Windows XP       Windows® XP Professional   Windows XP Professional sets a new standard for performance and reliability. If you demand the most from your operating system, this version of Windows was designed for you. Find out about all the great features.       Product Overview   Reliable By building on the proven Windows 2000 operating system, Windows XP Professional delivers a reliable foundation you can count on to keep your computer up and running when you need it most. Not only is Windows XP more reliable, it also helps you more easily recover from system problems.   High performance Computers running Windows XP Professional outperform Windows 98 Second Edition, and meet the performance of Windows 2000 on commercial benchmarks. Not only will Windows XP launch applications faster, in most cases, your entire system will start up much more quickly.   Secure Security features in Windows XP Professional protect sensitive and confidential data both on your computer and while you are transmitting over a network or the Internet. With support for the latest security standards and enhanced virus protection, Windows XP also protects you from some of the more common types of Internet attacks.   Easy to use From its fresh, new look to its intuitive, task-based design, Windows XP Professional makes it easier than ever to use your computer. You'll be able to get more done in less time, find items in a snap, and arrange files and folders in a way that makes sense to you. Simply put, Windows XP Professional helps you work smarter.       System Requirements   PC with 300 megahertz or higher processor clock speed recommended; 233 MHz minimum required (single or dual processor system);* Intel Pentium/Celeron family, or AMD K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor recommended 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features) 1.5 gigabytes (GB) of available hard disk space* Super VGA (800 x 600) or higher-resolution video adapter and monitor CD-ROM or DVD drive Keyboard and Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device       Product Information   Feature Description Reliable   Built on the new Windows engine Windows XP Professional is built on the proven code base of Windows NT and Windows 2000, which features a 32-bit computing architecture and a fully protected memory model.     Enhanced device driver verifier Building on the device driver verifier found in Windows 2000, the Windows XP Professional will provide even greater stress tests for device drivers.     Dramatically reduced reboot scenarios Eliminates most scenarios that force end users to reboot in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 95/98/Me. Also, many software installations will not require reboots.     Improved code protection Critical kernel data structures are read-only, so that drivers and applications cannot corrupt them. All device driver code is read-only and page protected.     Side-by-side DLL support Provides a mechanism for multiple versions of individual Windows components to be installed and run "side by side."     Windows File Protection Protects core system files from being overwritten by application installations. If a file is overwritten, Windows File Protection will restore the correct version.     Windows Installer A system service that helps users install, configure, track, upgrade, and remove software programs correctly.     Enhanced software restriction policies Provide administrators a policy-driven mechanism to identify software running in their environment and control its ability to execute. This facility can be used in virus and Trojan horse prevention and software lockdown.     Preemptive multitasking architecture Designed to allow multiple applications to run simultaneously, while ensuring great system response and stability.     Scalable memory and processor support Supports up to 4 gigabytes (GB) of RAM and up to two symmetric multiprocessors.     Encrypting File System (EFS) with multi-user support Encrypts each file with a randomly generated key. The encryption and decryption processes are transparent to the user. In Windows XP Professional, EFS can provide multiple users access to an encrypted document.     IP Security (IPSec) Helps protect data transmitted across a network. IPSec is an important part of providing security for virtual private networks (VPNs), which allow organizations to transmit data securely over the Internet.     Kerberos support Provides industry-standard and high-strength authentication with fast, single logon to Windows 2000—based enterprise resources. Kerberos is an Internet standard, which makes it especially effective for networks that include different operating systems such as UNIX.     Smart card support Smart card capabilities are integrated into the operating system, including support for smart card logon to terminal server sessions hosted on Windows Server 2003—based (the next-generation server platform) terminal servers.     Internet Explorer Add-on Manager Easily manage and enforce a list of Internet Explorer add-ons that are either permitted or disabled to enhance security.     Windows Firewall Turned on by default, the built-in Windows Firewall helps increase computer security from startup to shutdown.     Windows Security Center Easily manage security resources with this single, unified view of key settings, tools, and access to resources.     Attachment Manager Isolates potentially unsafe attachments during the opening process.     Data Execution Prevention Helps prevent certain types of malicious code from attacking and overwhelming a computer’s memory.     Windows Firewall Exception List Helps administrators better manage applications and static port exceptions by allowing only ports needed by an application to be open.     Windows Firewall Application and Port Restrictions Easily configure applications and ports to receive network traffic only with a source address from any location, the local subnet only, or from specific IP addresses. Easy to Use   Fresh visual design While maintaining the core of Windows 2000, Windows XP Professional has a fresh visual design. Common tasks have been consolidated and simplified, and new visual cues have been added to help users navigate their computers more easily. Administrators or end users can choose this updated user interface or the classic Windows 2000 interface with the click of a button.     Adaptive user environment Adapts to the way an individual user works. With a redesigned Start menu, the most frequently used applications are shown first. When you open multiple files in the same application, (such as multiple e-mail messages in the Microsoft Outlook messaging and collaboration client) the open windows will be consolidated under a single task bar button. To remove some of the clutter from the notification area, items that are not being used will be hidden. All of these features can be set using Group Policy.     Context-sensitive task menus When a file is selected in Windows Explorer, a dynamic menu appears. This menu lists tasks that are appropriate for the type of file selected.     Integrated CD burning Support for burning CDs on CD-R and CD-RW drives is integrated into Windows Explorer.     Easily publish information to the Web Files and folders can be easily published to any Web service that uses the WebDAV protocol.     Dualview A single computer desktop can be displayed on two monitors driven off of a single display adapter. With a laptop computer, a user could run the internal LCD display as well as an external monitor. A variety of high-end display adapters will support this functionality for desktops.     Troubleshooters Helps users and administrators configure, optimize, and troubleshoot numerous Windows XP Professional functions.