This is it! We had waited and waited, and it's finally here. Windows 7 is now generally available.  With Windows 7, there's never been a better time to be a PC. For all you IT Professionals out there, let me highlight the 3 key deliveries:

• Making people productive anywhere
• Managing risks through enhanced security and control
• Reducing cost by streamlining PC management

and innovations introduced in Windows 7 and make pertinent information readily available for you here.

Making people productive anywhere

Making people productive is not that hard. In your office plugging company’s network with a laptop loaded with apps, you can be productive. Making people productive “anywhere” on the other hand is a very challenging effort for IT, while facing the mass amount of mobile devices and increasingly complex network computing environment today. The growing numbers of mobile workforce and branch offices are at the same time demanding corporate resources seamlessly available regardless the required infrastructure and organizational boundaries. Two Windows 7 solutions to facilitate remote access are BranchCache and DirectAccess.

Managing risks through enhanced security and control

Security is nothing we need to much justify the need in today’s network computing environment. It is critical, imperative, and all too often costly. From Windows Vista, Windows Vista SP1, to Windows 7, BitLocker has been expanded from a single drive, multiple drives, now to portable media. Windows 7 offers security enhancements enabling a user to secure data from unauthorized access very easily with BitLocker-to-Go, for example. In Windows 7 Explorer, highlight a portable drive, right-click to turn on BitLocker-to-Go. It is that readily available, easy to do, and readable with Windows XP. There is really no reason not to do it since it is so little to do, yet with so much control and so strong protection on data. As a memory stick is now with 32 GB and beyond capacity, BitLocker-to-Go is one very cost-effective way to protect data from unauthorized access. For a large company, BitLocker technology with group policies offers a software based enterprise solution of hard disk encryption. You don’t need to look for a solution and end up with a second-best solution. It is in Microsoft Vista and it is much enhanced in Microsoft Windows 7.

In an enterprise environment, software restriction is one of the most difficult enforcements. Not only it needs a mature infrastructure to provide software inventories, metering, and on-going monitoring, but the required skill sets to develop, test, and manage those software restriction policies are hard to find, take years to develop, and come with very high costs. Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 together present AppLocker as a vehicle with which a system administrator can provision a policy to deny/allow execution, installation, or usage of a target application based on the application's digital signature by deriving a publisher rule defined and enforced with a Group Policy Object without programming. A complex requirement, for instance allowing task workers to access Office 2007 and later, but not PowerPoint when accessed by contractors, can be done with AppLocker in a few mouse clicks without any scripting.

Reducing cost by streamlining PC management

Many thought without a direct migration path, i.e. in-place upgrade, from Windows XP to Windows 7, the deployment of Windows 7 must be a tedious and tricky process. In fact, Windows 7 offers a number of vehicles making the migration an intuitive and straightforward process. For consumers and small businesses, Easy Transfer makes migrating from Windows XP to Windows 7 absolutely “easy” and, in my view, fun actually. Scanstate and Loadstate, two key utilities in USMT (User State Migration Tools) make a migration process very logical and easy to understand. Hard-Link Migration leaves and remaps data in place and significantly reduces the time needed to place large amount of user data in a typical PC refresh scenario.

In the past two years, with Microsoft’s introduction of virtualization strategies and solutions, there are many options in resolving compatibility issues at an application or OS level while reducing TCO and increasing flexibilities in deploying and managing IT resources in the long run. Specific to Windows XP compatibility issues, Windows 7 Professional and above offer Windows XP Mode (via a free download) with a local virtualization of Windows XP SP3 machine. So those applications developed specific for Windows XP can now essentially run in a Windows 7 environment with a few steps to set up a virtualized Windows XP SP3 run-time environment to host those Windows XP specific applications. Further an application running in Widows XP Mode can be seamlessly integrated into the Start/All Programs menu of a host Windows 7 machine. Notice Windows XP Mode alone is designed for a relatively small deployment since there is basically no built-in system management function. For a large scale deployment, MED-V or Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization, one of the six offerings that come with MDOP (or Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack available through Software Assurance program) is the solution to manage local desktop virtualization with the abilities to provision a MED-V workspace policy to deploy XP Mode with standardized settings and a consistent user experience, etc. While MED-V 1.0 SP1 to be available in the first quarter of 2010 with host support for Windows 7, notice that both MED-V 1.0, MED-V 1.0 SP1 will leverage Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 which does not required hardware assisted virtualization.

I am very excited to be delivering a Remote Desktop Services/Virtual Desktop Infrastructures (RDS/VDI) session in the upcoming Desktop Virtualization Technical Briefing. RDS/VDI is, in my view, one of the most compelling solutions to transform IT into a corporate business value delivery engine. I am most impressed by the architecture elegantly integrated into Windows Server 2008 R2 which makes the solution very easy to understand and implement. In my session, I will discuss the architecture and walk through the logical steps to implement a RDS/VDI solution. For technology decision makers and senior IT consultants, this session is highly recommended.

