1. Developing and Supporting Apps in Windows as a Service (WaaS)
Rama Shastri
Program Manager – WDG Compat Team

2. Agenda What is Windows as a Service (WaaS) Supporting apps in WaaS
11/12/ :10 PM
Agenda
What is Windows as a Service (WaaS)
Supporting apps in WaaS
How does Microsoft maintain compatibility
Best practices and guidelines for app developers
How to leverage flighting for validation
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

3. Pre-Windows 10 Servicing
Microsoft Build 2016
11/12/ :10 PM
Pre-Windows 10 Servicing
Customer Complexity and Cost
Fragmentation - Ecosystem Impact
System differences - Reduced Quality
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

4. Current Branch for Business
11/12/2018
Windows 10 – Windows as a Service
Engineering builds
Broad Microsoft internal validation
Windows
Insider Preview
Current Branch
Current Branch for Business
Hundreds
of millions
Several Million
10’s of
thousands
Users
Time
Pre-Release
4 to 6 months
Released
~ 4 months
~ 8 months
*Conceptual illustration only
© 2015 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION

5. Update and Feature Updates
Servicing Updates
Monthly servicing releases
Does not contain new features
All updates are cumulative
Feature Updates
Infrequent : 2 per year
New feature capabilities
Has specific support lifecycle

6. Supporting Apps – Current Model
Application releases coincide with Windows releases
ISVs do extensive testing on release builds
ISVs declare support for specific Windows version
Enterprise customers package the new app versions for deployment
Current approach will not scale in WaaS!

7. How does Microsoft maintain compatibility
Microsoft Build 2016
11/12/ :10 PM
How does Microsoft maintain compatibility
Design reviews
App telemetry
ISV partnerships
OS Flighting and feedback loop
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

8. Supporting Apps in WaaS
Decouple app support from specific Windows builds
Apps are supported for a specified time interval (lifecycle management)
Enterprises do not wait for an explicit support statement to upgrade to latest CBB
Goal
Enterprise customers are confident of app compatibility on any build
ISVs focus on keeping their customer base updated on any Windows release

9. A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
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A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
Don’t take hard dependency on OS Version number
Query for the specific features that your app needs
Don’t use undocumented APIs
Develop UWP and Centennial apps
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

10. A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
11/12/ :10 PM
A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
Don’t take hard dependency on OS Version number
Installers may not work correctly; apps may not be able to launch
Apps may become unstable or crash
Apps may generate error messages that don’t impact app performance but which scare users
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

11. A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
11/12/ :10 PM
A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
Do query for specific features your app needs
Query for the presence of specific APIset
Don’t use version as a proxy for a feature or fix
Do target the correct API version if you are dependent on specific functionality
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

12. A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
11/12/ :10 PM
A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
Don’t use undocumented APIs
May be tempting, but can lead to broken functionality, data loss & security issues
Don’t take dependencies on specific Windows file exports or registry keys
Do provide feedback if your app requires functionality that is not available today
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

13. A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
11/12/ :10 PM
A compatible ecosystem: Better Together
Develop UWP & Centennial apps
Supported in the Windows Store—a great way to ensure your users are up to date at all times & instant access to app insights
Win32 installers are very error-prone
May fail on 64-bit versions of Windows
Installer may be broken if Windows redistributables have been repackaged
Often are not fully tested (easy to overlook if this worked in the past)
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

14. Embrace flighting to validate your apps
11/12/ :10 PM
Embrace flighting to validate your apps
Sign up to be a Windows Insider
Receive the latest Windows builds & host your apps
Exercise app scenarios on flighted machine
Investigate issues and let us know if you need help
Declare support for WaaS
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

15. Embrace flighting to validate your apps
11/12/ :10 PM
Embrace flighting to validate your apps
Sign up to be a Windows Insider
Available for PC and Phone
Community contributes to the future of Windows
Early access to builds & direct feedback
Access to Insider-only events
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

16. Embrace flighting to validate your apps
11/12/ :10 PM
Embrace flighting to validate your apps
Receive the latest Windows builds & host your apps
Set up your test environment for flighting
Exercise app scenarios on flighted machine
Validate your app works after upgrade
Test your app’s reliance on OS functionality (audio, touch, pen, camera, USB, Bluetooth, etc)
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

17. Embrace Flighting to validate your apps
11/12/ :10 PM
Embrace Flighting to validate your apps
Investigate issues & let us know if you need help
Report issues using the Windows Feedback tool
We can build a quality experience for our users together
Declare support for WaaS
When your validation is complete, declare support for Windows 10 on
Leverage the Windows App Insights portal to highlight your app with customers (coming soon)
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

18. Call to action Become an Windows Insider and adopt flighting
11/12/ :10 PM
Call to action
Become an Windows Insider and adopt flighting
List your app on
Develop UWP and Centennial apps
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

19. Recommended Reading Windows 10 Servicing Options
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Recommended Reading
Windows 10 Servicing Options
Windows 10 Compatibility Cookbook
Whitepaper on ‘Developing and Supporting Apps in WaaS’
How to develop Universal Windows Platform (UWP)
Develop Centennial apps
Windows App Certification Kit
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

20. 11/12/ :10 PM
© 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.