Combine Ubuntu Linux and Windows 11 with WSL2

Now you don't have to choose between Linux and Windows or put up with awkward hybrid options such as dual-boot or putting one OS in a VM.

Our recommended OS choice is Windows 11 Pro with WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux) and Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. WSL2 lets both operating systems share the same file system, and Linux apps run alongside Windows apps, typically with the same performance as running natively. Now you can combine your favorite Linux scientific tools with the huge library of Windows software, such as Adobe Creative Cloud. Of course, we also offer Ubuntu and Windows installations without the integration.

>Many of the best tools for GPU-accelerated computing are Linux-based. For users interested in exploring GPU computing while still also running Windows apps, our recommended OS choice is Windows 11 Pro with WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux) and Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. WSL2 lets Linux apps (including Linux GUI apps) run alongside Windows apps on the same desktop, with virtually the same performance as running natively. Now you can combine your favorite Linux scientific tools or NVIDIA CUDA app development with the huge library of Windows software, such as Adobe Creative Cloud. Of course, we also offer Ubuntu and Windows installations without the integration.

Key motherboard differences

• The standard motherboard has CEB form factor and is 10.5" wide, or slightly wider than standard ATX. It fits all cases offered. The upgrade motherboard has EEB form factor (aka EATX) and is 13" wide. It fits only the Fractal Define 7 XL case, among our tower case options.
• The standard motherboard has 5 PCIe 5.0 x16 slots, with 3 running in x16 mode and 2 running in x8. Alternatively, 4 slots can run in x16 mode while the 5th slot is disabled. Upgrading to a Xeon W-3400 series processor, which supports more CPU lanes, does not increase the number of lanes supported on this motherboard's PCIe slots.
• The upgrade motherboard has 7 PCIe 5.0 x16 slots, but their function depends on whether a Xeon W-2400-series CPU or a Xeon W-3400 CPU is installed. If a Xeon W-2400 CPU is installed, the system defaults to running 4 slots in x16 mode while disabling 3 slots. In other words, the extra slots on the upgrade motherboard do not actually provide a benefit when a Xeon W-2400 processor is installed.
• If a Xeon W-3400 series CPU is installed, then the upgrade motherboard provides six PCIe 5.0 x16 slots in full x16 mode and one slot in x8 mode.
• The standard motherboard has 2 onboard M.2 SSD slots, while the upgrade motherboard has 3. Those 3 M.2 SSD slots function normally when an Intel Xeon W-3400 processor is installed on the upgrade motherboard. However, when a Xeon W-2400 series CPU is installed, 2 out of 3 M.2 slots are disabled.
• Therefore, for these compounding reasons, we recommend upgrading the motherboard only if you will also be upgrading the CPU to a Xeon W-3400 series model.

Minor motherboard differences

• The standard motherboard has 4 SATA ports, while the upgrade motherboard has 8 SATA ports.
• The standard motherboard has two high-speed Ethernet ports: a Marvell 10Gb port and an Intel 2.5Gb port. The upgrade motherboard has three Ethernet ports: two Intel 10Gb ports and a Realtek 1Gb port
• Both motherboards offer a 20Gb rear USB-C port. The standard motherboard also supports a front 20Gb USB-C port. The upgrade motherboard supports only 10Gb front USB-C speed, but adds a second rear USB-C port, also operating at 10Gb speed.

Standard motherboard: ASUS Pro WS W790-ACE

Upgrade motherboard: ASUS Pro WS W790E-SAGE SE

Enterprise data center SSDs vs consumer/client M.2 SSDs

Top: 2.5" U.3 / U.2 SSD (7mm thick) with M.2 2280 SSD (bottom)

• Enterprise data center NVMe SSDs offered here have 2.5" U.2 or U.3 form factor, which is larger and allows more storage than the M.2 form factor used typically for consumer/client NVMe SSDs. U.3 is identical to U.2 except for a connector difference. U.2 and U.3 drives are available in either 7mm or 15mm thicknesses.
• Data center SSDs offer at least 3X the endurance of consumer M.2 SSDs, measured in full drive writes per day (DWPD). Data center SSDs are certified to write at least 1 DWPD for 5 years. Selected data center SSDs are certified for 3 DWPD for 5 years.
• Data center SSDs have onboard capacitors that prevent data loss in the event of power failure, enabling the safe transfer of unsaved data to permanent storage.
• Data center SSDs deliver consistent performance with low latency and don't suffer periodic slowdowns that can occur with consumer SSDs when their SLC write cache is exhausted, exposing the much slower actual performance of their TLC or QLC NAND flash.
• The write performance specs of consumer SSDs reflect only performance with light data loads and periodic write requests. Data center SSD write specs reflect steady-state, continuous write performance of any size and duration. Consumer M.2 SSD write specs would be much lower than data center SSD write specs if tested for the same requirements.

