Posts Tagged ‘Windows 7 SP1’

Microsoft news website Muy Windows has just posted screen shots of a Windows 7 SP1 Demo Installer, thus bringing its completion closer to fruition. Here are a few of them, but there are more at the source, linked beneath the pictures below. I can’t help but wonder just what all they plan on fixing in SP1. Windows 7 has been absolutely fantastic for me. Are there any problems in particular any of you out there are having that you hope are fixed? Check out the shots:

 

 

Source: Muy Windows

 

-Stephen
http://www.msftkitchen.com

Some of you may recall the leaking of several Windows 7 SP1 (Service Pack 1) builds prior to the final release of Windows 7. Naturally, those leaks — some as far back as June 2009 — sparked a lot of speculation as to the quality bar Windows 7 would RTM at. I mean, just prior to Windows 7′s final build, you start seeing SP1 builds and you can’t help but wonder if they’re in preparation to fix things they knew would be off-center in the final build, right? Well, sort of.

 

In light of an entry I recently stumbled upon on LinkedIn, I believe I’ve found the missing link which makes sense of the whole thing. And now that I’ve seen it, I can’t help but think to myself, “duh!” Okay, for starters, look at the build string in the following image:

 

 

Long story short, there were no crazy bug fixes starting to happen that Windows 7 RTM wouldn’t see. Those SP1 builds were compiled simply to test Windows 7′s service pack technologies and experience! I and so many others like me really looked waaaay too far ahead into what those builds could have possibly meant — only to miss the simplest (and most likely, I might add) of possibilities: Microsoft preparing and testing service pack technologies and processes.

 

In addition to the revelation above, there are farther-reaching implications this person on LinkedIn has made us privy to. To quote:

 

Efforts lead to an unprecedented state of servicing readiness for Windows. Windows 7 Service Pack technologies, processes & builds were ready over a year before release compared to Vista and previous OSes which did not reach that state of servicing readiness and quality for months after release.

 

Aside from stating the obvious, with the time it took to complete Windows 7, I suppose Windows 7 SP1 will also exceed expectations. And that’s a good thing.

 

Finally, there is also mention of Windows 8 planning:

 

Planning servicing quality goals, metrics, processes, and tools & technologies for Windows 8.

 

Good comedy would be to see a Windows 8 SP1 build leak prior to even a Windows 8 Milestone 1 build! At that point, I would have to say they were getting a bit *too* far ahead of the game, wouldn’t you? Anyway, I just thought I would share my findings and attempt to explain away some of the confusion created by those SP1 builds previously.

 

-Stephen
http://www.msftkitchen.com

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

wzor.info has just posted a good bit of interesting news today.

First, they released an x86 VHD image of build 7227.0.x86fre.winmain_sp.090602-2110. There is no torrent posted on their site as of yet, but the VHD image is packed into a RAR archive. Here are the details of the image that either is going to be or has just been released (I’ll update this post with links to the torrent as soon as they pop up, for those of you who are interested):

MICROSOFT.WINDOWS.7.BUILD.7227.WITH.pre-SP.1.X86.VHD.ENGLISH-WZT
FILE: 7227.0.x86fre.winmain_sp.090602-2110.client_en-us.ultimate.vhd
(the original VHD in packed RAR archive, size RAR file: 2,005,278,460 byte
SHA1: 3FFE342C8A9FD2CDF0AF937D2A25BCA640C4010B)
SIZE: 5,584,065,536 byte
CRC: 616985FA
MD5: F98F78D86940761D8909023A00C75704
SHA1: 082F189EE4F58393D3CB113B0F46EC0E1EE41BD8

UPDATE: You can find torrents via your favorite torrent hubs at this point.

Along with this information, 3 screenshots have currently been posted (I snipped out the version portion of the 2nd screenshot to post above them):

Also posted, for those of you keeping up with build strings, is the following update of builds in the winmain and winmain_sp branches:

Pre-RTM winmain branch:
6.1.7137.0.winmain.090521-1745 – build leaked to web
6.1.7138.0.winmain.090522-xxxx
6.1.7139.0.winmain.090526-xxxx
6.1.7140.0.winmain.090527-xxxx
6.1.7141.0.winmain.090528-xxxx
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930
6.1.7226.0.winmain.090601-xxxx
6.1.7227.0.winmain.090602-хххх
6.1.7228.0.winmain.090603-хххх
6.1.7228.0.winmain.090603-19xx
6.1.7229.0.winmain.090604-1901
6.1.7230.0.winmain.090605-1900 – actual build in winmain branch

Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 winmain_sp branch:
6.1.7141.0.winmain_sp.090528-2045
6.1.7225.0.winmain_sp.090529-2022
6.1.7227.0.winmain_sp.090602-2110 – build leaked to web in VHD file – WZT
6.1.7228.0.winmain_sp.090603-20xx
6.1.7229.0.winmain_sp.090604-20xx
6.1.7230.0.winmain_sp.090605-20xx
6.1.7230.0.winmain_sp.090607-2000 – actual build in winmain_sp branch

And now, the second post of theirs relays information about the future of Windows 7 RTM. Dates and build strings are given in the information which I’ve loosely interpreted via Google Translate and am rehashing here as best I can for English readers (please feel free to correct me on any information I may have misinterpreted below):

Only 3 Steps Left to RTM!

“Today at breakfast, Steve Balmer noted that plans have been adjusted internally to suit the announcement by Steve Jobs of, “Snow Leopard.” All that’s left to do with Windows 7 to reach RTM are three steps:

Step One: Sometime between June 10th and June 15th will be the last build distributed to corporate partners. The build will be 6.1.7229.0.winmain.090604-1901. (Just to be clear, we’re talking about formal access assemblies and not what is to continue to be compiled internally, even the latest current build: 6.1.7230.0.winmain.090605-1900 – and this assembly may be RTM Escrow assembly).

Step Two: Only RTM candidate builds will be compiled in mid-June. None of the candidates for RTM will be distributed to any partners.

Step Three: Windows 7 RTM-candidates will be collected until June 21st! In all actuality, you may even receive what will become the RTM release of Windows 7 via the Internet as soon as June 19th.

Completion Note: Since RTM testing is an internal affair (that is, no partners will be involved), that means it is up to them as to which RTM-candidate build will become the official RTM release of Windows 7. The RTM build of Windows 7, though it may come soon, will not immediately be given to testers via the Connect website nor MSDN subscribers.

From here on, be aware that there may be a lot of false information regarding the final release! As soon as we hear the very latest, we will promptly inform you!”

And there you have it. wzor.info has been the real deal up to this point, so I have no reason to believe that they’re spreading misinformation now. What do you think? Personally, I’ve installed Vista SP2 recently and it didn’t even matter; as soon as I can get my hands on the RTM build, that puppy is becoming my main OS. =)

Source: wzor.info

-Stephen

UPDATE: Apparently, this build is floating around via alternate means as well and thanks to deeper2k at thevista.ru for posting about it prior to me seeing it. Credits to him! Screenshot, courtesy of thevista.ru:

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

Well, I’m home from work and have the build installed, drivers installed, and I’m cooking up screenshots and the likes. To note, installation took a whopping 37 minutes on my Dell XPS M1530 with 4GB RAM and a 64-bit 2.6GHz Core 2 Duo CPU. While installation times like that are annoying for folks like me who constantly install and uninstall pre-RTM builds of Windows, it’s not such a horrible price to pay in the scenario of installing Windows 7 RTM and keeping it on your machine until whenever.

Performance so far is incredibly smooth. I haven’t used it rigorously yet, but I’ve installed all of my system drivers and performed some tasks/tweaks I perform when first installing a build (such as disabling hiberfil.sys via command prompt: powercfg -h off). The only bug I’ve noticed so far is one with the desktop not refreshing at times, but this bug seems to be solidly sticking with each build of Windows 7, unfortunately. Other than that, so far, it’s smooth sailing. The progress bar you may have seen in RC1 and prior during the, “setup is detecting hardware” and “video configuration” portion of installation is still present. I’ve taken a video clip of it below. Along with it, I’ve posted some screenshots. If there’s anything more significant to post as I mess with this build, I’ll update this post to reflect the new information.

Video:

WMV Download Link: Click Here

Screenshots:
(Click each image for a full-desktop shot)

That’s all for now! More later, perhaps.

-Stephen

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

wzor.info has reported that the infamous, “Sukonka,” aka, “Zukona” has leaked build 6.1.7201.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090601-2255 today. I’m not sure where it’s located yet, but I’ll update this thread with more information as soon as I find out.

Update 1:

Screenshot:

And if you’re a member at torrents.ru, you should already see a torrent to download this build!

