Microsoft reveals the limitations of Windows 10 on ARM
Microsoft reveals the limitations of Windows 10 on ARM
This release of Windows is limited to ARM 64-bit devices and will offer Windows 32-bit emulation layer, lacking support for 64-bit app emulation. This emulation does not extend to drivers, which means that device makers will need to make specific Windows 10 for ARM drivers for their devices.
ARM also lacks support for several common x86 technologies like Hyper-V, preventing virtual machines from running on the OS. Games are also expected to run poorly, or not at all, given the lack of support for many standard desktop graphical APIs on ARM chip designs.
Specifically, Microsoft has stated that games that use a version of OpenGL that is newer than 1.1 or require hardware accelerated OpenGL will not work. Games that need “anti-cheat drivers” will also not function.
In short, Windows 10 on ARM will be a very limited release of the OS, lacking support for high-end apps unless they are written and compiled with the OS in mind. Right now it is puzzling why Microsoft would take down such a useful list of OS constraints for these upcoming Windows 10 on ARM devices, especially given how easily consumers could unknowingly purchase these limited devices in the future.
You can join the discussion on the limitations of Windows 10 on ARM on the OC3D Forums.