There's been quite a bit of chatting on the AlphaNT mail list about running Windows 2000 on Alpha. Let's take a look at what's going on.
But wasn't the Alpha platform dropped before Windows 2000 was released? The simple answer: yes. But...
Yup, always a "but". Development on the Alpha port of NT was active well after the bitter end (after all, Intel still doesn't have a 64 bit processor on the market, way over a year after Alpha support was dropped -- someone had to pick up Intel's slack). That means that beta kits were out there, of course, in the hands of many beta testers. The last official beta release of Windows 2000 was RC1, build 2072. Some bits continued to be built after the plug was pulled -- internally to MS, there were builds available substantially after that, and the last known internal build was 2128.
The differences between RC1 and the release version of Windows 2000 are inconsequential for the average user. So relatively good bits made it into somewhat limited distribution.
Timebomb, that is. The beta's were deliberately handicapped, set to "self-destruct", so to speak, 444 days after installation.
While that may sound like a terminal problem (especially to us folks who are still running their original NT4 installation from years ago), there are various ways users are getting around this issue.
The latter hack is documented on many sites on the Internet. One of the better tutorials available (as of this writing) is from the RC3whore's website. Happy hacking to you.
But if you never received the RC1 kit, are you out of luck? Not in this day and age of ADSL, cable modems, and CD-R's. I won't divulge names (especially easy since I don't know anyone doing it) but there seem to be quite a few people around who are running RC1 and I'm sure someone would be willing to make such kits available.
I'll promise you now that you won't find a copy on the AlphaNT Source's site.
Oh, there's lots of reasons people have given for upgrading to W2K on Alpha, even if it is a beta version. Some of the top reasons include USB support, better/different hardware support, FX!32 being integrated in the OS (which also supports x86 Office 2000 -- search the AlphaNT mail list archive on this site for tips on how to install "Office 2000 and Windows 2000 RC1"), and, of course, compatibility with other W2K systems on the same net.
The risks? You're running unsupported beta software. If you disable the timebomb, you're violating the EULA. There's no support from Microsoft. (someone stop me from laughing!!!) (Hey, I'm working hard to think up these "why not's"! Give me some slack!)
So, it's up to you. It's a fair amount of work, and only you can decide if it's worth the risks. Whatever you choose, I'm sure that you'll find plenty of folks on the AlphaNT mail list willing to at least lend a supportive ear.
Aaron Sakovich