Update 2: x86 and x64 builds are being distributed. Great news for us x64 users! =)

Update 3: Ruud de Jonge (Developer & Platform Evangelism Director at Microsoft) posted this on his Twitter earlier as well. Is he having a laugh or does this add to the credibility of the build? Maybe a little of both:

Update 4: Apparently, the torrents have yet to be posted by Sukonka/Zukona but will be at some point today. I’ll keep up with the latest on it as much as I can and continue to update until the build does indeed leak. I’ll post torrent links here as soon as they pop up!

Update 5: The x64 torrent has been posted on torrents.ru! If you’re a member, go and get it! To the rest of us, it’s only a matter of time… =)

Update 6: x64 torrent available here:

Rapidshare: Click Here (Thanks to blackroseMD1 for the upload)
Rapidshare: Click Here (Thanks to DaveTaylor for the upload)
Rapidshare: Click Here (Thanks to Captain Zero for the upload)
Megaupload: Click Here (Thanks to jumojn for the upload)
Megaupload: Click Here (Thanks to jblazea50 for the upload)

Update 7: And now, the x86 torrent has been made available:

Rapidshare: Click Here (Thanks to DaveTaylor for the upload)
Rapidshare: Click Here (Thanks to Captain Zero for the upload)
Megaupload: Click Here (Thanks to jblazea50 for the upload)

Build Hashes (via Sukonka):

————————————————————————————————

MICROSOFT.WINDOWS.7.BUILD.7201.0.090601-1516.X86.ENGLISH.DVD-SUKONKA
BUILD: 6.1.7201.0.090601-1516
7201.0.090601-1516_x86fre_client_en-us_Retail_Ultimate-GRMCULFRER_EN_DVD.iso
SIZE: 2,499,923,968 bytes
MD5: 70E48837DD513BA98FE483AFD0746E37
SHA1: F2BC6FC5861C76C401DF6DA7137962C727ED938D
CRC: 102CCA5A

MICROSOFT.WINDOWS.7.BUILD.7201.0.090601-1516.X64.ENGLISH.DVD-SUKONKA
BUILD: 6.1.7201.0.090601-1516
7201.0.090601-1516_x64fre_client_en-us_Retail_Ultimate-GRMCULXFRER_EN_DVD.iso
SIZE: 3,223,117,824 bytes
MD5: A64636ED74E50E7E882CDB5B80A8FCFA
SHA1: 92AC49897DE56F62BF0EF5C138974179EDE74C50
CRС: 0AFDFA70

————————————————————————————————

In addition to all the torrents above, feel free to pop up your own links in the comments for others! I hear people are already getting crazy-good speeds. =) To those of you downloading it, please seed for a while as it’s going to be a good couple of hours before I get home from work, so I hope to have a fast download before people start leeching without seeding, lol. Thanks, everyone! I’ll be posting a review and a bunch of screenshots of the build when I get it installed and fiddle with it for a while but I’ll start a new post for that.

-Stephen

PS – The changelog floating around is fake. The screenshots here are fake.

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

Well, wzor.info has certainly been the center of attention over the past few days or so! Realizing this, they’ve responded to a lot of claims and rumors running around. It’s quite a lengthy post and much of the information reads like a Dr. Seuss book in a rear view mirror, but there’s some solid information here that I was able to discern (this is part Google translate and my translation):

“Immediately after we announced the existence of different branches of assemblies 7138, 7200, 7225 on May 29-31, the worldwide Windows 7 enthusiast community has been booming. Over the past four days, information we posted has transformed into a surprising number of assumptions and myths. In this article, we will try to explain and clarify a our statements and declarations.

First of all, I would like to say that the articles on the 29th and 31st of May were meant to clarify our initial posting, but the articles were apparently ignored. We ask that you please carefully re-read our earlier posts.

Of course, we recognize that we didn’t correctly prepare all of the information before we posted it, but we didn’t have enough information from Microsoft at the time to post the specifics that we later posted. This also added to the perceived inaccuracies.

The first thing I would like to discuss is the second release candidate of Windows 7 (RC2).

If you remember back in January at the time of Windows 7 Beta 1, we stated that there would only be one beta and one release candidate. At the time we received that information, it was completely accurate but plans have since changed internally. The most recent plans included the date of assembly of RC escrow, the date of assembling RC2, and the date for the final RTM build. More than once, though, we heard Steven Sinofsky say that there would either be no further builds distributed past RC1, or if there were, that they wouldn’t be available to the general public. At the time, no such thing as an RC2 existed.

