Now there are a lot of different versions of windows 8 and you may be wondering what they all mean. There are all the different builds and there is also ones called Windows 8, Windows 8 pro and Windows 8 enterprise. Well here is a list of them.

Windows Versions

Windows 8

Windows 8 is the basic edition of Windows for the x86(32 bit) and x86-64(64 bit) architectures. This edition is also referred to as Windows 8 core edition. This edition contains features aimed at the home user and provides all of the basic new Windows 8 features including the Start screen with semantic zoom, live tiles, Windows Store, Internet Explorer 10, connected standby, Microsoft account integration, the Windows desktop and more.

Windows 8 Pro

Windows 8 Pro is comparable to Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate. This edition is more targeted towards enthusiasts and business users, it includes all the features of Windows 8 but add more features such as the ability to receive Remote Desktop connections, you can join a Windows Server domain, Encrypting File System, Hyper-V, and Virtual Hard Disk Booting, Group Policy as well as BitLocker and BitLocker To Go. Windows Media Center functionality is also available but is an additional software feature that needs to be purchased.

Windows 8 Enterprise

Windows 8 Enterprise provides all the features in Windows 8 Pro (except the ability to install the Windows Media Center add-on), with additional features to assist with IT organization such as AppLocker. This edition is available to Software Assurance customers, as well as MSDN and Technet Professional subscribers. For the regular user there is no point getting this version as it is aimed at enterprise level organizations.

Windows RT

Windows RT will only be available per-installed on ARM-based devices such as tablet PCs. It includes touch-optimized desktop versions of the basic set of Office 2013 applications to users—Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, and support device encryption capabilities. Several business-focused features such as Group Policy and domain support are not included.Normal programs able to run on windows will not run on Windows RT because of the different processor that it runs on.

Windows Release Preview

This is the same as the release candidate. This is a free demo copy.

Windows Consumer Preview

This was release before the release preview. This version is a free demo copy. Has more bugs that have not been worked out and does not have full functionality of the release preview.