Instead of “flying cars and moon stations” in 2026, we still have Windows 11 on 90s code, admitted Microsoft Azure CTO Mark Russinovich.
Instead of “flying cars and moon stations” in 2026, we still have Windows 11 on 90s code, admitted Microsoft Azure CTO Mark Russinovich.
A Microsoft top manager admitted that Windows 11 still relies on a significant amount of old code from the 1990s, writes Tom's Hardware.
However, Microsoft's CTO doesn't see Win32 as something that's inherently "bad." Despite its age, there's probably a reason why the technology has been around for so long.
“I think one of the reasons for its longevity is that it’s a fundamental layer within Windows, on which so many applications are built,” Russinovich says. “So many technologies and ecosystems have been built on it, it’s become a kind of foundation.”
The CTO explains that Win32 has endured even when faced with targeted existential threats from within Microsoft itself, especially in the Windows 8 era.
"There have been several moments in Microsoft's history when we thought we could completely reboot the Windows API (for example, with WinRT), but things didn't turn out quite as many expected."
Finally, Russinovych emphasizes that Win32 also became the foundation for tools like Sysmon and ZoomIt, which he wrote back in 1996. According to STO, these tools are now “as relevant as ever in 2026,” as they became part of Windows 11 and the PowerToys suite, respectively.
