14 DAY TRIAL // While the general availability of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 RTM is just around the corner, new variants of the upgrade have been leaked in the wild. With Windows 7 and Windows Vista before it, Microsoft has been providing end users with the possibility of test driving the operating systems free of charge.
The company has been doing this with free trial releases. Fact is that even now, users can download a trial copy of Windows 7 RTM Enterprise and test drive it for no less than 90 days.
The evaluation edition of Windows 7 comes with all the features and capabilities of a commercial release, with the only caveat that it’s time-bombed, and set to expire after approximately three months.
It appears that Microsoft will start offering trial downloads of Windows 7 SP1 RTM after the upgrade is released.
But for those that want to jump the gun, the free trial Windows 7 Enterprise SP1 RTM copies have already been leaked to torrent trackers, and are available for download to all that know where to look, and are equipped with a BitTorrent client.
Microsoft confirmed on February 9, 2011 information that was leaked just hours earlier, that Windows 7 SP1 RTM would become generally available on February 22.
According to Microsoft Windows 7 RTM users will be able to grab SP1 either via the Microsoft Download Center or through Windows Update.
The company’s OEM partners have already received Windows 7 SP1 RTM, and next in line to get the bits are MSDN and TechNet subscribers.
The software giant revealed that it will start serving Windows 7 SP1 RTM through MSDN and TechNet later this week, on February 16.
My advice, especially given the proximity of the Windows 7 SP1 RT GA, is that users wait for the real thing from Microsoft and not download the service pack from untrusted sources.