across the interwebs but this offering doesn’t have to do anything with the cloud. Microsoft is not planning to provide you with a version of Windows that will be hosted on Azure servers and you’ll be able to access them on your PCs. It will most likely be a new edition of Windows 10 as the listing for Windows 10 Cloud appears with existing Windows 10 editions. The listing includes Cloud and CloudN, where the former is the expected offering and the latter is deprived of the pre-installed Media Player.
So the biggest question which still remains unanswered is, what exactly is Windows 10 Cloud? and Why isn’t Microsoft talking about it?
Sources aware of the development have told ZDNet that Windows 10 Cloud will be a simplified and stripped down version of Windows 10. It will seamlessly be accessible across most devices and sport the capability of running only Unified Windows Platform (UWP) apps installed through the Windows Store. This variant will be similar to previous similar iterations, Windows RT and Windows 8.1 with Bing, which were unable to attract eyeballs. It will most likely be portable and low-cost as compared to the complete Windows 10-as-a-service offering.
This development is also being seen as a part of the ongoing attempt to compete against the growing popularity of Chromebooks. This new variant is being designed and will be introduced as an alternative to Chrome OS, most likely at the Build Conference in May. The company has recently also said their Windows 10 operating system will run on ARM processors in the coming months. Windows 10 Cloud might be under development to cater to this particular hardware segment.
Microsoft isn’t talking about the existence of Windows 10 Cloud but the ninja cat (Insiders will get it) seems to have made a sprint out of the bag. And we’re eagerly awaiting a confirmation about the existence of this variant, probably before the Build Conference.
