Put what matters most right on your Start screen. Get instant access to your people, apps, and stuff, so you can spend less time searching and more time doing. Windows 8 Pro is smooth, intuitive, and designed to let you do what you want, the way you want.

Windows 8 Pro gives you everything in Windows 8 plus enhanced features that help you easily connect to company networks, access files on the go, encrypt your data, and more.

A New Look: Live updates at a glance
Vibrant and beautiful, the Start screen is the first thing you'll see. Each tile on the Start screen is connected to a person, app, website, playlist, or whatever else is important to you. Tiles light up with the latest info, so you're instantly up to date. In one glance, you'll see that photo you were just tagged in, tomorrow’s weather, and messages from your friends.

Pinch and stretch to zoom in and out. Get a global view of everything that's on your screen, and slide back and forth to find what you're looking for.
Swipe in from the left to switch between recently used apps.
Swipe in from the right to get back to Start and to other things you do often, like searching, sharing, and changing your settings.
Swipe in from the bottom to see navigation controls for any app you're in.

The start screen is all you

Each tile on Start is connected to a person, app, website, folder, playlist, or whatever else is important to you. Pin as many tiles to Start as you like and move them around so it's just the way you want it.

This isn't the usual wall of static icons: Tiles animate with the latest information. Status updates, weather forecasts, Tweets, and more - you'll see live updates before you even open a single app.

See something, share something
Your photos, websites, that funny video you just saw: Pretty much anything you're looking at, you can share with others. Instantly. There's no need to interrupt what you're doing, copy what you want to share, open another app, and paste it in. Just swipe in from the right and tap or click Share to immediately send it in email or post it to Facebook.

Touch and mouse
Windows is perfect for PCs with touchscreens, those that have a mouse and keyboard, and those with both. Whatever kind of PC you choose, you'll discover fast and fluid ways to switch between apps, move things around, and move smoothly from one place to another.

Zip around, get it done
Discover fast and fun ways to get around

You can easily do all these things with a mouse, too.

It's all yours
In Windows, even the little things are all about you. Like the screen that appears when your PC is locked - it can be any picture you choose. And you'll see quick notifications on your lock screen before you sign in to your PC or open a single app.

With picture password, you can sign in by tracing a pattern on a picture of your choice instead of typing a password. Zigzag over your dog’s face? Three taps on your child’s nose? The choice is yours.

Work and play
Use your new laptop or PC for entertainment, work, or both. Chat with a friend while scoping out a map, or play a game while getting stuff done. Go from spreadsheet to video in one swipe, or snap them side-by-side for easy multitasking.

Work
It's a new era for PCs. Sleek and lightweight, with a focus on beautiful design and innovative materials, Windows PCs have reached new heights in performance and battery life.

Play
Entertainment and apps of every kind take center stage. Tap into your creative side, lose yourself in a game with friends, discover and download video and songs, and play them on your TV or Xbox 360.

Serious. Fun.
Catch a movie, take in the latest gossip, and power through your to-do list. Go from full-screen video to spreadsheet in one swipe, or snap them side-by-side for easy multi-tasking. Zoom through your files, do instant searches from any app you're in, and fire up familiar programs - they run faster than ever.

The familiar desktop
The desktop that you're used to - along with the familiar file structure and ways of getting around - is not only still here, it's even better than it was. And things like Control Panel and Task Manager are faster and easier to find and use.

Connected for success
Built-in mobile broadband features in Windows support 3G and 4G. As you move, your PC will automatically find and use available Wi - Fi hotspots. So you can be effortlessly connected and ready to work and stay in touch from anywhere.

Apps do more
Built-in apps like People, Mail, Photos, and Messaging power you through all your essential tasks and work together for a single, streamlined experience. And there’s a world of new apps to discover in the Windows Store.

Load up on apps from the Windows Store
Windows 8 give you access to theWindows Store, where you can discover a new world of apps for your PC. Just tap or click the Store tile and start exploring. Filter by price, rating, and more. Many apps are free. Others let you try before you buy. So explore and load up on apps - the more you have, the more you can do.

Apps work together
Things that used to take lots of different programs to do now flow together in one simple experience. Use the Photos app to see all your photos from Facebook and Flickr, and then upload them to your blog or send them to friends via email - all without ever leaving the app.

Get to the controls the same way in every app. Just swipe up from the bottom edge or right click with a mouse, and the app commands pop right up. Searching is the same in every app, too - use the Search charm no matter what app you're using to find things within the app, on your PC, or on the web.

Ready to roll: Your basic apps
Windows gives you apps for the basics and a lot more. Apps like People, Mail, Photos, and Messaging power you through essential tasks and work together to make everything easier.

Mail
Get email from your accounts - including Outlook, Gmail, and Yahoo! - all in one place.
SkyDrive
Seamless access to your files from your Windows apps, as well as from your other devices.
People
See the latest info and start conversations with contacts from your email accounts, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Photos
See your photos and videos in one place, whether they're on Facebook, Flickr, SkyDrive, or another PC.
Video
Browse and watch movies and shows. Watch on your PC or play to your TV.
Music
Explore, download, and listen to the latest songs and share your playlists.
Messaging
Send messages to a unified list of your Facebook and Messenger friends - includes hundreds of emoticons.
Skype
Included with your PC or free from the Windows Store, Skype lets you do things together when you’re apart, with voice, video, and IM.

System Requirements

If you want to run Windows 8 on your PC, here's what it takes:

Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster with support for PAE, NX, and SSE2
RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
Hard disk space: 16 GB (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver

Additional requirements to use certain features:

To use touch, you need a tablet or a monitor that supports multitouch
To access the Windows Store and to download and run apps, you need an active Internet connection and a screen resolution of at least 1024 x 768
To snap apps, you need a screen resolution of at least 1366 x 768
Internet access (ISP fees might apply)
Secure boot requires firmware that supports UEFI v2.3.1 Errata B and has the Microsoft Windows Certification Authority in the UEFI signature database
Some games and programs might require a graphics card compatible with DirectX 10 or higher for optimal performance
Microsoft account required for some features
Watching DVDs requires separate playback software
Windows Media Center license sold separately
BitLocker To Go requires a USB flash drive (Windows 8 Pro only)
BitLocker requires either Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 1.2 or a USB flash drive (Windows 8 Pro only)
Client Hyper-V requires a 64-bit system with second level address translation (SLAT) capabilities and additional 2 GB of RAM (Windows 8 Pro only)
A TV tuner is required to play and record live TV in Windows Media Center (Windows 8 Pro P ck and Windows 8 Media Center Pack only)
Free Internet TV content varies by geography, some content might require additional fees (Windows 8 Pro Pack and Windows 8 Media Center Pack only)

To check if your PC meets these requirements, you can run the Upgrade Assistant.