Notice the registration is open for invited guests only. Here are the additional information and registration link.

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The traditional desktop computing model, as shown in Fig. 1, has been one where the operating system, applications, and user data and settings are bonded to a single computer. We will buy a computer either with OS and some applications pre-installed, or apply a hard disk image with targeted OS and selected applications to the computer hardware. Once a computer is deployed, a user can then log in the system, customize the environment, run applications, change settings, create data and files. This model is straightforward and easy to understand. With respect to desktop deployment, this means that the OS, application execution/presentation and user data are all self-contained within a single device. This model has the advantage of simplicity because it leverages well understood technologies that ship with Windows. In addition, because a PC with this model is configured to be completely self-sufficient, this solution is well-suited to mobile use. However, the tight binding between the various layers may not be a preference for all scenarios. This model has its limitations. 

The tight couplings between each layer provide efficiency; they also introduce dependencies, hence complexities. And these complexities make it difficult for users to move the applications, settings, and files from one PC to another in case of upgrades or a lost or stolen laptop. When exemplified by thousands of desktops and laptops, as many enterprises do, the management of these laptops and desktops becomes a major concern. As mobile work force and the number of branch offices continue to grow with the proliferation of Internet and the advancement of networking technology, the work environment and data access patterns of information workers have become dynamic and been rapidly evolving. The long term maintenance associated with computing resources based on the traditional computing model is becoming cost-prohibitive for many companies, while impairing the IT’s ability to quickly prepare for or respond to a business opportunity.

Desktop Virtualization is the process of separating, or more precisely isolating, out these individual components, and managing each one separately. Fig. 2 shows by isolating these components, we can now abstract and virtualize the computing resources. Each layer can then reference a resource in other layers based in the abstraction or virtualization boundary and without specifying the specifics of how a referenced resource is configured within its host layer. Over all this reduces complexity and improves PC and application management.

When it comes to virtualization, not all solutions are equal. Microsoft has developed a number of virtualization solutions to address specific issues as depicted in Fig. 3. There are times a virtualization solution may not be cost-effective while offering deployment flexibility. It is crucial to recognize that and architect a virtualization solution accordingly to produce maximal business benefits.

Brought to you by your US East Microsoft IT Pro Evangelist: Blain, Dan, John, and Yung!

Come spend an afternoon with us as we highlight some of the great virtualization solutions Microsoft offers.  We’ll go from the desktop to the enterprise starting with VHD native boot, a new feature for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 followed by discussions of

• Windows XP Mode
• Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V
• System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008

It will be fast and it will be furious. 4 Evangelists, 8 City, and one focus: getting you fully charged with virtualization. Act quick and act now to register at the following links:

Firestarter is a TechNet event offering IT Pros and developers an opportunity to in a few hours review and go deep on a chosen subject. For this particular one in Atlanta, GA, we offer 4 sessions, two presenters, two formats (in-person or online), and one focus: Windows 7. Here’s the agenda.

Register before it is full. Hope to see you there.

During the TechNet Game-On Tour, many asked for the information and wanted to review the demos I did. Dan Stolts, a fellow Microsoft IT Pro Evangelist based in Boston area, has recently published the following on the topic and did a great job on providing additional details. Check them out.

Migrate Windows XP to Windows 7 Using USMT (User State Migration Tool) [Upgrade XP or Vista] Step By Step

Upgrading Windows XP to Windows 7 and Migrate Microsoft Office and Other Applications Using The User State Migration Tool (USMT)

Register early, register now. Also in the east coast, we are about to start the “Game On Tour.”  Come to these events, meet your peers, hook up with the community, and update your skill set with Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 solutions. 

Windows XP to Windows 7 migration has become a main topic actively discussed in IT Pro communities concerning enterprise desktop deployment. This is a good time to go full ahead and ramp up the skill set needed to do the job as we are approaching the general availability of Windows 7 on October 22, 2009.

This guide provides assistance on migrating from Windows XP to Windows 7, all the way from gathering information about your environment to deploying the operating system. As you move through each step in the process, you can leverage deeper resources by clicking on the individual icons. With this content, you can master the subject and make the best decisions to successfully transition your IT environment. There are 5 sections in the document and each section is led by an introductory video.