As it turns out now, the build we call RC2 is internally released via a separate means: IDX (Internal Developer Release X, where X = Client or Server). Regardless, it is still consistent with RC2 but it is purely a private release for developers and partners. Here are some of the comments Microsoft has made regarding these assemblies:

———————————————————————————
“The IDX Client and Server builds are to help with final pre-deployment testing. They will be distributed to TAP and OEM customers via Connect, similar to the bi-weekly RRP audience. Timebomb behavior identical to RC. Limited servicing. Will reuse RC EULA. Same languages as RC Exit (EN, DE, ES, FR, JA).”

“In addition there will be a Client SP released to a limited set of TechBeta participants (delivery via WU). SP will be based off the RC build and will go to a limited audience but not necessarily under NDA. It will be a .CAB file that installs on the RC build; WU detection dependent on a reg key available from the TechBeta site. The SP is edition-agnostic – it would install on either Server or Client, but Server will be turned off for this release. A Sensitive Asset test pass will be dependent on whether any SA components were touched (TBD). ”

“This milestone is termed the, “Internal Developer Client and Server”(IDX) build – it’s an internal quality term we use meaning that the build is stable enough to deploy and evaluate, but may contain more minor bugs than a RC build.”
———————————————————————————

Now, here’s the deal: We said on May 29 that the Windows 7 RC2 (IDX) release must have been signed off on. Well, indeed, on May 29, this build was compiled, but in the following winmain_win7ids IDX (RC2) branch: 7200.0.winmain_win7ids.090529-205x,
not to be confused with the branch assemblies winmain_win7ids_sp. But the assembly 7200.0.winmain_win7ids.090529-205x was not yet signed off on!

Immediately after, a build was compiled on May 30th that had the same build string but obviously a different date (7200.0.winmain_win7ids.090530-070x). This is because the build number has been reserved for the upcoming release!

(Don’t quote me on this, because this translation on Google wasn’t quite clear. I think it says the following, though) Build 7200 will be available to developers and partners on Connect on June 11th. But the internal 7200 build, the IDX build, could leak out of Microsoft sooner than the build is released, as we saw with RC1.

In addition to the following build we announced:

7200.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090529-xxxx

There is a new build that has been compiled:

7201.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090601-xxxx

And lastly, the RC2 IDX release is not the last significant pre-release build (internally) before the final RTM release of Windows 7. The preparations for the RTM build will soon be in progress and that’s the last step in the sequence of releases. With this in mind, we will see the final RTM build of Windows 7 in July. Oh, and don’t forget that since Microsoft is already working on creating the first service pack for Windows 7, when it hits the market on the 22nd of October, you may immediately be getting a ton of updates.

June 2, Microsoft confirmed that Windows 7 will be the stores on October 22.
In order to have time by then, Microsoft should complete work on the operating system in the middle or end of next month. It was reported by Bill Veghte, senior vice-president of the company, in an interview.

“Comments received from testers RC, very positive,” said Vegte. This information was confirmed both by him and Steve Guggenheimer, Corporate Vice President of OEM, during the exhibition Computex 2009.

List of (pre-RTM) assemblies of Microsoft platforms, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 on 3 June 2009, the latest leak from the network build’s pre-RTM winmain branch:

6.1.7137.0.winmain.090521-1745 – build leaked to web
6.1.7138.0.winmain.090522-xxxx
6.1.7139.0.winmain.090526-xxxx
6.1.7140.0.winmain.090527-xxxx
6.1.7141.0.winmain.090528-xxxx
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930 – actual build in winmain branch, other build is FAKE!

Screenshots assembly 6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930 (see my previous post here for the following screenshots):

6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930_1,
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930_2,
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930_3,
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930_4,
6.1.7225.0.winmain.090529-1930_5.

Download 7225.0.amd64fre.winmain.090529-1930.client_en-us.ultimate_iexplore.exe: Rapidshare (~700KB)

winmain_win7ids IDX (RC2) branch:
6.1.7200.0.winmain_win7ids.090529-205x
6.1.7200.0.winmain_win7ids.090530-070x – actual build in winmain_win7ids branch

Service Pack winmain_sp branch:
6.1.7141.0.winmain_sp.090528-xxxx
6.1.7225.0.winmain_sp.090529-2022 – actual build in winmain_sp branch

Service Pack winmain_win7ids_sp branch:
6.1.7138.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090523-2200
6.1.7139.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090526-xxxx
6.1.7140.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090527-xxxx
6.1.7141.0.winmain_win7ids_sp-090528-xxxx
6.1.7200.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090529-xxxx
6.1.7201.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090601-xxxx – actual build

Note: We will not public the exact times of build assemblies until the next builds are released internally. This will help to prevent fakes.”

