14 DAY TRIAL // Windows Home Server, codename Q or Project Quattro, was showcased at CES 2007 in January by Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates. But the product is the child of Charlie Kindel, General Manager, Windows Home Server, and has been in the "works" as early as 1999. At the beginning of the year, Microsoft only revealed that Windows Home server was planned for general availability in the second half of 2007. However, the actual launch date remains undisclosed up to this time because it can no longer be correlated exclusively with Microsoft. On July 16, Windows Home Server was released to manufacturing.
The RTM stage is equivalent with Windows Home Server shipping to manufacturers. In this context, HP will be the first company to release HP MediaSmart Server pre-loaded with Windows Home Server. But Iomega and Fujitsu-Siemens Computers (FSC) were also announced as OEM partners launching Windows Home Server products by the end of this year. In addition, Microsoft will also be distributing a 120-day evaluation version and a system builder edition of Windows Home Server by the end of September. This is why the company is already preparing support for Windows Home Server taking into account a shipping date on August 27, 2007, just seven days away.
Still, a Microsoft representative denied that the debut of support is synonymous with the general availability of Windows Home Server. "The only thing that is available on Aug. 27 is tech support for system builders," a company spokesperson said to Mary Jo Foley. "Based on our RTM (release to manufacturing) announcement in July, the software was released to OEMs and is making its way out through the distribution channels. We're looking forward to seeing system builder products based on Windows Home Server hit the market. But as you know, Microsoft does not release system builder or OEM pricing. We'll have more information about the actual system builder products when we launch later this year."
At this point in time, Microsoft plans to offer mainstream support for Windows Home Server until October 8, 2012. Currently, there are no plans for extended support beyond the initial five years.