Microsoft Corp.'s debacle
with Windows Vista device drivers malfunctioning after an upgrade to Service
Pack 1 is an expected, almost inevitable result of the strategic path it took
with Windows' initial release more than two decades ago.

While Microsoft has always developed its own software as well as some hardware
(think keyboards and mice), it has long relied on partners to create an unparalleled
selection of applications and hardware devices that has become one of Windows'
chief attractions.

But in trying to preside over this huge ecosystem of partners, Microsoft often
more resembles a beleaguered parent than an iron-fisted ruler.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the area of device drivers. To make Vista
attractive to customers, Microsoft wants as many devices as possible to run
on the OS. At Vista's launch last January, Microsoft claimed that 1.6 million
devices supported Vista. That number was quickly forgotten amidst widespread
reports of nonworking devices.

The problem is that hardware vendors hate writing drivers because of the difficulty
and lack of reward, according to Ian Lao, an analyst at In-Stat
Inc. After all, any large vendor (think Logitech
or HP) has hundreds of discontinued
products that are still new enough that there will be customers wanting to run
them on Windows Vista.

As a result, vendors cut corners by patching existing drivers to make them
run on a new OS or update, even it that makes the code more fragile. Or they
simply ignore Microsoft's nagging.

This makes getting a comprehensive set of drivers ready for a new release "an
incredibly difficult task," said Lee Nicholls, a global solutions director
for Getronics
NV, a systems integrator and close Microsoft partner. Microsoft "has
to cover a huge amount of hardware and software driver libraries provided by
partners and OEMs."

Nicholls agrees that the responsibility of having drivers available is shared
equally by device makers and Microsoft.

"But that's still a big burden. Older devices and sometimes even new ones
can slip through the cracks," he said. "Microsoft have a much tougher
job cut out for them than, for example, Apple,
who only support a limited hardware platform with their operating system."

Microsoft has some carrots to dangle in front of hardware makers. The chief
incentive is its Windows Logo program. Devices whose drivers pass a Vista validation
test can place a sticker on its packaging with the sales-enhancing proclamation
that they are either "Certified for Windows Vista" or their product
"Works With Windows Vista." Microsoft will also distribute those drivers
for them via Windows Update.

But Microsoft has not updated its Windows Logo program to require drivers to
be tested specifically against SP1. It hasn't even offered revamped driver validation
tests that specifically certify compatibility with SP1, according to several
sources, including peripheral maker Intel
Corp., and Macrovision
Inc., which sells the Installshield software for creating driver installation
packages.

As a result, "it's possible that a Vista driver is incompatible with Vista
SP1," said Jeff Greenwald, director of installation product management
at Macrovision.

Microsoft did not respond to specific questions about when it planned to update
its Windows Logo program or its driver validation tests for SP1.

"We're still in the process of reaching out to the specific hardware partners
that are affected and are providing them with the necessary guidance to ensure
a smooth installation," it said in an e-mailed statement.

A weight problem and a wait problem

Of course, vendors could have tried to run their drivers on Release Candidate
(RC) versions of Vista SP1, which have been available since the fall.

But Paul Morris, a project manager at QualityLogic
Inc., a Moorpark, Calif. driver testing firm, points out that with Vista
itself, Microsoft made changes right up to its second RC in October 2006, mere
weeks before it was released to manufacturing (RTMed).

Such changes could break compatibility for drivers previously validated on
Vista.

And make no mistake: SP1 is chockful of changes -- 55 pages worth -- as Microsoft
was unable to resist the temptation to cram as many features and improvements
as possible into SP1.

Though users will be able to download a compressed 50 MB version of SP1, the
service pack actually tips the digital scale at nearly 700 MB.

By comparison, Windows XP SP2 was only about 266 MB, or two-fifths the size
of Vista SP1, when it came out in 2004, and still many called SP2 an operating
system disguised as an upgrade. There were so many new security features and
other changes that corporations cried foul at all of the broken applications.

Ironically, Microsoft has been trying to become more 'agile' and lightweight
in its development. For most of its products, including Windows and Office,
it has re-committed itself to a 2-3 year lifecycle. And Microsoft vowed three
months ago, when it released its first beta, that SP1 would focus on background
improvements and bug fixes and not have many new features.

» posted by abennett

Computerworld

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