- Reactos is a free windows type operating system built from zero without Microsoft code
- A new version that has just been launched after a waiting of four years with a lot of changes
- The operating system targets compatibility with Server 2003 – Yes, you have read this property
If you are looking to get away from windows, there are many alternative operating systems to consider – from the a lot Linux distributions offered in MacOS (if you are open to Apple).
One of the most intriguing options is Reactos, which aims to be Windows, but without Microsoft – more specifically, it is designed to be an operating system compatible with Windows applications and drivers, without using owner Microsoft code. Unlike Linux, which is built on a UNIX foundation, Reactos reinforces Windows NT architecture from zero.
It currently targets compatibility with Windows Server 2003, yes 2003Although he can perform software like LibreOffice, Firefox and some old versions of Adobe Photoshop. Reactos incorporates parts of the wine project and even supports the start of 64 -bit Linux systems via its Freeloader utility.
Four years of manufacture
Originally launched as Freewin95 in the late 1990s, he evolved in Reactos in order to become a real Windows alternative.
Today, it looks like Windows 2000 in appearance and functionality, although compatibility is very affected – some conventional games and applications work perfectly well, while others crash or fail to get started at all.
The latest version named, version 0.4.14, was released in December 2021, and since then the development has continued, with new constructions produced automatically each time a change is committed, although these versions are not tested in the same way as the stables.
Now, four years after the appearance of the last stable update, Reactos 0.4.15 has arrived and you can download it as a starter CD or Livecd here.
The latest version offers plug and play corrections, audio corrections, improvements in memory management, register healing and improvements in accessories and system tools, including notebooks, painting, rapps, input method editor and shell.
As you can see from the version number, 0.4.15, Reactos is still alpha and will probably remain it for a very long time.
He may never reach the beta version, and even less to be finished, but that does not mean that it is not worth your time.
You will not want to use it as a daily driver, but take it for a turn in VirtualBox and you amaze what the team has managed to create here.
Reactos, although impressive for what it is, will only remain a retro curiosity – but the team provides major additions in the next big version, which, hopefully, will not yet take four years to arrive.
The expected future features include UEFI Support, a new graphic installation program, a new NTFS file system driver, symmetrical multiproaches (SMP), power management and wider applications compatibility.
