14 DAY TRIAL // The wait is almost over. In the next couple of weeks Microsoft plans to make available the first upgrade to Windows 7 to OEM partners, enterprise customers and end users. I managed to jump the gun little bit yesterday when I exclusively announced that Windows 7 Service Pack 1 RTM would be available for download worldwide on February 22nd, 2011.
But it looks like my sources were right, and late last night a Microsoft representative contacted me to confirm the General Availability deadline for Windows 7 SP1.
Here are the dates provided by Microsoft’s Brandon LeBlanc:
On February 9, 2011 “we officially handed off the final release (RTM) of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (SP1) to our OEM partners.
“On February 16th Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 will be available for MSDN and TechNet Subscribers as well as Volume License customers.
“On February 22nd, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 will become generally available for folks to download via the Microsoft Download Center and available on Windows Update.”
If you read my article from yesterday then you already know these dates. And just in case there was still any doubt, Build 7601.17514.101119-1850 is the RTM of Windows 7 SP1, and of course, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 as well.
Microsoft didn’t provide the date when it released Windows 7 SP1 to manufacturing, but the build string of the release does offer some information in this regard, namely that the service pack was signed off on November 19, 2010.
But as I have said time and again, and as the software giant kept repeating, SP1 is nothing but a minor upgrade to Windows 7 RTM.
I’ve talked with a number of customers both end users and IT professionals on the enterprise front, and the general feeling is that Windows 7 RTM is good enough, and that it in no way needs Service Pack 1 in order to be a mature release ready for widespread adoption.
And the fact of the matter is that with in excess of 300 million licenses already sold to customers worldwide, what more proof do you need of Windows 7 being ready for adoption, regardless of the availability of SP1.
“For Windows 7, SP1 will help keep your PCs well supported by delivering ongoing updates, many of which have been made previously available through Windows Update.
“It also includes client-side support for RemoteFX and Dynamic Memory which are two new virtualization features enabled in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1,” LeBlanc added.