Windows XP build 2250

Windows XP build 2250 is a build of Windows XP. This build was released on 2000-07-13 at the Professional Developers Conference in Florida. This was the first build released to the testers and to be released in both Personal and Professional editions.

Microsoft was quietly working on several hidden features. One of them being the Start Panel, which was going to be a replacement for the classic start menu. This build also featured a hidden active desktop-based Start Page, continuing the work started in Windows Neptune. Despite that, setup and many parts of the OS retained Windows 2000 and Windows ME branding. This build is the first to no longer support the 486 processor, and the HAL for the SGI Visual Workstation 320 and 540 is no longer present.

New features and enhancements

 * The default installation directory is now  instead of.
 * The login screen has been updated again. This design would remain to be used until build 2419.
 * This build offered many changes in the GUI. Many parts of the Explorer interface has been updated to engage a more user-friendly appearance. Control Panel also now has a new task-based default view that groups applets based on category.
 * A new Start Panel has been added, making it easier for the user to access frequently used programs and various folders of the system. It can be enabled by going to the Start menu properties dialog and pressing Alt-D, and then applying the settings. It can be disabled by doing Alt-D again after the Start Panel has been applied.
 * This build now allows the user to enable the Professional theme, giving a new user interface.
 * Setup now has the appearance of Windows Me and the banners are now replaced with the Windows Whistler logo, although the boot screen is still labeled Windows 2000.
 * The notifications on the taskbar can now be shown/hidden with a "<<" or ">>" button.

Start Page
This build still includes the remains of a Dell OEM Start Page, but it is hidden by default. It is located in. The  file can be set as an Active Desktop, but many parts of it no longer work because most of its the files has been removed at this point of development. Paul Thurrott has an image of a completed Start Page.