Windows PE

Winsage
April 5, 2025
Gustave Monce, a PhD student from Bordeaux, is working on a project to run Windows on the Google Pixel Watch 3, referred to as "Windows on ARM." Initially announced on April Fools' Day, Monce clarified that the project is serious and involves UEFI on the Pixel Watch 3 with the capability to boot Windows and Linux. He has previously developed DuoWOA, enabling Windows 11 to run on Microsoft's Surface Duo, and is also working on LumiaWOA for the Nokia Lumia 950 and 950XL. The smartwatch project utilizes an Arm64 build of Windows PE, allowing the Pixel Watch 3 to boot a WinPE image via UEFI, though the final installation steps remain undocumented. Monce describes the project as real and goofy, acknowledging its current limitations while inviting others to explore the code.
Winsage
April 2, 2025
A PhD student named Gustave Monce, along with a small team, successfully ran the Windows operating system on a Pixel Watch through the WOA project. The process involved examining a rooted boot image, modifying the stock UEFI, altering the ACPI table, and patching various files to enable the watch to run Windows PE. Despite the extensive work, the project faced challenges due to the Pixel Watch's internal architecture, which was designed for its native OS. Additionally, old iPads can be repurposed as e-readers by downloading e-book reader applications or, for a more ambitious project, by booting them with a Raspberry Pi or another Linux-based operating system.
Winsage
April 2, 2025
PhD student Gustave Monce has successfully run Windows for Arm on the Pixel Watch 3, utilizing its quad-core Snapdragon processor and 456×456 OLED display. He modified Qualcomm’s UEFI-based XBL bootloader to boot the Windows Preinstallation Environment (PE). Despite challenges from the release of Android 15, which disrupted his code-loading process, Monce adapted the stock kernel image to restore booting into Windows PE with limited functionality. He has achieved basic USB support for mass storage, highlighting the potential of modern mobile hardware.
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