Run Windows 2000 on a DEC Alpha with a new es40 fork
Bringing Windows 2000 to DEC Alpha via a Modern es40 Fork
Published on 05-07-2026 at 20:33 by Remy van Elst
As many of you are aware, I maintain an active presence within the OpenVMS community and contribute to Alpha emulation through AXPBox. For those unfamiliar, AXPBox (available on GitHub) is a derivative of the es40 alpha emulator originally created by Camiel Vanderhoeven—who currently serves as the Chief Architect at VSI (the modern stewards of OpenVMS, now targeting x86).
While es40 has seen various iterations over the years, a fresh fork has recently emerged that introduces several groundbreaking enhancements.
🚀 Key Enhancements in the New Fork
The latest development brings significant upgrades that fundamentally change what the emulator can achieve:
- JIT Compilation: Massive performance boosts via a Just-In-Time compiler.
- S3 Graphics: A port from MAME that enables hardware-accelerated visuals.
- ARC Support: The critical addition that allows the emulation of Windows 2000 for DEC Alpha.
Comparison: AXPBox vs. New es40 Fork
| Feature | AXPBox | New es40 Fork |
|---|---|---|
| JIT Compiler | No | Yes |
| S3 Graphics | No | Yes |
| ARC Support | Limited | Full |
| Win2000 Support | No | Yes |
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🖥️ OpenVMS Performance and Visuals
The impact of the JIT compiler is stark; OpenVMS runs with a noticeable increase in velocity. Furthermore, the new graphics support means that X11 tunneling is no longer a requirement for a visual interface.
To initialize the graphical login environment in OpenVMS, follow these steps:
- Boot OpenVMS.
- Access the Operator Console.
- Execute the following command:
@SYS$MANAGER:DECW$STARTUP
- Type
logoutto exit the console and trigger the graphical login window.
🛠️ Technical Setup & Requirements
While this isn't a comprehensive step-by-step guide, I want to highlight the progress made. The JIT build makes both Windows NT and OpenVMS feel significantly more responsive. For those seeking a deep dive, full guides for Tru64 Unix and Windows 2000 are available online.
The es40 fork is distributed via GitHub as both source code and precompiled binaries. The configuration wizard has been updated to accommodate these new features.
Prerequisites Checklist
- ARC Firmware: Must be upgraded to Alpha Systems Firmware Update v7.3 (part
AG-RCFBX-BS). - VGA BIOS: Do not use
vgabios-0.6a.bin(used in AXPBox). Instead, use the S3 VGA BIOS from 86box:86c764x1.bin.
💿 Installing Windows 2000
The installation process is a nostalgic trip back to early 2000s computing.
The Workflow:
To get started, you will need to acquire Windows 2000 RC2 build 2128 from archive.org. The installation follows the classic sequence: the initial blue-screen partitioning phase, followed by a rudimentary GUI, and finally, the full desktop environment.
📈 Performance Analysis
If we represent the speed increase as a simple ratio of execution time:
Tags: #alpha #axpbox #blog #dec #es40 #openvms #pdp #unix #vax #vms #vsi #windows