Windows Server 2008 ships with SP1? Whatever happened to Windows Server 2008 RTM?! All this and more explained!
The Microsoft Support Lifecycle team receives a lot of feedback from customers, particularly regarding “intriguing” topics. We’ll call this one the case of the missing Windows Server service pack release.
So what happened? Windows Server 2008 shipped on May 6, 2008 to great fanfare and well-deserved acclaim as one of the best Windows Server releases ever. However, people soon noticed in the Help, About box of Windows Explorer that Service Pack 1 (SP1) was already installed – which was odd as nobody remembered deliberately installing SP1. With the release of SP2 for Windows Server 2008, many customers had questions about the missing service pack level (ie, the RTM release) and how long it would be supported!
Was this a mistake of some kind? A marketer gone wild? The answer is a gripping tale of ship dates slipped, codebases shared and a good bit of making things fit.
Windows server and client releases have shared a common codebase since late 2001. This change simplified servicing and allowed code development methodologies that resulted in more secure and better tested Windows releases. So far, so good.
But what does a developer do when Windows Vista SP1 is being built out and Windows Server 2008 is built on the same codebase? The answer is simple: for clarity, one carries on using the Vista SP1 codebase and names the Windows Server 2008 initial RTM release SP1. This way, the naming internally remains the same and confusion is avoided. When maintaining the Windows code trees, fixes for Windows Vista SP1 are also developed for Windows Server 2008 SP1. The same story is true of the recently released SP2 for both server and client platforms.
And so our thrilling tale ends -- but not without us first telling you when support for Windows Server 2008 (RTM with SP1 installed) retires: July 12, 2011. Please update your Windows Server 2008 installation to a supported service pack before that date to ensure continued support from Microsoft. Remember, both Mainstream and Extended Support are available only at a supported service pack level.
Thanks for your continued questions and comments. More information on Microsoft’s support policies can also be found on the Microsoft Support Lifecycle website.
*This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.*
