zapbuzz wrote on 2021-08-06, 12:02:
I remember using this tool called NTSWITCH. I found it had the ability to turn server 2003 into a later xp pro codebase (than the original 2001) but turning xp pro into server 2003 presented a major memory leak prior to SP3. The updated xp base had superior kernel to original xp being from server 2003 release IN EARLIER sp1 sp2 which some people still like to use today than sp3 for some app and game compatabilities (drivers as well).
https://www.theregister.com/2002/03/25/regist … k_turns_xp_pro/
Interesting. Microsoft actually did basically the same thing when they developed Windows XP Professional x64 edition. Instead of porting the older XP kernel to 64-bit, they basically based XP x64 on the 64-bit version of the Windows Server 2003 kernel, which they had already ported, due to higher memory requirements in the datacenter world.
I actually ran Windows XP x64 as my daily OS at the time, and it ran well. Compatibility with 32-bit software was surprisingly good. I liked the idea of actually making use of the 64-bit capabilities of my Athlon64 system, and pretty much every Windows XP game (and even Win9x games) that I tried ran flawlessly on it. All I lost was Win16 and native DOS compatibility, which was no longer an issue, even then. As a bonus, each 32-bit game or application could make use of as much as 4GB memory, whereas applications would be limited to only 2GB memory on XP 32-bit. I remember reading about some heavier 32-bit games running better on Windows x64, or even crashing on 32-bit Windows due to that difference in memory limitation. I believe Supreme Commander was such a game.
Sorry for the tangent. 😅