TCG Opal 2.0 encryption and self-encrypting drives (SEDs)

• TCG Opal 2.0 is the prevailing industry standard for self-encrypting drives (SEDs), which use hardware encryption to encrypt entire drives with no performance impact.
• SEDs are shipped unlocked and perform like regular drives until an authorization key is set.
• SEDs can be managed in Windows using BitLocker or using 3rd party software.
• An SED can be instantly erased at end of life by deleting the encryption key.

Internal bootable backup drive

• Introduced by Digital Tigers in 2005 to support high-reliability trading workstations, "bootable backup" provides peace of mind and data security by copying the contents of the primary system drive to a second internal hard drive, automatically keeping your data and Windows installation safe.
• If a secondary media storage drive is present, it can also be backed up to the same backup drive, as a separate backup partition.
• In event of drive failure or malware attack, the backup drive can instantly substitute for primary and secondary drives, through a simple change to the system BIOS "boot order" setting.
• By default Digital Tigers configuration, the backup schedule is daily at end of day, and you can change this schedule easily to meet your preference.
• Bootable backup enables you to keep working through major system problems. Later, the original system drive can be restored with the help of Digital Tigers Support.
• Unlike RAID, bootable backup is not immediately vulnerable to malware or data corruption. If a virus infects the primary system drive, or critical files are deleted, or the Windows installation is corrupted, the backup drive remains unaffected and available on the same day as a "snapshot" of the system in its working state at the end of the day before.
• Bootable backup has saved many Digital Tigers from critical system problems that might have wiped out irreplaceable files or forced a reinstallation of Windows. Highly recommended!

Backup Frequency Options and Benefits

• A daily backup schedule is standard, with the goal of minimizing data loss and recovery time in the event of a drive failure or system corruption.
• However, daily backups can inadvertently duplicate system problems. Archival backups can be a lifesaver if your system gets corrupted (such as from malware, random file corruption, accidental file deletions or even a Windows Update) and then the corrupted system drive is backed up at end of day before the problem is discovered or resolved.
• An archival backup enables you to boot your system in its exact state as it was at an earlier date, which could be as much as a month prior. For monthly archival backups, the median last backup is 15 days prior, which should be plenty of time to spot problems before the previous backup is overwritten.
• We recommend a monthly interval for the archival backup. However, we also offer weekly archival backup as an alternative.

Optimize Windows for Business Use, Privacy, Performance, Stability and Control

Digital Tigers now offers the option of a customized Windows experience, reflecting what we believe are the priorities of most business users. This optimization is far more important for Windows 10 than for prior Microsoft operating systems.

Optimize for Business Use: Remove Microsoft bloatware (games/consumer apps)

Windows 10 comes with dozens of consumer games and apps that do nothing for business users. We remove Candy Crush Saga, Xbox, Zune Music, Windows Phone, Bing News and much more, while providing a record of what's been uninstalled and how to reinstall any apps you want back. The removals streamline your desktop and Apps / Programs menus and promote a more professional desktop experience.

Privacy: Block Microsoft telemetry, disable Cortana, install ad-blockers, block Start menu ads

By default, Microsoft monitors your configuration and your activity on your computer and sends updates to its servers multiple times an hour, a practice known as telemetry, as part of its product feedback process. This monitoring includes your web browsing history using Microsoft browsers. We block most such monitoring. You can change this preference later if you prefer.

We also disable Cortana, the digital assistant component, reverting the search box to "Search Windows." This removes the conflation of desktop and web search inherent to Cortana, and stops the comprehensive tracking that Cortana conducts and sends to Microsoft (Cortana's Notebook). For Windows 10 Pro, disabling Cortana is handled via Group Policy. For Windows 10 Home, we add a Windows Registry key to disable it. You can reenable Cortana later if you prefer.

We install Chrome and Firefox web browsers, along with Adblock Plus and uBlock Origin ad blockers. The ad blockers improve your web browsing experience while speeding up page-load times and bolstering privacy and security. We set Chrome as the default browser, based on its popularity; you can change this preference.

We install VLC media player and make it the default media player, bypassing the tracking and ads inherent in Windows 10 Movies & TV. You can install any preferred media player and make it your default.

