Microsoft Details Making USB 3.0 Great in Windows 8
While there are other emerging interconnect standards that promise speedy transfers, such as Thunderbolt, USB 3.0 still has the momentum from its previous iterations.
Windows 8 will support the latest round of hardware technologies, and its developers have shared with us on the official blog the work being done to integrate "SuperSpeed" USB 3.0 into the operating system.
The Windows team's work on USB 3.0 support started before there were even any devices available. Microsoft worked with virtual devices until there was real hardware on which to test.
"To create a brand new USB software stack, we had to start work early. If we waited for hardware to be available we would be too late to support the budding USB 3.0 ecosystem. We decided to start before there were any USB 3.0 devices by building 'virtual' devices," read the Windows Team Blog. "Virtual devices are software representations of real, physical USB hardware: the ports, the hubs, and other devices.
"While we were focused on building support for USB 3.0 chips inside the PC, we couldn’t ignore the world of devices. We had to think outside the box – literally. There are over 10 billion USB devices worldwide. Some are in use daily and some are tucked away collecting dust, but all were originally designed to work with Windows PCs. Compatibility is the Windows promise. Our customers have grown accustomed to expecting new versions of Windows to work with their existing devices and drivers. This commitment to compatibility remains a high priority for Windows 8 across the whole product."
While Apple's operating systems have the luxury of being in a relatively limited and closed ecosystem, Microsoft has a huge challenge in making sure its software is compatible with the widest range of hardware.
The blog further provides a peek into the sort of effort devoted to compatibility: " After 10 years of USB experience, a dozen telemetry sources, and tons of research and brainstorming, we were able to reduce the USB compatibility effort to roughly 1000 unique devices that we regularly test in the Windows labs. We ensure the devices get recognized correctly when connected to PCs, that they sleep and resume appropriately to conserve power, and that they are able to withstand various stress conditions. Our telemetry data indicates that over 90% of devices rely on the 16 class drivers in Windows, but for the more customized devices, we verify that their drivers get seamlessly downloaded from Windows Update whenever possible (the device maker needs to cooperate to support this scenario). With USB 3.0 providing full backwards compatibility, older drivers will still work without any changes."
After all that work, we get the screaming performance that you can see in the video below
Even with USB 3.0, transferring files is one of the few things that I actually have to sit and wait for more than a few seconds for my computer to complete. The industry really needs to push this forward, USB 4.0 needs to happen within just a few years.
i think the point here is that Microsoft implemented a better software protocol stack for USB3.0 to speed up the transfer rates of 3.0 devices. In other words, USB3.0 is going to perform better in Windows 8 than it will in Windows 7.
Even with USB 3.0, transferring files is one of the few things that I actually have to sit and wait for more than a few seconds for my computer to complete. The industry really needs to push this forward, USB 4.0 needs to happen within just a few years.
/drool
i think the point here is that Microsoft implemented a better software protocol stack for USB3.0 to speed up the transfer rates of 3.0 devices. In other words, USB3.0 is going to perform better in Windows 8 than it will in Windows 7.
what i mean is a normal hdd if im not wrong, will not saturate a 3.0 line
ssds yes, hdd no
so for now, at least for me, usb has become fast enough. when an ssd becomes a viable storage device, as in 1tb portable, than usb will need a another boost. key word there is NEED. you can want if faster but you dont need it.
And they couldn't do this with Windows 7? Windows 7 Sp1 was suppose to have software protocol to natively support USB 3.0 if you recall and the Microsoft but decided to ditch support for it in Sp1.
Indeed, most HDDs will burst at 150-200MB/s and sustain at 80-130MB/s, USB3 transfers at a 'theoretical' 625MB/s, which will out-class even some of the fastest SSD drives on the market. The big problem I see is that most devices used on USB are printers and flash drives, both of which are painfully slow and dont even max out USB2, so I see most of this bandwidth going to waste, with the exception of power users.
I agree with you there. This is a good thing they've done, but the demo is not a worst-case scenario. I don't know if flash drives or HDDs can match these speeds...
Right, except for Apple devices which were designed to work with Mac OS.
There are also a few devices designed to rely on actual USB standards so that they wouldn't need to include a frisbee more outdated than the concept of throwing a piece of plastic to entertain your dogs face.
no need to get snappy with me budd. I was just stating what the article was about.