In another example of the fact that Windows 7 will be everything that Windows Vista was not, Microsoft indicated a strong commitment to ensure a high level of compatibility for the next iteration of the Windows client from the get go. And the Windows 7 compatibility recipe involves addressing compatibility head on from the very early stages of the operating system. As early as the first beta, in fact.

"Customers have a need to ensure compatibility with the new releases of the OS and that hardware (systems and devices) are fully functional after an upgrade. This will enable Microsoft and partners to evaluate the results and correct issues in the new OS and the associated hardware as part of the release plan," Microsoft revealed via a March 21, 2008 update version of the Windows Hardware Logo Program Requirements documentation (via Long Zheng).

Microsoft is effectively forcing all the hardware developers to test drive Windows 7 Betas in order to qualify for the Windows Server 2008 or Windows Vista Logo programs. However, the Redmond giant requires that tests are performed and logs with the results turned in to Microsoft. The program's new requirements come into effect on June 1, 2008, but this is not to say that next month will bring on the first Windows 7 Beta build, as the company has failed to give any indication of such a scenario.

"Beginning with the release of the first beta of the next operating system, all Windows Vista client and Windows Server 2008 submissions must include a complete CPK with test logs for the new beta OS. The test logs generated from the beta OS are not required to pass. Issues with hardware, system BIOS or drivers must be investigated and resolved by partners prior to the launch of the logo program for the new OS. The tests should be run after performing an upgrade from Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 to the beta OS. Testing on the new beta OS must be done with drivers that are intended to install on the beta OS," Microsoft added.