It is a direct upgrade to its predecessors, Windows 2000 for high-end and business users and Windows Me for home users, and is available for any devices running Windows NT 4.0, Windows 98, Windows 2000, or Windows Me that meet the new Windows XP system requirements.ĭevelopment of Windows XP began in the late 1990s under the codename ' Neptune', built on the Windows NT kernel and explicitly intended for mainstream consumer use. It was released to manufacturing on August 24, 2001, and later to retail on October 25, 2001. Windows XP is a major release of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system.
