Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 Beta additional details [GENERAL TECHNOLOGY]

Edited content from the FAQ that was originally published at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/ff384134.aspx

Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 is an update for enterprises and IT Professionals that includes virtualization enhancements and previous improvements delivered via Windows Update.

Windows 7 Service Pack 1 is an update that helps keep your PCs supported, provides ongoing improvement to the operating system, by including previous updates delivered over Windows Update as well as continuing incremental updates to the Windows 7 platform based on customer and partner feedback, and is easy for organization to deploy a single set of updates.

The system requirements for the Service Pack 1 beta are that you need to be running the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) version of Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 (build 7600). The beta of SP1 can install on RTM evaluation versions of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

The final release version of Service Pack 1 is expected to be released within the first half of calendar year 2011.

There are two ways you can obtain the service pack beta. You can download a special key to enable Windows Update to offer you the service pack beta, or you can download the service pack directly. For each download method, you should choose the correct download for your platform (x86, IA64 or x64).

You can visit the Download Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (SP1) Beta page from the TechNet evaluation center.

You will not be able to upgrade from the beta builds to the final build of SP1 - you will have to uninstall the Service Pack or do a clean install of Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 and then go to the actual release version of the service pack when it releases.

The beta release will be in English, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish.

The beta installation of the service pack will stop functioning after a certain amount of time. You will be reminded of the deadline beginning March 30, 2011 that the beta will expire on June 30, 2011. You will have to upgrade to a newer build or uninstall and return to the RTM build by that time.

There is a Notable Changes document for details on the additional improvements in SP1.