Windows 7 SP1 Beta–Is It Worth It?

This week saw the release of the public beta for Windows 7 SP1 – but is it actually worth running the beta?

SPs or Service Packs are what Microsoft used to update your system in bulk – be it with hotfixes and security updates or even new features. A lot of people will wait to start using a product until it has at least an SP1 release.

Well after less than a year a beta for SP1 has been released – you may think that SP1 will be just around the corner, but you would be wrong. In fact, according to Microsoft, Windows 7 SP1 will be available in the first half of 2011 through the usual channels.

Windows 7 SP1 does not contain any new features specific to Windows 7, so you may ask yourself why should you bother to test it? Well, the more people that test it, the more bugs may be found and fixed, making it a better release when it does finally come out.

However, if you are already up to date with any hotfixes and security updates that get pushed to you from Windows Update then you may want to consider it it is worth putting beta software on your machines.

Personally I am running it, because I like to test these things, but I would suggest if you are not sure, and you are up to date – leave it for now.

If you do install it, then the Beta Expires on June 30th 2011.

Also, don’t be shocked to see Evaluation Copy stamped in the bottom right hand corner of your machine – its perfectly normal!

If you are an interested in testing Windows 7 SP1, you can download the public beta via the Springboard Series on TechNet where you will find the download as well as other key deployment and support tools.

A beta for SP1 for Windows Server 2008 R2 was also released this week, and that only had two new features:

The two most important developments in SP1 for Windows Server 2008 R2 are:

Dynamic memory lets Hyper-V administrators pool available memory on a physical host and dynamically distribute it to any virtual machine(s) running on that host. So as the workloads on that physical workload change, requiring more or less memory, Dynamic Memory will let administrators change the memory allocation to their VMs without service interruption. For a deeper look at Dynamic Memory check here.

RemoteFX enhances Microsoft desktop virtualization. RemoteFX lets Windows Server 2008 R2 administrators provide an even richer and user-transparent desktop virtualization experience. RemoteFX delivers rich content, independent of any graphics stack, to server-hosted virtual and session-based desktops, allowing them to support any screen content, including full-motion video, portable graphics stacks such as Silverlight, and 3D applications. Because it can use virtualized graphics on the server and advanced codecs , RemoteFX can deliver those experiences to a much wider array of target devices, including standard desktops and laptops but also an emerging slew of thin clients. You’ll also be able to forward the USB ports of the local client to the virtual machine being accessed on the device – just like you can forward the local printer over RDP today.