At FullOffice Learning we've already talked about other operating systems — specifically, we wrote a post dedicated to the Windows 11 operating system. Now let's take a look at what the Windows 11 SE operating system is and what makes it different.
FullOffice Learning firmly believes that to really understand something, you need to go to the source, and here's what Microsoft has to say about its unique operating system:
"Windows 11 SE was designed and built during the pandemic to address the most fundamental challenges schools would face in a blended learning world. Its focus and motivations are clear and lean more toward management than toward the use of the operating system itself — for teachers who need a simple, distraction-free environment for their students, and for school IT administrators who need devices that are secure, easy to deploy and manage, and that perform well all day under the school's changing conditions."
Obviously, it's not intended for the general public — in fact, Microsoft won't release it to consumers, limiting it to OEM manufacturers, many of whom will preinstall it on their devices, primarily on genuinely affordable laptops that will sell in the $200-300 range. In addition, these devices won't be available through general retail channels, only through specific ones. What you will be able to do is buy a laptop with Windows 11 SE, then wipe it and install a full version of Windows 11.
Features:
- It's specially optimized for low-cost devices in educational settings, especially for American grades K-8.
- It won't be available in the People's Republic of China, since there are specific government requirements around cloud storage and management.
- It will only be available to OEMs. Consumers won't be able to download and install it on their PCs.
- You will be able to install the Windows 11 operating system on these devices, but once installed, you won't be able to go back to Windows 11 SE.
- The user interface has been simplified compared to Windows 11 — the Widgets section and other taskbar and desktop actions have been removed. Apps will launch in full-screen mode by default.
- It won't have access to the Microsoft Store. Students won't be able to install any native Windows apps on these devices. Only device administrators will be able to install apps on them.
- Microsoft Office apps, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote, and OneDrive, will be available for offline use on Windows 11 SE devices as part of a Microsoft 365 license.
- Microsoft supports six categories of native apps on Windows 11 SE (in Win32 and universal (UWP) formats). They're selected to include the most important apps for education. The supported categories are:
- Content filtering apps
- Test-taking solutions
- Accessibility apps
- Effective classroom communication apps
- Essential diagnostic, management, connectivity, and compatibility apps
- Browsers
- The system requires Intune for Education for management, a service that offers a simple and convenient platform for managing all student devices, including Windows and Apple machines.
- Azure Active Directory (AAD) and Microsoft Account (MSA) will be the only identity authentication tools supported on Windows 11 SE devices.
- Windows 11 SE is a cloud-first experience with user content served through OneDrive. The current version of Windows 11 SE supports file storage only on OneDrive, but Microsoft will continue evaluating whether to expand to other cloud storage solutions in future versions.
- The Microsoft 365 A1 license involves a one-time fee of $38 per device, for up to 6 years of service.