Following the availability of Windows Vista in 2007, Microsoft started allowing users to access free copies of the operating system via the Download Center. Windows Vista Enterprise is just such an example. Even with Windows 7 on the horizon, and with Vista SP1 available for approximately a year, the Redmond company continued to serve the original Vista Enterprise bits. Windows Vista 30-Day Eval VHD now features a new published date on the Microsoft Download Center: March 19, 2009. However, the software giant is mute on details related to a potential update, if any.

Windows Vista 30-Day Eval VHD offers users a pre-configured virtual hard disk image containing the Enterprise SKU of the operating system. The Enterprise edition of Vista is normally served only to businesses, namely Software Assurance customers, via Volume Licensing. This is of course an exception, as it has been so far.

Packaged as a VHD, the copy of Vista is designed to run as a guest operating system in a Virtual PC 2007 virtual machine. Make no mistake about it. The bits contained are actually Vista Enterprise RTM. It even includes an original copy of Internet Explorer 7. Microsoft recommends at least 10GB of free hard disk space and allocating at least 1024MB of RAM to the Vista Enterprise machine. If you really want to go back in time to Vista RTM and run it, just to have a comparison with the current Windows 7 Beta or post-Beta development milestones, then by all means, be my guests.

“For organizations with complex desktop infrastructures, whether large or small, Windows Vista Enterprise is the operating system designed specifically to help realize a better return on IT investments. In this VHD, you'll have the opportunity to road-test new and improved features including management (e.g. MUI, BDD, etc…) usability (e.g. Search, Navigation, etc…) and security (UAC, Windows Defender, etc…), enhancements to the Windows Vista platform,” the company stated.

Microsoft Windows Vista 30-Day Eval VHD is available for download here.