Windows Academic Program Announced

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Windows Academic Program Components
• Windows Operating System Internals Curriculum Resource Kit (CRK): The CRK was developed by Mark Russinovich and David Solomon (authors of Windows Internals, 4th edition) with Professor Polze from Potsdam University. The Kit is a collection of instructional material, including lectures, labs, quizzes, and assignments, that follows the ACM/IEEE-CS Operating System Body of Knowledge (BOK) to illustrate OS concepts using Microsoft Windows XP / Server 2003 as a case study. The CRK materials are available via the Academic Alliance Repository.

• Windows Research Kernel (WRK): The WRK packages core Windows XP x64/Server 2003 SP1 kernel source code with an environment for building and testing experimental versions of the Windows kernel for use in teaching and research. The Windows Research Kernel is available via Academic Alliance Faculty Connection subscription.

• ProjectOZ: ProjectOZ is an operating systems project environment that uses the native kernel interfaces of Windows to provide simple, clean, user-mode abstractions of the CPU, MMU, trap mechanism, and physical memory that can be used to perform experiments in operating systems principles. ProjectOZ is an alternative to Unix-based simulators for exploring operating system principles. The ProjectOZ materials are available via the Academic Alliance Repository.

What does this program enable?
The Windows Academic Program enables faculty and students worldwide to study the Windows operating system core at a detailed level, receiving a hands-on education with an innovative and industry leading OS, that differs significantly from the UNIX-like systems available for study today. The Windows Academic Program eases the challenges faced by computer science faculty who want to incorporate Windows into their OS courses by delivering a set of curriculum resources that support teaching the Windows operating system platform, an experimental project environment based on the NT kernel interfaces to provide hands-on lab experience, and access to the core Windows kernel source code for study and experimentation.

Microsoft has provided royalty-free access to its IP portfolio for academic research for over a decade. With the recent releases of Solutions Sharing Network for Education and community development projects such as the SharePoint Learning Kit, Microsoft continues its commitment to expanding resources and source code in the education sector. The Windows Academic Program is an extension of this effort, enabling computer science faculty and students worldwide royalty-free access to the Windows kernel, encouraging the growth of computer science study, and driving new innovation for the generations ahead.