In 1993, Microsoft took a massive gamble. They had been co-developing

Windows NT 3.1 was a groundbreaking operating system that marked the beginning of a new era in Windows development. Its legacy can still be seen in modern Windows versions, and it remains an important part of computing history.

Microsoft chose the version number "3.1" to match the consumer Windows of the day, suggesting parity. But internally, NT was a titan. It was built on a microkernel architecture, featured the Win32 API (which would power Windows 95 and beyond), and was designed to run on multiple architectures: Intel x86, MIPS, and DEC Alpha.

Yes—on emulated hardware. Steps summary:

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The screen flickered. A deep blue setup screen appeared, primitive and text-heavy. It didn't care about touchscreens or Wi-Fi; it was built for the rugged world of early 90s workstations and servers.