Windows Longhorn build 4015 (main)

6.0.4015.main.030328-1500
	Build of Windows Longhorn
OS family	Windows NT
Version number	6.0
Build number	4015
Architecture	x86
Build lab	main
Compiled on	2003-03-28
Expiration date
Timebomb	2004-03-25 (+363 days)
SKUs
	Professional
Product key
	CKY24-Q8QRH-X3KMR-C6BCY-T847Y
About dialog

Windows Longhorn build 4015 (main) is one of the first Milestone 5 builds of Windows Longhorn, which was shared on 26 April 2003 by WiNBETA.^[1]

NFO file[edit | edit source]

NFO contents^[2]

     
 /-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------\
 |     Microsoft Windows Longhorn Alpha build #4015     |
 <----------------------------------------------------------------------------------->
 |   - Source: Microsoft    - Type: Operating System    |
 |   - Packaged By: winbeta   - Image Format: ISO     |
 <---------------------------------------------------------------------------------->
 |   - Files: en_longhorn_4015_pro-WinBeta.rxx        |
 |   - Number of CD's: 1    - Protection: WPA     |
 |   - Archives: 40 x 15 MB    - Release Date: 04/25/03   |
 <----------------------------------------------------------------------------------->
 |   - Review: http://www.microsoft.com/longhorn (yeah right)    |
 <----------------------------------------------------------------------------------->
 |   - Hardware Requirements: 600+ Mhz CPU, 128 MB RAM, 1.5 GB HD Space  |
 <----------------------------------------------------------------------------------->
                      
 <---------------------------- R E L E A S E N O T E S ----------------------------->
                      
    Its longhorn, its alpha. Don't expect it to work right.
  just a sneak peak at how things are going over at the build labs. enjoy
                    
 <----------------------------- I N S T A L L N O T E S ---------------------------->
                      
 1.) Unpack.                   
 2.) Burn to CD.                  
 3.) Install.                   
 4.) Use this CD-Key: CKY24-Q8QRH-X3KMR-C6BCY-T847Y         
 4.) Enjoy!

Setup[edit | edit source]

Setup has received a few minor design uplifts compared to the previous build.

CD-autorun (from Windows 2000)
Loading setup
Welcome to setup
Product key entry
EULA
Drive partitioning
Warning upon proceeding
Computer name entry
Copying files
Hardware detection

New features and changes[edit | edit source]

The wallpaper has changed to a Milestone 5 background, being slightly darker than the Milestone 4 background and containing the Windows logo instead of the Longhorn logo.
Windows Explorer has been written in .NET managed code, although this often causes memory leaks and frequent crashes.^[3]
Parental Controls is updated to now restrict games that are rated higher than a specific ESRB rating.
This build includes Libraries. The libraries included is the Photo and Video Library, Music Library, Document Library, and Game Library; the latter doesn't work. It was later introduced in Windows 7.
WinFS now works, but it often causes memory leaks.
Notifications once again have been slightly updated.
The Plex theme has received a few updates, such as buttons now having animations upon hovering over them.
The Windows start button has changed when the Sidebar is enabled, being different than the start button shown from builds 3683 - 4011.
The glass borders make their first appearance in this build, but they require patched dce.dll. This variant of DCE is also included in builds 4017 and 4020.
There is an early version of a new Help Center included in the C:\Windows\HSX folder. Opening it causes a Trust Advisor warning to pop up.

Sidebar and taskbar[edit | edit source]

The new taskbar given from the Windows Sidebar is enabled by default, and the old taskbar can't be brought back with the sidebar enabled. This new taskbar overrides any theme that is utilized. Tiles for the sidebar have also been updated slightly, such as the search tile, which has been modified to be slightly more fitting.

Login screen[edit | edit source]

A new login screen is utilized, replacing the Windows XP login screen. It also uses the wallpaper found in builds 3706 to 4001 albeit being zoomed in on the top-right by default, however it doesn't use animations found in later builds. Additionally, an ability to set custom login screen background has been added; that can be done by setting any path to image in the Wallpaper string value, that is located in HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop registry key.

Bugs and quirks[edit | edit source]

Installation[edit | edit source]

Despite not being compiled in evaluation mode, it can boot on the current date. But many drivers aren't installed by default during the hardware portion of setup if you install this build on the current date and have to be installed manually.
On some installs, once copying files has completed, setup will fail to create a boot.ini file. Although booting will still be possible, NTLDR will default to C:\WINDOWS.
The hardware setup tends to hang easily, after a while, the Command Prompt can be opened by pressing ⇧ Shift+F10, then run taskmgr and terminate the process setup.exe to log in. Due to this, the Out-of-Box Experience will not run.
Most copies of this build's installation media are not bootable due to corruption, since it results in an "NTLDR is missing" error. It can be bypassed by upgrading from an earlier build (except build 4011 on some machines, which will give a 0x0000006B BSOD) or applying a patch to the installation media. The ISO image of this build found on BetaArchive's FTP server does not have this issue.
On some machines, booting from the CD may take longer than expected.

Login screen[edit | edit source]

Password hints have no effect on this build as the new login screen has no option to show a hint.

Memory leak[edit | edit source]

As with most later pre-reset Longhorn builds, this build's Explorer tends to leak memory after a while. Turning off the Sidebar reduces the effect of the memory leak. WinFS and related services are also affected by major memory leaks. Disabling WinFS solves the problem.