Windows Longhorn WinHEC 2004 Aero demo build

WinHEC 2004 Aero demo build
	Build of Windows Longhorn
OS family	Windows NT
Version number	6.0
Architecture	x86
Compiled on	2004
SKUs
	Professional

The Windows Longhorn WinHEC 2004 Aero demo build (build number unknown; commonly and incorrectly quoted as build 4069) is a Milestone 7 build of Windows Longhorn. This build was used by Jim Allchin in WinHEC 2004 to demonstrate Aero transparency in Longhorn. This demo shows the Tree wallpaper included with build 4083 and later.

Three high resolution screenshots of this build from the WinHEC 2004 Longhorn Driver Model presentation were shared by ReflectiaX on 30 April 2021.

Build number[edit | edit source]

The build number of this build is unknown. It is popularly known as "build 4069" as a result of a report from WinHEC 2004 stating that builds 4067 and 4069 were scheduled to be demonstrated, but this build number is almost certainly incorrect due to these reasons listed below:

Tiles on the sidebar clearly show triangle arrows in their upper right corner. This feature was added in build 4042 (Lab06_n) and was removed in build 4067 (idx01).
The build tag is only visible in a low quality video released during WinHEC by Tom Warren, where it's illegible. Nevertheless, the length of the build tag is discernible, and is consistent with it being of the format "For testing purposes only. Build 40xx.private/lab06_demo.yymmdd-hhmm", which is seen in build 4050 (demonstrated at PDC 2003). Given that the code from the build had been reverse-integrated into the main lab by the time of server build 4066 (in which said code is heavily bitrotted and broken), it seems unlikely that the lab06_demo branch remained operational until build 4069 with Aero UI preserved virtually unchanged from build 4050.

Based on this, the actual build number is believed to fall somewhere between 4050 and 4066. It is possible that this build is the same build demonstrated at PDC 2003. This possibility is further upholded due to the fact that build has the same arrow maximize and minimize window keys.