Operating System Version

The Version API Helper functions are used to determine the version of the operating system that is currently running. For more information, see Getting the System Version.

The following table summarizes the most recent operating system version numbers.

Operating system	Version number
Windows 10	10.0*
Windows Server 2019	10.0*
Windows Server 2016	10.0*
Windows 8.1	6.3*
Windows Server 2012 R2	6.3*
Windows 8	6.2
Windows Server 2012	6.2
Windows 7	6.1
Windows Server 2008 R2	6.1
Windows Server 2008	6.0
Windows Vista	6.0
Windows Server 2003 R2	5.2
Windows Server 2003	5.2
Windows XP 64-Bit Edition	5.2
Windows XP	5.1
Windows 2000	5.0

* For applications that have been manifested for Windows 8.1 or Windows 10. Applications not manifested for Windows 8.1 or Windows 10 will return the Windows 8 OS version value (6.2). To manifest your applications for Windows 8.1 or Windows 10, refer to Targeting your application for Windows.

Identifying the current operating system is usually not the best way to determine whether a particular operating system feature is present. This is because the operating system may have had new features added in a redistributable DLL. Rather than using the Version API Helper functions to determine the operating system platform or version number, test for the presence of the feature itself.

To determine the best way to test for a feature, refer to the documentation for the feature of interest. The following list discusses some common techniques for feature detection:

You can test for the presence of the functions associated with a feature. To test for the presence of a function in a system DLL, call the LoadLibrary function to load the DLL. Then call the GetProcAddress function to determine whether the function of interest is present in the DLL. Use the pointer returned by GetProcAddress to call the function. Note that even if the function is present, it may be a stub that just returns an error code such as ERROR_CALL_NOT_IMPLEMENTED.
You can determine the presence of some features by using the GetSystemMetrics function. For example, you can detect multiple display monitors by calling GetSystemMetrics(SM_CMONITORS).
There are several versions of the redistributable DLLs that implement shell and common control features. For information about determining which versions are present on the system your application is running on, see the topic Shell and Common Controls Versions.

If you must require a particular operating system, be sure to use it as a minimum supported version, rather than design the test for the one operating system. This way, your detection code will continue to work on future versions of Windows.

Note that a 32-bit application can detect whether it is running under WOW64 by calling the IsWow64Process function. It can obtain additional processor information by calling the GetNativeSystemInfo function.

OSVERSIONINFOA structure (winnt.h)

Contains operating system version information. The information includes major and minor version numbers, a build number, a platform identifier, and descriptive text about the operating system. This structure is used with the GetVersionEx function.

To obtain additional version information, use the OSVERSIONINFOEX structure with GetVersionEx instead.

Syntax

Members

The size of this data structure, in bytes. Set this member to sizeof(OSVERSIONINFO) .

The major version number of the operating system. For more information, see Remarks.

The minor version number of the operating system. For more information, see Remarks.

The build number of the operating system.

The operating system platform. This member can be the following value.

Value	Meaning
VER_PLATFORM_WIN32_NT 2	The operating system is WindowsВ 7, Windows ServerВ 2008, WindowsВ Vista, Windows ServerВ 2003, WindowsВ XP, or WindowsВ 2000.

A null-terminated string, such as «Service Pack 3», that indicates the latest Service Pack installed on the system. If no Service Pack has been installed, the string is empty.

Remarks

Relying on version information is not the best way to test for a feature. Instead, refer to the documentation for the feature of interest. For more information on common techniques for feature detection, see Operating System Version.

The following table summarizes the values returned by supported versions of Windows. Use the information in the column labeled «Other» to distinguish between operating systems with identical version numbers.

