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Through our sources close to Microsoft, we can now confirm that the Windows 7 RTM build that will be chosen over the next few days will be officially announced on July 13th, 2009, the same day as the WPC09 (Worldwide Partner Conference) will take place in New Orleans.

As I just mentioned, Microsoft is still in the process of testing and choosing from the RTM candidate builds as they need to ensure that all show-stopper bugs present in the OS have been eradicated to ensure as much of a smooth, bug-free release as possible. TechNet, MSDN, and other partner connections will be getting their hands on the RTM build shortly after, if not on the same day.

Full Article – http://geeksmack.net/microsoft/438-confirmed-windows-7-to-rtm-july-13th.html

Microsoft released the File Server Migration Toolkit version 1.2 (FSMT 1.2), which will help you migrate file shares from computers running Windows NT 4.0 Server, Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2003 Server, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Storage Server 2008 to computers running Windows 2003 Server, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Storage Server 2008. You can use it to consolidate multiple file servers or simply to migrate files between servers.

This is an update to the previous FSMT 1.1 that fixes an issue with Windows Server 2003 clusters. This version has also been tested with the Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidate (full support for Windows Server 2008 R2 is expected and will become official after tests with the final release, which should be out later this year).

Full Article – http://blogs.technet.com/filecab/archive/2009/06/30/microsoft-file-server-migration-toolkit-1-2-available-as-a-free-download.aspx

We are happy to announce that Hotmail customers in the US, Canada, and Brazil can now add other e-mail accounts to Hotmail!* No need to sign into multiple services to check all your messages on the web. Instead, you can see any POP-enabled e-mail account (including Yahoo! Mail (Plus), AOL Mail, and Gmail) right from your Hotmail account. You can put all of your messages together in your inbox or each e-mail account in its own folder, your choice.

Full Article – http://mailcall.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!CC9301187A51FE33!51039.entry

If you are like us, we are always on the cutting edge (what do you expect – we work for Microsoft ) and because of this we have to often find unusual methods to work around the fact that OEM’s are not always “up to speed” and releasing installers and such that are for operating systems that are still in beta.

Because of this, many of you might find yourself scratching your head when you attempt to update your client or server hardware using the OEMs installation file (*.msi or *.exe).  In this post, I want to share a couple of examples of where I was able to successfully get around this using a pretty “unknown” piece of functionality in Windows 7 or Server 2008 R2.

Full Article – http://blogs.technet.com/chrad/archive/2009/07/01/using-windows-7-server-2008-r2-s-compatibility-mode.aspx

If you are like us, we are always on the cutting edge (what do you expect – we work for Microsoft ) and because of this we have to often find unusual methods to work around the fact that OEM’s are not always “up to speed” and releasing installers and such that are for operating systems that are still in beta.

Because of this, many of you might find yourself scratching your head when you attempt to update your client or server hardware using the OEMs installation file (*.msi or *.exe).  In this post, I want to share a couple of examples of where I was able to successfully get around this using a pretty “unknown” piece of functionality in Windows 7 or Server 2008 R2.

Full Article – http://blogs.technet.com/chrad/archive/2009/07/01/using-windows-7-server-2008-r2-s-compatibility-mode.aspx

Microsoft is surveying potential customers as to what it should name its forthcoming Office Web Applications suite.

As LiveSide.Net is reporting, among the handful of Office Web Apps brand names under consideration are Microsoft Ensemble, Microsoft Optro, Microsoft ArcLight, Microsoft Offsite and Microsoft Equipt. (Yes, they are in the midst of killing off the current Equipt subscription service. But why let an already trademarked name go to waste?)

Microsoft also is sharing a bit more positioning information about the forthcoming suite of Web-hosted Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote apps that it is expected to release to a wider group of testers in mid-July, as part of the Office 2010 Community Technology Preview.

Full Article – http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=3205

So, I was digging around in a recently leaked build of Windows 7 Home Premium and ran across a very interesting clause in the Microsoft Software License Terms which hints towards the possibility that Microsoft are going to be offering a family pack licensing plan which covers up to three computers in your household if you purchase a special “family pack” of Windows 7 Home Premium:

2. INSTALLATION AND USE RIGHTS.
a. One Copy per Computer. Except as allowed in Section 2 (b) below, you may install one copy of the software on one computer. That computer is the “licensed computer.”

