These are the fun blog posts for me—I get the honor of announcing the availability of a resource so many of you have been asking for—a Windows Enterprise Trial edition you can use to continue testing Windows 7 in your own environment is now available from the Springboard Series on TechNet!

Many IT pros we talk to have been looking for a way to continue their work with the Release Candidate to test their applications, hardware and deployment strategies with final Windows 7 bits. In response, we have created the Windows 7 Enterprise 90 Day trial edition, available beginning today.

This evaluation version is for IT Professionals who do not yet have access to Windows 7 RTM through one of the following means:

  • Through a Software Assurance Volume License agreement
  • Through MSDN and TechNet subscriptions
  • Through Software Assurance agreements allowing the download of Windows 7 RTM via the Volume Licensing Download Center.

If you do not have access to licenses through one of the above means, this release will provide a means to have the final released code for evaluation and testing. This evaluation release is specifically intended for IT professionals responsible for desktop administration; consumers will be able to purchase Windows 7 on October 22, 2009

A few things to be aware of before you download the Evaluation code.

  • A limited number of licenses are available, so the download will only be available while supplies last.
  • Following the 90 day evaluation period, IT Pros who wish to continue to use Windows 7 Enterprise will be required to purchase and perform a clean installation of Windows 7, including drivers and applications.
  • Windows 7 Enterprise Edition 90-Day Trial is the final Released-to-Manufacturing (RTM) version of Windows 7 Enterprise Edition. This is the same software that is available to Volume Licensing (VL) through Software Assurance (SA) and is feature-complete.
  • Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Trial is available in English, Spanish, French, German, and Japanese in both 32 and 64 bit versions.
  • Activation of Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Trial is required within 10 days after installation, or the product will shut down every hour. Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Trial is valid for 90 days after installation. After expiration, your computer will shut down every hour.

If you wish to continue to use Windows 7 Enterprise please note that you will be required to purchase and perform a clean installation of Windows 7, including drivers and applications. Please keep this in mind; Windows 7 Enterprise is not available through retail channels.

Click here to get the Windows 7 Enterprise evaluation download.

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