14 DAY TRIAL // There is a simple recipe to have Windows Vista perform like it were on steroids. In Microsoft's perspective, this automatically involves injecting the first service pack into the operating system. The initial preview version of Vista SP1 Beta debuted in mid July 2007, concomitantly with the first taste of Windows XP Service Pack 3. While containing no new features and implementing only minor changes across the operating system?s original fabric, SP1 is designed to soften the rough edges of the product. SP1 will essentially get rid of the compatibility, support, reliability and performance hiccups that have become associated by default with Vista.
Working in parallel with the development of the service pack, Microsoft has also made available some 20+ standalone enhancements to reliability, performance and compatibility, and served them through the Windows Update infrastructure. This is of course a clear indication that, in the future, Windows Update will make obsolete the service pack release strategy that is somewhat traditional for Microsoft. Still, incremental updates to Vista have done little to impact the rooted perception of the end users about the operating system. In this context, SP1 might just be the necessary dose of steroids to wake the dormant and limp Wow.
According to Mike Walker, the managing architecture strategist for the Financial Services vertical at Microsoft, SP1 is just what the doctor ordered for Windows Vista. "To give you guys a sneak peek at the SP1 build. I just installed Vista SP1 with zero issues. The upgrade process seamless and took approx. an hour. There was only one concern however. My box was waiting for about 20 minutes to shut down. Other than that, all goodness. I have noticed a huge difference in performance of my machine, it's like someone injected an espresso into my Vista! This is my first day using so I'll be sure to check back in to let you guys and gals know how things are going", Walker stated.
The first Beta of Windows Vista SP1 was dropped in the last week of September to over 12,000 testers. Current indications point to the fact that Microsoft is making headways to the availability of the first Release Candidate build of the service pack, a moment that might just be synonymous with the launch of a public Beta, although the company failed to confirm this aspect. For the time being, Vista users can apply a simple registry hack in order to access the latest testing milestone of Vista SP1 Beta.
Walker also provided an insight into what Vista SP1 will bring to the table:
"- Secure Sockets Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) allows for easier setup of VPN connections due to the way it works with firewalls, NAT devices etc.... - Bitlocker Drive Encryption has been enhanced to support encrypting additional volumes besides the current limitation on the C: volume. It will also support three factor authentication (i.e. TPM + Pin + Dongle) - Disk Defragmenter has also been improved to give administrators additional control over what and when volumes get defragmented with the scheduler - Support for Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) booting on x64 based machines - Support for the ExFAT file format used in flash memory - Support for SD-Advanced DMA - Improved network diagnostics - Performance improvements."
