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We all know that WindowsXP and Windows 2000 were the best OS products from Microsoft so far, far more stable than the low-quality Win9x/ME line of OSes which were based on a different codeline (and are responsible for the terrible reputation they gave to the Windows name). Well, even the NT codeline is unstable on 2k and XP, and engineers have identified the problem in the legacy code, and backwards compatibility support these OSes were forced to carry in order to sell better (users wouldn't upgrade if their older apps wouldn't be supported). XP is for me an extremely stable OS, I've seen only a single crash in 1.2 years of running it, and that was just because of a defective hardware (an old and dying Yamaha CD-R). However, still, other people report instability problems with XP or 2000. And 90% of the time, the source of the problem is simple and the same for all: they use unstable drivers, or simply, drivers that were not built for the specific kernel they were using. It is like trying to load a kernel driver (module) under Debian while it was compiled specifically for Red Hat. Or, it is like trying to load a Red Hat 7 or 8 driver under Red Hat 9. Sure, they are both Linux, but 99% of the times, you really need to have distro-specific drivers, otherwise your driver is very likely to crash, because of the minor changes found in each kernel. The same goes with Windows and any other OS. The fact that they all bear the name "Windows" (for marketing purposes) doesn't make them the same version OS, let along the same OS altogether. People should realize this very well before they go and download and install drivers for any OS, not just Windows.

Here is the rule of thumb regarding Windows Server 2003 as a Workstation: If all your hardware is supported by the OS, or if you are certain that there are drivers *tested* for the specific OS, go ahead and install Win2k3. If you can't find specific drivers for your hardware, evaluate whether you can live without these drivers (e.g. without sound) and if not, stay with Windows XP or whatever OS you are currently running.

This is a very interesting situation. It feels sort of like Win2k3 is really an alternative OS! The fact that hardware compatibility with multimedia devices is shaky while a number of applications have hiccups because of the lack of full compatibility (e.g. WinAMP 3) or don't run at all (e.g. MS Exchange), is giving this OS a clean fresh air. It is like a new start for Microsoft. They seem eager to try to get rid of the big success key of the past(DOS/Win3.x compatibility for Windows 95, Windows 9x compatibility for XP), which is also at the same time, their curse, a curse that brings insecurity and instability. We see on Win2k3 a frank effort from Microsoft to clean up the mess. And so far, they have succeeded in regards to the server part. If they can backport all these changes to the next Windows Longhorn or even to Windows XP SP2, Microsoft will have accomplished a big step in offering a worthy product, if not a winner indeed (don't forget, according to JoelOnSoftware, software in general takes 10 years to mature - the NT codeline is today about 12 years old).

I was discussing the driver incompatibility problem with someone via email the other day, and he said, "but how are people supposed to know that they should not install non-Win2k3 drivers?" Well, the answer is easy: If you don't see mention on the third party web site of Win2k3, don't even bother download the drivers. And if you do download and try to install them, the OS will popup an alert to tell you that these drivers are not qualified for this OS (in CAPITALS no less!!). I am speaking out of experience: Win2k3 Enterprise didn't support any of the two sound cards I have on this machine (an onboard AC97 VIA 8233 and a PCI Yamaha YMF-754). I thought, "whatever..." and I went to Hoontech's web site and downloaded the latest Yamaha drivers for Win2000 and XP. I decided to install the driver despite the alerts Windows was giving me. I risked it. Well, after I did that, Windows Server 2003 got unstable. I had 3 bluescreens in 24 hours, all random. I emailed the HoonTech guys and they told me that they do not plan any update to their drivers for Win2k3 as Yamaha doesn't really sell the card anymore. I had also installed the latest Detonator drivers from nVidia and the 4-in-1 drivers from VIA (which include some additional IDE and AGP drivers). None of these drivers were Win2k3-proof, however, the Yamaha driver was the one which was cr@pping out (kmixer.sys was crashing, which is a Windows kernel driver for audio, which the normal sound drivers are wrapping onto). I could have been lucky and the Yamaha driver could have worked. But I wasn't. And if it was not the Yamaha driver, it could have been something else. Moral of the story: If you want to keep your Windows stable as a rock (and this includes Windows XP), don't install drivers not built for the specific kernel you are using. Know, understand and accept this simple fact before you pass any kind of judgment. Any OS would crash when installing wrong kernel drivers.

1. "Fastest. Modern. OS. Ever."
2. "Driver problem, software incompatibility"
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