Operating system	Version number	dwMajorVersion	dwMinorVersion	Other
WindowsВ 10	10.0*	10	0	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType == VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2016	10.0*	10	0	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType != VER_NT_WORKSTATION
WindowsВ 8.1	6.3*	6	3	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType == VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2012В R2	6.3*	6	3	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType != VER_NT_WORKSTATION
WindowsВ 8	6.2	6	2	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType == VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2012	6.2	6	2	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType != VER_NT_WORKSTATION
WindowsВ 7	6.1	6	1	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType == VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2008В R2	6.1	6	1	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType != VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2008	6.0	6	0	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType != VER_NT_WORKSTATION
WindowsВ Vista	6.0	6	0	OSVERSIONINFOEX.wProductType == VER_NT_WORKSTATION
Windows ServerВ 2003В R2	5.2	5	2	GetSystemMetrics(SM_SERVERR2) != 0
Windows ServerВ 2003	5.2	5	2	GetSystemMetrics(SM_SERVERR2) == 0
WindowsВ XP	5.1	5	1	Not applicable
WindowsВ 2000	5.0	5	0	Not applicable
* For applications that have been manifested for WindowsВ 8.1 or WindowsВ 10. Applications not manifested for WindowsВ 8.1 or WindowsВ 10 will return the WindowsВ 8 OS version value (6.2). To manifest your applications for WindowsВ 8.1 or WindowsВ 10, refer to Targeting your application for Windows.

Examples

The winnt.h header defines OSVERSIONINFO as an alias which automatically selects the ANSI or Unicode version of this function based on the definition of the UNICODE preprocessor constant. Mixing usage of the encoding-neutral alias with code that not encoding-neutral can lead to mismatches that result in compilation or runtime errors. For more information, see Conventions for Function Prototypes.

Windows (operating system)

Windows is a series of operating systems produced and maintained by the Microsoft Corporation. It was estimated that as of December 2007 [1] Microsoft Windows accounted for nearly 90% of operating system usage, with 3 out of 4 being Windows XP. Windows is used for desktop, and server computers, [2] and more recently also for cellular phones and tablet computers. It is intended for use with the Intel x86-64 family of processors.

Early versions of Windows (98 and earlier) were notoriously unreliable, despite (or maybe because of?) Microsoft’s near-monopoly share of the operating system market. They crashed so often that the term «blue screen of death» entered the vocabulary. See also this satire: Matrix Runs on Windows XP

Initially Windows was a text-based system (MS-DOS). Then a Graphical User Interface extension was added onto this MS-DOS core [3] It became a full GUI operating system free of the MS-DOS core beginning with the release of Windows NT.

Windows Major Release Versions

Professional: 650MB
Server and Advanced Server: 1GB [11]

