Windows on Arm documentation (2024)

Windows has traditionally run on machines that are powered by x86 / x64 processors, but more recently, also runs on devices powered by Arm processors.

Arm-powered devices are particularly interesting because the power-frugal nature of the Arm architecture enables these devices to offer longer battery life while delivering great performance. Arm Systems on Chip (SoC) often include other key features such as a powerful CPU, GPU, Wi-Fi & mobile data networks, as well as Neural Processor Units (NPUs) for accelerating AI workloads.

Build Windows apps that run on Arm

Windows 10 enables existing unmodified x86 apps to run on Arm devices. Windows 11 adds the ability to run unmodified x64 Windows apps on Arm devices! This ability to run x86 & x64 apps on Arm devices gives end-users confidence that the majority of their existing apps & tools will run well even on new Arm-powered devices.

For the best performance, responsiveness, and battery life, users will want and need Arm-native Windows apps, which means that developers will need to build or port Arm-native Windows apps.

Arm developer tools

Microsoft is working to deliver an Arm-native developer toolset that includes Arm-native Visual Studio 2022, VSCode, VC++ toolchain, classic .NET Framework, modern .NET, and Java. Microsoft is also working with several 3rd parties and open-source communities to port common tools, runtimes, frameworks and libraries to natively target Windows on Arm. See the announcement from Build 2022 about this comprehensive suite of tools, services, and devices that enable developers to build and port apps that natively target Arm just as easily as when targeting x64.

Virtual Machines

You can create and deploy Windows 11 Arm64 VMs with with Ampere Altra Arm–based processors on Azure. Learn how in this Quickstart article.

Learn more about using Windows on Arm Virtual Machines:

• Windows on Arm Virtual Machine FAQ
• Azure Virtual Machines with Ampere Altra Arm–based processors—generally available
• Deploy an Arm-based Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) Cluster using Terraform - ARM Developer Hub
• Learn more about build and test automation via Continual Integration / Continual Deployment (CI/CD) hosted in the cloud, such as Azure DevOps or GitHub.

Arm developer devices

Developers need Arm devices upon which to build and test Arm-native Windows apps. Several Arm-powered devices are already available from Microsoft partners. These portable devices, whether a laptop form-factor device or convertible-tablet, offer great performance, battery life, and run the growing array of Arm-native developer tools.

Windows Dev Kit 2023 (code name “Project Volterra”) is the latest Arm device built to support Windows developers, AI researchers, and developers looking to integrate AI into their apps and experiences.

Arm64EC - Build apps for Windows 11 on Arm

Support for existing Windows apps on Arm

Additional tips for developing Windows apps that run on Arm devices

• We recommend using MSIX to package your app for distribution. For more information on how MSIX supports Arm and Arm64, see App package architectures: Arm and Arm64.

• Not all Visual Studio projects are configured to launch projects locally when you start debugging (F5) from an Arm device. You may need to configure Visual Studio for remote debugging, even though your app is running locally. For more information, see remote debugging.

• To find and install the recommended packages on Visual Studio, visit the Visual Studio downloads page.

  • For the Remote Tools for Visual Studio 2022, scroll below the All downloads section and expand the Tools for Visual Studio 2022 drop-down menu. Remote Tools for Visual Studio 2022 will be listed there. Be sure to check the Arm64 radio button, then Download.
  • For the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable, scroll below the All downloads section and expand the Other tools and Frameworks drop-down menu. Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable for Visual Studio 2022 will be listed there. Be sure to check the Arm64 radio button, then Download.
  • If you are using an older version of Visual Studio, select the Older Downloads link at the bottom of the page to search for the downloads associated with your version of Visual Studio.

• When a user installs your app on an Arm device from the Microsoft Store, Windows 11 will automatically select the optimal version of your app that is available. If you submit x86, Arm32, and Arm64 versions of your app to the Microsoft Store, the operating system will automatically install the Arm64 version of your app. If you only submit x86 and Arm32 versions of your app, the operating system will install the Arm32 version. If you only submit the x86 version of your app, the operating system will install that version and run it under emulation.

• When given the choice of app architecture, choose the 32-bit x86 version to run the app's 32-bit version on a Windows on Arm PC. If an app's x64 Win32 version doesn't work, most apps will have an x86 version available.

• For more information about architectures, see App package architectures.

App Assure Arm Advisory Service

While our guidance to Add Arm support to your Windows app walks through how to create an Arm-optimized version of your app(s). The App Assure Arm Advisory Service is available to help if you get stuck. This service is in addition to our existing promise: your apps will run on Windows on Arm, and if you encounter any issues, Microsoft will help you remediate them. Learn more.

Sign up for Windows Arm Advisory Service.

Additional resources

• Satya Nadella's Build 2022 keynote announcing "Project Volterra"
• How x86 emulation works on Arm
• Troubleshooting x86 desktop apps
• Troubleshooting Arm UWP apps
• Program Compatibility Troubleshooter on Arm
• Building Arm64 Drivers with the WDK: Instructions for building an Arm64 driver.
• Debugging x86 apps on Arm | Guidance for debugging x86 apps on Arm.
• Video: Building Arm64 Win32 C++ Apps
• Windows 10 on Arm for developers (Microsoft Build 2018 video presentation)
• Blog: Original announcement of Windows 10 support for Arm development
• Report a bug

External resources

• Developer Resources for Windows on Snapdragon by Qualcomm
• Developer.arm.com: Windows on Arm
• Developer.arm.com: Port applications to Windows on Arm
• Developer.arm.com: Building a Native Windows on Arm App with WinUI 3
• Developer.arm.com: Building libraries for Windows on Arm