Microsoft Delivers the 'Other' Longhorn Beta 1
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While Vista Beta 1 is stealing most of the headlines this week, Microsoft also is delivering simultaneously on Wednesday to a select group of private testers the first beta of its Longhorn Server product. Microsoft has not yet decided on a final name for the next version of its Windows Server operating system (other than the fact that it won't be Vista), according to company officials. But what the company has decided upon is the set of core Longhorn foundation technologies and application programming interfaces for Longhorn Server components. Those elements will comprise the first Longhorn Server beta release. By the time Longhorn Server ships, which is still expected to happen in 2007, the product will provide the following features and functionality, according to company officials: Longhorn Server is set to be tested by about 5,000 OEMs, independent hardware vendors, system builders, independent software vendors and partners. The company also will make the Longhorn Server Beta 1 build available to its Technology Advancement program (TAP) customers, as well as to Microsoft's own internal IT organization. Beta 2, for which Microsoft has yet to announce a delivery target, is slated to be a public, as opposed to a closed, private beta. At that point, "Microsoft will encourage customers to begin evaluating and providing feedback on the product," a company spokesperson said. Microsoft officials committed earlier this year to delivering the final Longhorn Server release some time in 2007. The Windows Server team is still on track to do so, according to company officials. But as with all Microsoft products, Longhorn Server won't ship before its time, company officials reiterated.
"Our goal is to deliver Longhorn Server in 2007 and development is on track, but as always our philosophy is to deliver our products only after we have received extensive feedback from beta customers and partners and after we have thoroughly tested the software," according to company officials. "We are now in the early stages of that process. Customers want us to focus on delivering the highest quality software, not meeting an arbitrary date." Microsoft is developing the Longhorn Server and Vista client releases in tandem, but the final delivery of Longhorn Server will occur six to 12 months after the release of Vista "because of the additional testing a server platform requires and is expected by enterprise IT customers," said a company spokesperson. Microsoft's goal is to sync the Longhorn Server and Vista client betas. By he time Microsoft is releasing the gold version of Vista client (summer/fall 2006), it is shooting to be releasing a new beta of Longhorn Server. The day that it ships Longhorn client Service Pack 1 (some time in 2007), the Windows team is hoping to be releasing the final Longhorn server code, company officials told Microsoft Watch earlier this year.
This kind of staggered sync-up is scheduled to continue beyond Longhorn, to include Longhorn Server R2 (2009); Blackcomb client (2010+) and Blackcomb server. |