So… that’s a lot of information from wzor.info! Unfortunately, I wasn’t *quite* clear on some of this information as it was translated, so go check out their post yourself, translate it and see what you think.

Source: wzor.info

-Stephen

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

(Scroll down for updates)

Typically, I don’t like rehashing news that exists on other sites, but when it’s hot-off-the-presses and on a site in a foreign language, I like bringing information I find interesting to other English-speaking readers. Anyway, now that we’ve got THAT out of the way, the Russian site wzor.info has once again come through with some interesting tidbits. The Google translation comes through a little wierd, but the main points of interest are the following two build strings:

7200.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090529-xxxx
7225.0.090529-xxxx

Now, what’s not clear from the translation is if they’ve seen these build strings via internal images or if they were just simply checking the file versions on .dlls and .exes in the Windows 7 SP1 build they posted tons of screenshots of the other day (which I also posted about here).

Update: wzor.info says build 7200 is an actual build!

Update 2: wzor.info has now posted a screenshot of their claim. If they weren’t such a reputable source in the past, I wouldn’t be so inclined to believe this. It’s extremely simple to resource-hack any .dll or .exe to read whatever version you want it to, but like I said, these guys come through with solid information consistently, so here’s the shot (more to come soon, I’m sure):

Update 3: wzor.info has just posted 2 additional screenshots; one of the 7200 SP1 installer version and the other of build 7225:

6.1.7200.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090529-XXXX

6.1.7225.0.amd64fre.winmain_sp.090529-2022

Regardless, the shift to build 7200 implies a significant change. With the rumor of Windows 7 going RTM sometime in the next month or so, I figured the RTM build would be 7200. Maybe it will be and the SP1 compiles are simply picking up from there. Meh. It’s just speculation for now, but that’s half the fun! I’ll keep you posted on further information as it’s posted! Oh, and they said that screenshots are soon to come, so we’ll see what happens…

-Stephen

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

Once again from wzor.info, the following three Windows 7 SP1 builds have supposedly been compiled in addition to the 7138 build they posted screenshots of (which I have reposted here). The date string in all of these builds implies that SP1 builds are being compiled at a daily rate now. It also implies that Windows 7 RTM’s features are probably pretty well set at this point. Solid news, if true!

Windows 7 SP1 Builds:

7139.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090526-xxxx
7140.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090527-xxxx
7141.0.winmain_win7ids_sp.090528-xxxx

Lastly of note, wzor.info says the RTM build is supposedly going to be signed off on in July of this year! If that’s the case, I can’t wait to get the final build installed. =)

Source: wzor.info

-Stephen

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

With all the speculation running around about the supposed Windows 7 SP1 build first posted on wzor.info lately, checking their website again a few minutes ago has yielded a whole slew of new screenshots of the build. We have screenshots for both x86 and x64 client, as well as x64 server! As noted by a couple of commentors in my previous post, SP1 builds being compiled now make sense insofar as whatever was cut from the RTM build of Windows 7 is more than likely already going into an SP1. Enough chatter for now and on with the screenshots.

Windows 7 Build 7138.winmain_win7ids_sp.090523-2200:

x86 Client:

x64 Client:

x64 Server:

Keep sharing your thoughts in regards to these! Hopefully, we may see a leaked build accompanying these screenshots. Time will tell…

Source: wzor.info

-Stephen

(Follow me on Twitter: msftkitchen)

The Russian site wzor.info has posted a Windows 7 SP1 build labeled 7138.0.090523-xxxx-winmain_win7xxx_sp1_x. I had no idea they started compiling SP1 builds so early and I’m kind-of at a loss as to why, but that’s what happens when you don’t work at MS, isn’t it? You’re left in the dark… yeah, the dark. The cold, dark place outside Redmond’s pearly gates. *sigh* Anywho, click the image for a larger version:

-Stephen

PS – Thanks a bunch to deeper2k from thevista.ru for informing me!