Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 Dynamic Memory Supported Guest OSes

Dynamic Memory is a new feature in Service Pack 1 for Windows Server 2008 R2 designed to expand the virtualization stack of the operating system. In fact, Dynamic Memory is along RemoteFX, the most important new addition to the successor of Windows Server 2008, via the evolution synonymous with SP1. With the Beta development milestone of Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 now available, it is important to understand the limitations of Dynamic Memory as far as the operating systems supported as guests are concerned.

Customers need to remember that SP1 continues to be in development at this point in time, as the Beta label implies. In this regard, Microsoft has yet to perfect all the details related to the upgrade, including those for Dynamic Memory. With the Beta of Window Server 2008 R2 SP1, only a few platforms are supported as guest OSes.

However, the promise from Microsoft is that additional operating systems will be supported in the future. According to the Redmond company, the final version of Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 is right on track for availability in the first half of 2011. For customers not yet familiar with Dynamic Memory, the feature allows for any memory available on a physical system acting as hot to be polled to and dynamically distributed to virtual machine.

Ben Armstrong, Virtualization Program Manager revealed that:

“Only the following operating systems are supported with the beta release:

•Windows Server 2003 Enterprise & Datacenter (32-bit and 64-bit) •Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise & Datacenter (32-bit and 64-bit) •Windows Server 2008 Enterprise & Datacenter (32-bit and 64-bit) •Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise & Datacenter (64-bit) •Windows Vista Enterprise & Ultimate (32-bit and 64-bit) •Windows 7 Enterprise & Ultimate (32-bit and 64-bit).

The following guest operating systems will be supported after the beta release: