Intel's plans for the workstation market with its Sapphire Rapids-WS are taking shape as a well-known hardware leaker published preliminary specifications for the new CPUs. Intel's lineup of next-generation Xeon products for workstations and high-end desktops will include overclockable CPUs with up to 56 cores, eight memory channels, and 112 PCIe lanes if the information revealed by reputable hardware leaker Enthusiastic Citizen (ECSM_Official) is correct. Intel's family of next-generation Xeon W processors for W790-based workstations will reportedly consist of two families of products that will offer slightly different capabilities. The Xeon W 3400-series CPUs will be derived from a multi-chiplet Sapphire Rapids design and will feature up to 56 cores, eight DDR5 memory channels, and 112 PCIe lanes. In addition, CPU cores used by these processors will be Golden Cove-derived cores with AVX-512 and AMX instructions enabled. By contrast, the Xeon W-2400-series processors will use a single-die design with up to 24 cores, four DDR5 memory channels, and 64 PCIe lanes. Intel's Xeon W-2400 and W3400-series processors are expected to come in LGA4677 packaging and use W790-based workstation motherboards. One of the first W790 mainboards leaked last week, which suggests that some of Intel's partners are getting ready to ship these products sooner rather than later. Meanwhile, a rumor suggests that Intel only intends to roll out its W790 platform next April, so it is too early to ship appropriate motherboards. Then again, Intel has never officially confirmed the launch timeframe for its W790 platform and only confirmed that this one is designed for workstations. Intel's Xeon W-3400-series lineup will allegedly include nine models, four of which will be overclockable. Even the flagship Xeon W9-3495X is expected to come with an unlocked multiplier making for overclocking support. Linux boot logs unearthed earlier this year essentially confirm the existence of Intel's Xeon W-3400-series CPUs (which come with AVX-512 and AMX enabled). Still, they also mention the Xeon W9-3495 (non-X) CPU clocked at 1.80 GHz base, which Enthusiastic Citizen does not list. We have no idea whether Intel changed its plans concerning its Sapphire Rapids-WS lineup in July, but we are dealing with preliminary information, so some details may be inaccurate. Intel's Xeon W-3400-series relies on Sapphire Rapids silicon, which will offer AVX-512 support and AMX instructions for artificial intelligence and machine learning applications. Advanced Matrix Extensions is a tiled matrix multiplication accelerator, a grid of fused multiply-add units supporting BF16 and INT8 input types that can be programmed using only 12 instructions and perform up to 1024 TMUL BF16 or 2048 TMUL INT8 operations per cycle per core. More complete details can be found on OUR FORUM.

You can't update to Windows 12 yet, but here's when you might be able to, and what features to expect. Windows 12 could be Microsoft's replacement for Windows 11... in 2024.  Yes, it's still very early to be giving this any serious thought, plus nothing is official yet. But Windows' long history has us wondering what's in the queue for the next big update. Some changes we think Windows 12 could bring include UI enhancements, better Android app support, and increased reliance on the Settings app. We should start by saying we can't verify yet that Windows 12 is even real. It's not that we think Microsoft will pull a Windows 9 move and skip over this version to land on W13—we just haven't heard anything official from the company. That said, we do think it's coming. It's just not clear when. There is one rumor we've seen that points to an upgraded OS. Tom's Hardware spotted a mention by the German website Deskmodder.de that Microsoft would begin working on Windows 12. Remarkably, that was in February 2022, less than six months after Windows 11 was first available to the public! We're not sure if that source is reliable, but whether this version is being actively developed or not, Windows 12 won't arrive for a while longer, considering how close we still are to the Windows 11 launch. Looking back at the last several major Windows versions, there isn't a consistent timeline we can use to gauge when Windows 12 will come. But, we can still guess.  Before its public release, Windows 12 will probably follow a similar release structure as other versions of Windows. For example, the first Windows 11 Insider Preview build was available a few days after Microsoft announced the OS and a few months before its public release. A similar timeline is expected for this version, so you should be able to access a pre-release build of Windows 12 through the Windows Insider Program whenever that time comes. There's a good chance Windows 12 will be offered as an optional, free update for Windows 11 users, and possibly Windows 10 users, who have a valid copy of Windows. If you need a new license, we think you'll be able to get the digital version from Microsoft's website, or through other retailers on a USB device. As with any big OS update, there will surely be countless minor updates and changes under the hood. This should translate to things like better overall performance, new icons and animations, and additional settings you can tweak. Nothing is confirmed, and won't be for a while, but here are some bigger ideas that could make their way into Windows 12: The 2022 Microsoft Ignite keynote might have given us a glimpse at the Windows 12 user interface. The taskbar is only a little different from the existing one we've grown familiar with over the years because it's just slightly hovering over the bottom of the screen. The search bar, however, has never existed at the top like that and is definitely not entirely detached from the taskbar. Windows Central claims that there are plans for other UI changes, too, like a new lock screen and notification center, all in an effort to create a consistent interface across Microsoft's product line that will work for both touch and keyboard users. And that's to be expected with any major release. Below is a neat look at what Windows 12 could look like from Concept Central. It shows a new Start menu, an idea for a built-in messaging client called Windows Messenger, a redesigned volume hub, and desktop widgets. We also like this W12 concept from designer Kevin Kall. Follow this thread and more on OUR FORUM.