News - Windows 7 coming to business users early

[HEXUS]

Microsoft has revealed that Windows 7 will be made available through volume licensing beginning September 1st.

Read more.

[aidanjt]

Why bother?.. They know enterprise IT are always the last to jump on the next big thing(tm).

[badass]

Why bother?.. They know enterprise IT are always the last to jump on the next big thing(tm).

Testing maybe. Some applications can take a year or more for validation on a new OS. If an enterprise is thinking of a Win7 upgrade in 18 month time, as early as possible is a good time to start learning about it.

[WhiteGiant]

Why bother?.. They know enterprise IT are always the last to jump on the next big thing(tm).

Given a few months testing time, they may take the offer up a little earlier, I.E. (no pun intended . . . well maybe) MS make money sooner rather than later.

[[GSV]Trig]

I'll get it on SA, I might stick it on a few machines when it comes out, only compentent people tho..

Hmmm, maybe no roll out here then

[shaithis]

Why bother?.. They know enterprise IT are always the last to jump on the next big thing(tm).

I don't know what your talking about.....I work for the worlds premier lawfirm and we are currently in the process of rolling out the cutting edge operating system.....Windows XP

[The Jambo]

Cooome oooon Technet!

[aidanjt]

Testing maybe. Some applications can take a year or more for validation on a new OS. If an enterprise is thinking of a Win7 upgrade in 18 month time, as early as possible is a good time to start learning about it.

They can already do application testing with the RC, nothing in the APIs and system services are going to change between RC and RTM. And even if (however massively unlikely) they plan deployment in 18 months time, it's still loads of time between the release and that point.

[aidanjt]

I don't know what your talking about.....I work for the worlds premier lawfirm and we are currently in the process of rolling out the cutting edge operating system.....Windows XP

[Arthran]

Why bother?.. They know enterprise IT are always the last to jump on the next big thing(tm).

As an IT tech in an IT support firm i'll say this:
GIMMI NAO!

:-D

we'll get it on MSDN in sept nice and early, and a week later it will be on almost every machine in the company, our company policy at the moment dictates vista as a MUST HAVE. Shame we still have customers with win 2k servers :'(

[greenalien]

For personal use, great. I look forward to using this on one of my home PCs - and fwiw, I don't find Vista that bad either, especially its networking capabilities.

However, with my corporate IT support hat on, if it won't run our hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of XP applications perfectly, then we'll stick with XP thank you very much. (we have almost stopped using our last Win2k machine...)

(oldest adage in the IT book - if it ain't broken, don't try to fix it...)

[Arthran]

From the Microsoft blog:

As previously stated, we expect Windows 7 to RTM in the 2nd half of July.

Once Windows 7 is complete, how do I get it?
The answer depends on who you are:
MSDN & TechNet Subscribers: Subscribers will be able to download the final version of Windows 7 a few weeks after we announce RTM.
Volume License (VL) Customers: As announced today by Bill Veghte during his WPC09 keynote, Windows 7 will be available to Volume License customers on September 1st.
Consumers, Enthusiasts, & Beta Testers (Everyone else): The retail version of Windows 7 will be available in stores October 22nd. If you pre-ordered Windows 7, it should be delivered sometime around the October 22nd timeframe (depends on the retailer). You can pre-order Windows 7 today through many online retailers like the Microsoft Store.
On New PCs: OEMs are expected to start shipping new PCs with Windows 7 pre-installed on them around October 22nd.
Can I continue to use the Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) until I receive the RTM version?
Yes, you can continue to use the RC until it expires on June 1st, 2010 (expiration starts March 1, 2010 – this is when the reboots start – final expiration on June 1). Please note that “in-place” (or direct) upgrades from the Windows 7 RC to RTM will not be supported. You will be required to do a Custom installation (aka “clean install”).
I am a TechNet or MSDN subscriber. Will I get a product key?
MSDN and TechNet subscribers, as well as Volume License customers will have access to product keys (PIDs) when Windows 7 is made available to them. Product keys for Windows 7 RTM will be different than the product keys used for Windows 7 Beta and the release candidate. Windows 7 Beta or RC product keys *will not* work with Windows 7 RTM.
I am using one of the so-called “leaked” builds of Windows 7, how will I know if it is the real deal?
As always, beware of what you download. There are many bogus copies of Windows 7 floating around the Internet. More often than not, they contain a rather nice malware payload. And don’t believe everything you read on the Internet. When Windows 7 hits RTM, it will be announced here. Until that happens, any builds you are likely to see on the web are either not the final bits or are laced with malicious code.
How do I get a 64-bit copy of Windows 7?
The Upgrade and Full packaged retail product of Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional, and Windows 7 Ultimate will come with both 32-bit and 64-bit DVDs. With Windows Vista, the 64-bit version was only available with Windows Vista Ultimate. Due to the incredible adoption of 64-bit today and customer feedback, we decided to change this for Windows 7. Now all copies of Windows 7 in developed markets will ship with both 32-bit and 64-bit DVDs.
I want to emphasize that delivering Windows 7 at the highest quality possible is the biggest criteria we have for hitting RTM. Our top focus is a super high quality release of Windows first and foremost.

so early august us MSDN/Technet subscribers can get it legit, sept 1st for all Volume Licences.

Nice!