Microsoft is teaming up with Arduino to bring Windows 10 to the company's microcontroller boards, with the first step being the release of two open source libraries that connect Arduinos to Windows 10 devices.

The news follows a prior announcement that a free version of Windows 10 for creating "Internet of Things" applications is coming to Raspberry Pi. Microsoft yesterday released a preview of what it calls Windows 10 IoT Core for the Raspberry Pi 2. Once a device is running Windows 10 IoT Core, it can be remotely configured and managed using Windows PowerShell

Microsoft and Arduino said that Windows 10 will be "the world's first Arduino-certified operating system." Arduino isn't running Windows 10 directly, though; as of now, Arduino boards have gained the ability to access Windows 10 devices through Windows Remote Arduino and Windows Virtual Shield for Arduino, the two open source libraries. Here's what Microsoft said yesterday:

“Arduino Certified” Windows 10 enables developers to make devices that combine the hardware-driving capability of Arduino with the software capabilities of Windows. An example might be a security camera. One could build a camera using Arduino to power the motor controls to tilt/turn the camera and using Universal Windows Platform one can create great UI, connect the camera to the cloud, process the image for motion detection and add facial/voice recognition. The work we have done on Windows 10 is the bridge between the Universal Windows Platform and Arduino hardware. The initial release includes two key capabilities: Windows Virtual Shield for Arduino enables developers to tap into the incredible power of Windows 10 devices through wireless protocols. A Lumia 530 contains well over $200-worth of Arduino shield sensors and capabilities, and we’ve made it easy to access all of those sensors and capabilities from an Arduino as if they were standard hardware shields. Imagine being able to create an Arduino project that includes GPS, Web connectivity/parsing, touch display, speech technologies and more. We’re particularly fond of the picture the weather project we’ve created that lets you bring your children’s drawings to life.

With Windows Remote Arduino we’re enabling developers to extend their Universal Windows Application with Arduino commands that execute on a wirelessly-connected Arduino device. It combines the power of Windows 10 device features such as image processing, speech recognition, website parsing, cameras and advanced audio pipelines with the power of physical world interactivity through Arduino. Take a look at our Basic Windows Remote Arduino project to learn how to leverage this technology in your own projects.

As for whether Microsoft will bring Windows 10 IoT Core directly to Arduino, Microsoft executive Steve Teixeira told us, "There are some CPU-powered Arduino boards that are technically capable of running Windows. We are certainly looking into it."

Arduino blogged about the partnership as well, calling it "a special day for the Makers' community."

Windows downloads for Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and other devices such as the MinnowBoard Max and Intel Galileo are available here. Microsoft also has a page featuring projects combining Windows capabilities with those devices.

Microsoft said the preview of Windows 10 IoT Core for Raspberry Pi 2 has some "missing drivers [and] rough edges" in this early iteration, but it promised to incorporate developer feedback into "regular software updates along with additional drivers, bug fixes and new features. Those looking for a commercial-quality release should wait for general availability this summer."