At almost five months after Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates introduced Windows Home Server at CES 2007 in Las Vegas, the two paired up once again at the Microsoft Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) 2007. Gates revealed that in addition to HP, the company announced initially with MediaSmart Server for Windows Home Server, three hardware partners will also provide platforms for WHS, namely Gateway Inc., LaCie and Medion International.

"Digital devices and digital media are now an essential part of so many aspects of our lives, and their importance continues to grow," said Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft. "With Windows Home Server, we're launching a new category of consumer products that will make it much easier for people to connect to their digital content and share experiences with friends and family no matter where they are."

Gates also mentioned a group of eight independent software vendors to provide applications for Windows Home Server, and stated that the product will be released only to system builders. End users will not be able to acquire Windows Home Server as a standalone product, although originally it was planned to permit access to the Windows Home Server outside of OEM deals.

"Microsoft also announced that Windows Home Server will be available to the system builder channel, further broadening the scope of the home server product category. Using this version of the software, system builders worldwide will have the resources and flexibility to provide customized, targeted Windows Home Server products to meet the needs of a wide array of customer segments," reads a fragment out of Microsoft's press release.

As for the applications designed to integrate with Windows Home Server, Microsoft named Diskeeper's Diskeeper 2007, Embedded Automation Inc.'s mControl software, F-Secure security solutions, Iron Mountain, Lagotek Corp.'s Home Intelligence Platform, PacketVideo Corp.'s PacketVideo Connect, Riptopia CD and SageTV media server software.