The Windows architecture

Every level below is a real, clickable part of the stack.

Win32ApplicationPOSIXApplicationOS/2ApplicationWork-stationServiceServerserviceSecurityIntegral subsystemsWin32POSIXOS/2Environmental subsystemsUser ModeExecutive ServicesI/OManagerSecurityReferenceMonitorIPCManagerVirtualmemoryManager(VMM)ProcessManagerPnPManagerPowerManagerWindowsManagerGDIObject ManagerExecutiveKernel Mode DriversMicro KernelHardware abstraction Layer (HAL)Kernel ModeHardware