We also turn off Start menu ads ("suggestions," Windows Store apps you never downloaded, appearing as tiles in your Start menu) and targeted ads from third-party apps ("Let my apps use my advertising ID"). You can reverse these settings later if you prefer.

Performance: More system resources, faster browsing, fewer background processes

We change Windows Registry settings to allocate more system resources for graphical, user and desktop objects, doubling the number of application windows and financial trading indicators that can be displayed. These changes reduce the frequency of out-of-memory errors when there is available physical memory, and they reduce the probability that you will be prevented from opening new windows.

We install Chrome and Firefox web browsers, which have faster performance and also enable you to isolate demanding web applications in one browser while you use another browser for general use. Adblock Plus and uBlock Origin speed up web browsing by removing ads, which are often resource-intensive.

We disable the ability of most preinstalled apps to run in the background (Privacy > Background Apps setting), and we turn off non-essential items running at startup.

Blocking Microsoft telemetry and other tracking prevents occasional spikes in CPU, drive and network utilization, avoiding interference with your actual applications.

Stability and Control: Take control of Windows Update

We believe best practice for Windows Update calls for timely security updates and deferred feature updates. Timely security updates are important to protect the system from newly discovered vulnerabilities. Deferred feature updates are important because major new revisions to Windows 10 can cause system instability and application compatibility issues when first released.

Windows 10 Pro (highly recommended) enables us to set Windows feature updates to release on the slower Semi-Annual Channel, and then we use Group Policy to add an extra 180-day delay beyond this slower distribution channel. Without these configuration settings, Windows 10 Pro users would receive updates much closer to their first release. Unfortunately we can do none of these optimizations for Windows 10 Home, and so Windows 10 Home users get new feature updates immediately, with some risk of problems.

We also make changes to Windows to put you in control of when you install updates and when you restart your computer. With Windows 10, Microsoft has become very aggressive with updates, forcing computers to download updates and even forcing system reboots, disregarding alternative customer priorities. There is usually an opportunity to defer a number of hours, but after this modest concession, the system takes control and executes an update and reboot, which normally cannot be stopped. For Windows 10 Pro customers, we make changes to keep you in control of when updates are installed and when you reboot your computer. Certainly security updates are timely and important, but so is control of your time and your workspace, so we give that control back to you.

If you prefer to disable these controls or to get faster Windows feature updates, we can undo these preferences before or after purchase.

Learn more about NVIDIA AI apps

NVIDIA Broadcast

• AI-enhanced video streaming, video calls and video conference calls (Zoom meetings, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, etc.). Remove background noise; blur or replace webcam background; maintain eye contact with camera when looking at screen; center your face on camera even as you move or shift positions (face tracking).
• NVIDIA Broadcast supports OBS Studio, Streamlabs, XSplit Broadcaster, Twitch Studio, HuYa, DouYu, Bilibili, Discord, TeamSpeak, Skype, Zoom, Webex, Microsoft Teams, Slack, Google Meet, Bluejeans and more.
• Requires Windows 11 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 or higher graphics card, or NVIDIA RTX Ada or Ampere Generation. Consumes 1.5GB drive space.

NVIDIA ChatRTX

• Personal AI chatbot for private content (DOC/DOCX, PDF, XML, TXT files) and YouTube videos that you select. Analyze content and YouTube transcripts with the power of AI.
• Requires Windows 11 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 or higher graphics card, or NVIDIA RTX Ada or Ampere Generation with 8GB+ VRAM. Consumes ~62GB drive space.

NVIDIA Broadcast: Eye Contact Feature

Microsoft Office options

• Purchasing any perpetual license of Office (Office 2019/2016/2010) avoids the recurring annual subscription fees of Office 365.
• Office 2019 is a minor revision to Office 2016 and is the final perpetual-license version of Office that Microsoft expects to offer. Going forward, Microsoft favors subscriptions (Office 365) over perpetual licenses.
• Many people prefer the interface of Office 2010 to Office 2016/2019, so we offer all versions.
• Office 2010 remains popular and is recommended for existing users of Office 2007 and Office 2010. It does not require an online Microsoft Account.
• Office 2016/2019 requires the creation of an online Microsoft Account during the installation process, or access to an existing Microsoft Account. We leave the installer and product key on the Windows desktop for the user to run and set up or access the required Microsoft Account.
• Office Standard licenses are issued via Microsoft Open License Program.
• LibreOffice has overtaken OpenOffice as the most actively developed open-source office suite.