Management features new to Windows Vista

Windows Vista contains a range of new technologies and features that are intended to help network administrators and power users better manage their systems. Notable changes include a complete replacement of the "Windows Setup" process, completely rewritten deployment mechanisms, support for per-application sessions, new diagnostic and health monitoring tools, and a range of new Group Policy settings covering many of the features new to Windows Vista.

Other areas of interest include major changes to Task Scheduler, as well as the addition of Subsystem for UNIX Applications, which provides a POSIX-compatible environment for applications as part of the operating system itself.

The setup process for Windows Vista has been completely rewritten and is now image-based. Setup is now based on Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE) version 2.0, which, amongst other features, runs the entire setup process in a graphical environment, as opposed to the text-based environments of previous versions. Visually, the user interface resembles Windows Vista itself, using ClearType fonts and the Aero visual style, and enabling the use of a mouse. Prior to copying the setup image, users can graphically resize partitions.

Support for loading third-party disk drivers has improved. Whereas Windows XP only supported loading drivers from floppy disks while the setup environment is initially loading, Windows Vista additionally supports loading drivers from USB and Firewire storage devices, and from CDs and DVDs from within the main setup wizard.

Microsoft has aimed to reduce the amount of time setup takes to complete. Setup is now significantly faster than with Windows XP, and thus Windows Vista can be installed in as little as 20 minutes. This is especially notable considering that the Windows Vista install is more than three times the size of its predecessor.

At the end of the setup process, Windows Vista automatically downloads and applies security and device-driver updates from Windows Update.

The new Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) detects and fixes startup related problems. It can be accessed by pressing F8 during startup. The system then boots into the WinRE interface and offers various tests as well as recovery and failure detection tools. WinRE automatically detects blue screen errors and registry damage and tries to repair the system and get it up and running quickly.

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Wikipedia