1. Overview
2. Collect, Analyze and Test
3. Remediate Applications – Fix
4. Remediate Applications – Virtualize
5. Deploy Operating System

I have just finished developing the content of RDS and VDI to be soon delivered in the Session 3 of the upcoming TechNet events. To minimize the required hardware, both the RDS and VDI demos are to be carried out using one laptop. In this screencast I briefly described how my demo laptop was set up. In upcoming screencasts, I will walk through the steps to manage applications for remote access, integrate RDS components for VDI, and via a browser access a personal or pooled Virtual Machine running in data center without VPN.

RTM is the release to manufacturing, meaning the code is final and has been delivered to PC and server makers, who are preparing to deliver great new Windows 7 PCs and servers with Windows Server 2008 R2 for our mutual customers when Windows 7 is generally available on October 22^nd, with Windows Server 2008 R2 available on or before that date. Here is the official press release. 

Existing Volume Licensing customers as well as TechNet and MSDN subscribers will be able to download Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in the second half of August.

Quick facts:

• The Windows 7 RTM build is 7200. The Windows Server 2008 R2 RTM build is 7600.
• The changes between the Windows 7 RC and RTM codes are minimal. And there are no feature changes between the Windows 2008 R2 RC and RTM.
• The Windows 7 system requirements are
• 1GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• 1GB RAM (32-bit) / 2GB RAM (64-bit)
• 16GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20 GB (64-bit)
• DirectX® 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
• Here is the information of Windows 7 Editions and Widows Server 2008 R2 Editions.
• Key technical resources:
• Windows Team Blog
• Windows Desktop Springboard Series
• Windows Server Division Blog
• Windows Server 2008 Technical Resources

Brought to you by your US East Microsoft IT Pro Evangelist: Blain, Dan, John, and Yung!

Reservations are required, so register today for a seat at this free and fun technology event.

• Session 1 - Migrating Windows XP to Windows 7: Get it Done with the Microsoft Deployment Tools
• Session 2 - DirectAccess™ With Windows 7: No More VPN!!
• Session 3 - Optimizing Your Environment with Remote Desktop Services™ and Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

The following is a list of 23 event cities which we will deliver the content from August 19, 2009 to October 6, 2009. Look forward to seeing you all there.

As Microsoft is reaching a key development milestone in the Microsoft Office 2010 release cycle, a number of video clips introducing the product suite and new features are now available. With this preview, Microsoft is also introducing a new product lineup for Office and reduces the number of editions from eight to five while enhancing each edition with new applications and features. Also Microsoft will be delivering Office Web Applications to consumers at no cost through Windows Live, while mid- and enterprise-level customers can based on their Office licenses possibly host Office Web Applications on premise.

I received a few quick questions on Remote Desktop Services (RDS) and thought to share my answers.

1) Do the new remote desktop enhancements in Srv2008R2 & Windows7Ent/Ult require the upgrade of Active Directory to 2008R2 Native Mode?

The Domain functional level needs to be in 2008 R2 to take advantage of the VDI capabilities.

In Active Directory User Object with Windows Server 2008 R2 domain functional level, we now have a tab for Personal Virtual Desktop, for example.

2) Regarding publication of the server with ISA, since the authentication is now forms based, how is this done?

I have not had a chance to do this myself yet. However the process should be very similar, if not identical, with publishing Terminal Services Gateway  (TSG) in Windows Server 2008 to an ISA external interface. There are a great TechNet Magazine article, Enhance TS Gateway Security with ISA Server 2006, and a TechNet page, Configuring the TS Gateway ISA Server Scenario, explaining the process well.

In part 1, I talked about what is Cloud Computing, what is Software + Services, and why IT Pros should care. Here in part 2, I focused on Microsoft’s efforts and offerings relevant to Cloud Computing, and introduced Microsoft Online Services with the following demos:

• Acquiring Microsoft Online Services
• Creating users
• Managing SharePoint
• Managing Exchange

So what are Microsoft Online Services? Very simply, they are enterprise solutions delivered through the Cloud with subscription services hosted by Microsoft. Specifically, Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) includes Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online and Office Live Meeting. With BPOS, Microsoft Online Services offer business the capabilities of Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server, Microsoft Office Communications Server, and Microsoft Office Live Meeting quickly, easily, and without the upfront costs of an on-premise deployment by hosting these solutions online. The best way to understand it is to try it out.

Directly form a just published case study:

Without MED-V, TÜV NORD employees in India would have had to connect to the company’s Terminal Services system in Germany, which would have required significantly more bandwidth (4MB instead of 500KB) at an additional annual cost of approximately U.S.$585,000.

“It’s much cheaper to install a MED-V image on a client than to give an inspector in India a separate computer and Internet connection,” Boerger explains. “Moving forward, we anticipate that offices in some countries won’t need complete, local IT infrastructures. With MED-V, we’ll be able to provide what they need at a fraction of the cost.”

