Microsoft Surface MVP Joshua Blake has managed to install and run Windows 8 on a first generation Surface computer.

Blake took the developer preview bits of Windows 8 and installed them on the Microsoft Surface 1.0 hardware this week. “The Microsoft Surface 1.0 shell and applications run as expected on Windows 8,” explains Blake in a blog post detailing his efforts. “Immersive-mode applications and regular desktop applications can be controlled using the Surface vision system touch input,” he adds.

The system appears to work well with Windows 8 on it and Blake notes that it’s a clear testament to Microsoft’s backwards compatibility work in Windows 8. However the setup is limited as Surface is designed to be used from any angle, something that Microsoft’s Windows 8 immersive experience lacks the ability to support. Blake sees the opportunity for parts of Windows 8 to be ported over to the Surface interface in future. He also notes that Windows 8 developers need to take notice of how to handle multi touch input scenarios. “Windows 8 developers need to learn the lessons that Microsoft Surface developers have learned years ago,” says Blake. He encourages developers to allow multiple inputs, multiple touches and to let the user recover from mistakes and accidental touches.

If you’re interested in seeing Windows 8 running on the original Surface then check out the video below.