Name	Version Number	Public Release	Notes	Editions	Minimum RAM required	Minimum drive space
Windows 1.0	1.0	November 20, 1985 [4]	Sold 500,000 copies [5]
Windows 1.02	1.02	May 1986	Multilingual (international) release of 1.0
Windows 1.03	1.03	August 1986	Further upgrades for international use, including more drivers and European keyboard support
Windows 1.04	1.04	April 1987	Further functionality additions, including support for IBM PS/2 computers
Windows 2.0	2.11	March 13, 1989	Last Windows version to run a GUI as a shell over a base of MS-DOS [6] Sold 1 million copies
Windows 3.0	NT 3.0	May 22, 1990	First Windows version to run without an MS-DOS base [6] Sold 4 million copies
Windows 3.1	3.1	April 1992	First MS operating system on CD-ROM	Windows 3.1 Windows for Workgroups 3.1 (October 1992)	1MB	i286 15MB
Windows 3.2	November 22, 1993	Chinese version of Windows 3.1
Windows NT 3.5	3.5.807	September 21, 1994	Workstation Server
Windows NT 3.51	3.51.1057	May 30, 1995	An operating system design that led to the elimination of Novell Networks leading market share. This New Technologies (NT) kernel became the basis for all future Windows versions through Windows 10.	Workstation Server
Windows 95	NT 4.0.950	August 24, 1995	Uses the same skin as 98, 2000, and ME	4MB [7]	40.8-76.2MB [8]
Windows NT 4.0	NT 4.0	July 29, 1996	Workstation Server Server Enterprise Terminal Server
Windows CE Alder [9]	CE 1.0	November 16, 1996 [9]	2MB
Windows CE Birch [9]	CE 2.0	November 1997 [9]	Auto PC platform introduced [10]
Windows 98	NT 4.1.1998	June 25, 1998	Uses the same skin as 95, 2000, and ME	16MB	500MB
Windows 98 Second Edition	NT 4.1.2222	April 23, 1999	Uses the same skin as 95, 2000, and ME
Windows CE 2.1
Windows 2000	NT 5.0.2195	February 17, 2000	Uses the same skin as 95, 98, and ME Last dedicated operating system for business use	Professional Server Advanced Server Datacenter Server Xbox Xbox 360
Windows CE Cedar	CE 3.0	April 2000	Windows CE for Automotive
Windows ME	NT 4.90.3000	September 14, 2000	Uses the same skin as 95, 98, and 2000 Last dedicated operating system for personal use
Windows XP	5.1.2600	October 25, 2001	Last major version to use this layout, which was introduced with Windows 95 XP was the beginning of one unified O/S for both personal and business use. Only one version is still supported by Microsoft, XP Embedded until January 2019. Sold 400 million copies	Starter Home Professional Professional x64 Media Center 2002 Media Center 2004 Media Center 2005 Tablet PC Embedded	x32/x86: 64MB [12] x64: 256MB	1.5GB
Windows CE Talisker [9]	CE 4.0	January 7, 2002
Windows CE Jameson [9]	CE 4.1	June 2002 [9]	Windows Automotive
Windows CE McKendric [9]	CE 4.2	April 2003 [9]	Windows Automotive 4.2
Windows Server 2003	NT 5.2	2003
Windows CE Macallan [9]	CE 5.0	August 2004 [9]	Windows Automotive 5.0	6MB [13]
Windows Server 2003 R2	2006
Windows CE Yamazaki [9]	CE 6.0	September 2006 [9]	Microsoft Auto 3.0 Zune HD
Windows Vista	NT 6.0.6000	January 30, 2007	System uses new layout, but started out with some problems Sold 180 million copies Extended support ends April 11, 2017 [14]	Starter Home Basic Home Premium Business Ultimate Enterprise	Home Basic: 512MB, All Others: 1GB [15]	20GB
Windows Server 2008	February 27, 2008	512 MB	Foundation: 10GB, other x32/86: 20GB, other x64: 32GB
Windows 7	NT 6.1.7600	October 22, 2009	Uses the same basic layout as Vista, but system is more stable Sold 600 million copies Extended support ends January 14, 2020	Starter Home Basic Home Premium Professional Enterprise Ultimate Thin PC	x32/x86: 1GB, x64: 2GB [12]	x32/x86: 16GB, x64: 20GB
Windows Server 2008 R2	2010	HPC Standard Enterprise Itanium	512 MB	Foundation: 10GB, others: 32GB
Windows Embedded Compact 7	CE 6.0 R3	2011	Windows Embedded Automotive 7 Windows Phone 7
Windows Server 2012	NT 6.2	2012	Foundation Essentials Standard Datacenter	512MB	32GB
Windows 8	NT 6.2	October 26, 2012	Designed to serve as an OS for all kinds of devices, including smartphones Also did away with the Start menu Sold surprisingly poorly Extended support ends January 10, 2023	Standard Professional Enterprise Embedded	x32/x86: 1GB, x64: 2GB [16]	x32/x86: 16GB, x64: 20GB
Windows RT	NT 6.3	October 30, 2012	Designed exclusively for ARMv7 processors Based on Windows 8 without an upgrade path to Windows 10 Support already phasing out	Embedded	32-Bit: 2GB [16]	32-Bit: 20GB, 32GB
Windows Server 2012 R2	NT 6.3	2013	Foundation Essentials Standard Datacenter	512MB	32GB
Windows 8.1	NT 6.3	October 17, 2013	Slight update from 8.0 which brings back the Start button	Standard Professional Enterprise Embedded	x32/x86: 1GB, x64: 2GB [16]
Windows 10	NT 6.4 [17]	July 29, 2015	Designed to collect personal information and customize itself based on preferences 270 million copies of version 10 are in use as of March 2016. [18] Extended support ends October 14, 2025	Home Professional Enterprise Education Mobile Mobile Enterprise IoT Core Xbox One	x32/x86: 1GB, x64: 2GB [19]	x32/x86: 16GB, x64: 20GB [20][21]
Windows Server 2016	October 12, 2016 (RTM: September 26, 2016)	Essentials Standard Datacenter
Name	Version Number	Public Release	Notes	Editions	Minimum RAM required	Minimum drive space

(Some popular NT releases are listed in bold and special server releases are listed in italic.) [22] [23] [24] [25]

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Windows operating systems version numbers