(WES).

Service Pack 3 was released for Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional at the end of April, and its availability for XPe has been eagerly anticipated since then. For the most part, it is a rollup of previously released patches. However, it notably adds Network Access Protection (NAP), a network policy enforcement platform previously included in Windows Vista. NAP allows creating "customized health policies" to validate computer health before allowing network access, and optionally confining non-compliant computers to a restricted network until they become compliant, according to Microsoft.


SP3's Security Options control panel has more descriptive text
(Click to enlarge)
Other new functionality in Windows XPe SP3 includes the following, according to Microsoft:

• "Black hole" router protection
  
• An improved security user interface (shown above)
  
• A FIPS 140-1 Level 1-compliant cryptographic module
  
• Initial installation without provision of a product key

For more details on the above additions, plus specifics of the previously available patches that have been incorporated into Service Pack 3, see our earlier coverage, here.

Windows Embedded Standard

The new Windows Embedded Standard (WES) CTP is the latest version of an operating system intended to replace XPe later this year. Compared to the initial beta released in June, the new release features "improved setup experience and migration support from XPe," a System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) "Client Prereq Macro," additional device drivers, and various other updates, according to Microsoft.


The Windows Embedded Standard installer
(Click to enlarge)
Still based on the XPe codebase, WES already incorporates the SP3 improvements mentioned above. It also offers the following additional features, says Microsoft:

• The .NET Framework 3.5 programming foundation (previously touted, but not included in the earlier beta)
  
• Internet Explorer 7, for tabbed web browsing
  
• Windows Media Player 11, with a new interface for media playback
  
• Silverlight, the cross-browser, cross-platform multimedia plugin
  
• Remote Desktop Protocol version 6.1, for connecting remotely to Windows Vista-based PCs
  
• Componentized drivers for Intel's latest x86 processor architectures, such as the Centrino Atom

For more details on WES, see our earlier coverage, here.

Further information

A final release of Windows Embedded Standard will take place in the fourth quarter, Microsoft says. Until then, Windows XP Embedded (XPe) remains on sale. Customers who purchase XPe between now and September 2008 will be eligible for a free upgrade, according to the company.

To download either the new Windows Embedded Standard CTP, or the CTP of SP3 for XPe, go to Microsoft's website, here.

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