Click the following image to bring up the case study and notice all Microsoft published case studies are available at http://ww.mircosoft.com/casestudies/

Recently there have been active discussions on Cloud Computing and Microsoft also has brought in a new IT service delivery model called "Software + Services." This series highlights Microsoft’s strategies and efforts in extending the Windows experience to the cloud, and talks about how to take advantages of what cloud computing is offering by extending and transitioning existing IT infrastructure into the so-called “Software + Services” model. Here in Part 1, let's take a 50,000 foot view and get a perspective on what has happened in the past two decades and appreciate:

• What is Cloud computing?
• What is Software + Services? And how did we get here?
• As IT Pros, why should we care? What are the opportunities and what’s in for IT Pros?

To continue the discussion, in Part 2 we will walk through the process of acquiring Microsoft Online Services and basic administration including creating users, configuring SharePoint Online, and managing Exchange Online.

I won't repeat the information here. Just read the Windows 7 team post. If not already, absolutely now need to pay full attention on how to move from Windows XP to Windows 7. Also do pick a few Windows 7 technologies and get really good at them. Direct Access, Boot from VHD, BitLocker to Go, and Windows XP Mode are Windows 7 solutions on top of my list to master. I have been putting in many weekends and hours. Probably too many. What do you have on your list? And are you ready for Windows 7?

John (Baker), a good friend and a colleague of mine in the Microsoft US East Evangelist team, and I both attended TechEd 2009 in L.A. and the first thing that Monday we did was to walk in a little onsite studio and record a TechTalk session. Since we needed to get it done in our time slot which was 30 minutes including getting in and out, mingling with the crew, getting John off email (that was a tough one, if you know what I mean), and finding the right angle for me (which was the most important thing as far as I was concerned for the whole recording), etc. Everything happened real fast and basically we sit down, put on the microphones, smiled, talked, thanked you, then got up and left, so the crew could start recording the next session. And yes, we did it in one take. It was a little bit intense and stressful, yet I had a lot of fun doing it. John is fun to work with and we always have a good time hanging out. Not to mention I got to talk about Self-Service Portal, something I consider one of the key objectives for implementing a virtual machine manager infrastructure.

Take a look. It’s a 10-minute fame of me and Sir Baker in TechEd 2009. Maybe we will do it more on other interesting and frequently asked topics like Direst Access, Windows XP Mode, boot with VHD, Bitlocker to go, and many more.

Two sessions in the upcoming TechEd 2009, I will be presenting. One is on prototyping Groove solution with a laptop and the other is a TechTalk recording on System Center Virtual Machine Manager Self-Service Portal. Here’s some information:

OFC309
Prototyping Microsoft Office Groove Collaboration Solutions with a Laptop
5/15/2009 2:45PM-4:00PM
Room 150

TTK60
Virtual Machine Manager Self-Service Portal: What, Why, and How

For those who are not going, look for my screencasts on these topics in upcoming weeks. Else have a great trip and look forward to meeting you all in the city of angels next week.

Windows XP Mode includes a pre-packaged virtual Windows XP environment and Windows Virtual PC to run the virtual Windows XP environment. Applications installed in Windows XP Mode are automatically available on the Windows 7 Start Menu or Task Bar and can be launched just like any Windows 7 program. Further Windows XP Mode is pre-configured with the Windows XP firewall and to apply updates automatically from Windows Update.

You may find that Windows XP Mode is a bit similar to the seamless integration in MED-V by making applications installed in the Virtual PC of a MED-V workspace available in the All Programs menu of the hosting OS as shown in my Screencast: Mad About MED-V Part 2 of 4, User Experience. Still notice Windows XP Mode is developed with small business in mind and in a standalone setting. While MED-V is part of Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) available to only Software Assurance (or SA) customers at this time and offers an enterprise virtual machines lifecycle management capability. In essence, Windows XP Mode does not replace MED-V.

Either Windows XP Mode or MED-V, since a hosting OS will need to run a session of Virtual PC the resource requirements for RAM and disk space are higher. When it comes to virtualization, 2GB of memory in current PC computing environment should be considered as an entry point. Additionally, Windows Virtual PC requires a PC with Intel-VT or AMD-V enabled in the CPU, as it takes advantage of the latest advancements in hardware virtualization.

Here are two selected readings:

• Helping Small Businesses With Windows 7 Professional and Windows XP Mode 
• Windows XP Mode in Windows 7: How it relates to future versions of MED-V

and also Windows 7 RC is now available from TechNet/MSDN subscription sites.

This is the part 2 of a 4-part Mad About MED-V series. This screencast presents the user experience of running MED-V applications by going through essential user operations of a MED-V client.

The Mad About MED-V screen series include: