Windows was build with a full POSIX.1 subsystem. It was part of the design speci... | Hacker News

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shin_lao on March 11, 2010 | parent | context | favorite | on: Is Microsoft Afraid to Say the L-word?

Windows was build with a full POSIX.1 subsystem. It was part of the design specifications.

What you are referring to is running some sort of Posix system on top of Win32 (Cygwin), but NT is capable of running Posix natively.

Services for Unix doesn't install a Posix subsystem, it replaces it with another called Interix.

The POSIX subsystem has been removed from the installation since Windows XP.

n.b. : Subsystems are how programs interface with the "real" NT API. Win32 is a subsystem as well.

vetinari on March 11, 2010 [–]

Returning "not implemented" is compliant with POSIX specification, but does not make the implementation useful. Which is exactly the case of NT POSIX subsystem.

shin_lao on March 12, 2010 | [–]

Could you provide me with an example? NT subsystem fully implements POSIX.1

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