Windows
Why are Windows runners slower to start?
Quick answer
Windows boots more slowly and Defender scans everything the checkout writes.
The detail that matters
Warm pools remove the boot cost. Excluding the workspace from Defender removes most of the rest.
Your next build could be twice as fast, at half the price
Start free. Migrating away is the same one line, and we publish that diff too.
Related
Can GitHub Actions run Windows builds?Yes. Windows Server runners are available both from GitHub and from managed providers.Can I run Windows Server 2022 builds?Yes. runnerhut offers Windows Server 2022 and 2025 images.Which Windows versions are supported?Windows Server 2022 and Windows Server 2025.Is Visual Studio preinstalled?Yes. Build Tools for 2022 and 2025 ship with the C++, .NET desktop, ASP.NET and UWP workloads.