Windows 7 Beta Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate

Even as the leaked Windows 7 Beta bits are being downloaded, installed and run outside of Microsoft's select pool of testers, the Redmond company has yet to clarify major details related to its next iteration of the Windows client. Windows 7 editions are, in this regard, one of the aspects of Windows Vista's successor on which mum's the word, as far as the software giant is concerned.

However, there are bits and pieces of information available painting a picture of the upcoming flavors of Windows 7, although nothing is set in stone at this point in time, or confirmed officially by Microsoft. The latest example comes from a screenshot that apparently belongs to the installation process of Windows 7 Beta Build 6.1.7000.0.081212-1400, enumerating a total of four editions: Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate.

Via the incomplete End User License Agreement for Windows 7 published by Microsoft, the company already managed to indicate that Windows 7 would feature Enterprise and Ultimate SKUs, in relation to the evolution of the BitLocker encryption technology. Just as it is the case with Windows Vista, the Enterprise version will only be available via volume licensing to corporate customers with Software Assurance.

In addition, Microsoft also hinted at the existence of a new Small Business edition of Windows 7, which could very well be a SKU on the server side, namely for Windows Server 2008 R2 (Windows 7 Server). Still, it appears that the Business edition of Windows is dead, and replaced with the Professional moniker.

However, whatever the label, Microsoft seems to be keen on continuing to deliver a standalone alternative to Windows 7 Enterprise available at retail or through OEM agreements, but outside volume licensing. The company already confirmed this to its OEM partners when looking for feedback for the Windows 7 Upgrade Program.

In addition, according to Windows 7 Beta Build 7000 install process, Home Basic is making a comeback. In this context, Windows 7 will come to the table in a SKU lineup identical to that of Windows Vista. Microsoft is naturally expected to produce N versions of at least a few editions for sale in the European Union, most likely Windows 7 Professional N and Windows 7 Home Premium N. The only missing Windows Vista edition is Starter, but at the same time, the Redmond company is likely to continue its efforts to produce a Windows 7 variant, aimed at developing markets worldwide and computers with old or otherwise inferior hardware resources.