Full Article – http://www.kristankenney.com/2009/07/02/windows-7-home-premium-to-include-family-pack-licensing/

TechRadar has come up with a very useful list of 12 hot (and free) apps to power up Windows 7 which covers all sorts of great tweaks and addins inlcuding:

1. EnhanceMySe7en – which seems to have almost every tweak available in one package
2. Standalone Stack – rather cool looking tiled stack of items within a folder
3. LogonStudio – easily change he windows boot screen
4. Sysinternals on technet – where you can find utilities to help you manage, troubleshoot and diagnose Windows systems and applications
5. Notepad++ – notepad but lots more

plus 7 others.

With the proliferation of IP devices on the enterprise network, network services like DHCP are expected to deliver on ever increasing load while maintaining low response times. DHCP Server in Windows Server 2008 R2 has been enhanced and tested to deliver far higher levels of performance and scalability than in previous releases of Windows. The cornerstone of the performance improvement in the DHCP server in the latest release has been aggressive caching of the lease records in database.

Full Article – http://blogs.technet.com/teamdhcp/archive/2009/06/29/dhcp-server-performance-in-windows-server-2008-r2.aspx

With new web-based instant messaging (IM) now available in Windows Live Hotmail worldwide, we are preparing to retire MSN Web Messenger. The old MSN Web Messenger experience will end on June 30, 2009.

With Hotmail’s new web-based IM, you can chat from your Hotmail inbox or contact list, instead of going to MSN Web Messenger (http://webmessenger.msn.com/). Go directly to the Windows Live People page (also known as “your contact list”) at http://people.live.com and sign into Messenger (orange arrow in the picture below) to continue instant messaging on the web with your Messenger friends.

Full Article – http://windowslivewire.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!2F7EB29B42641D59!41191.entry#comment

Microsoft is considering offering Windows 7 on a thumb drive to allow Netbook owners to more easily upgrade their machines, a source tells CNET News.

The move, which is still under consideration, is one of several things Microsoft has looked at to try to make it convenient to upgrade machines that don’t come with a CD or DVD drives.

Microsoft executives have said that they recognize that upgrading Netbooks poses a challenge and are exploring ways that the company can make it easier. In an interview on Thursday, Senior Vice President Bill Veghte said that Microsoft had nothing to announce on that front.

Full Article – http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10273188-56.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20

One new networking feature of Windows 7 that aggregates data from multiple sources into a single folder view. This could also be called a virtual folder. Actually, it is an indexed view of multiple data sources.

Because of the new library functionality, many of the common user folders in Windows 7 have been renamed. In Windows Vista you had Documents, Downloads, Photos, Videos, and Music. In Windows 7, these folders have been renamed and now you have Personal Documents, Personal Downloads, Personal Photos, Personal Videos, and Personal Music.

Yes, in other words, all the folders in a user’s home directory have been renamed with the word Personal in front of them. As I said, there is a reason for this and that reason is to allow us to use libraries and to distinguish between public and personal (private) documents.

Besides these personal document folders, each Windows 7 computer is going to have public folder such as Public Documents.

Full Article – http://www.windowsnetworking.com/articles_tutorials/10-New-Features-Windows-7-Networking.html

Introduction

Aero Glass remoting provides a user experience in a remote session that is comparable to a local session. This feature is now available for Windows Server 2008 R2 Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH) as well as Windows 7 as a virtual machine (VM) hosted on a Hyper-V machine, in addition to the Windows 7 client.

Below are some screenshots of a remote session from Server 2008 R2 RC build:

Full Article – http://blogs.msdn.com/rds/archive/2009/06/23/aero-glass-remoting-in-windows-server-2008-r2.aspx

Microsoft wants to show you how to cut your utility bills.

The software giant will enter the burgeoning business of home-energy management on Wednesday with Hohm, a free Web application designed to show consumers how to conserve electricity and natural gas. Microsoft’s chief research and strategy officer, Craig Mundie, is scheduled to introduce Hohm and discuss Microsoft’s energy strategy at the Edison Electric Institute utility industry conference on Wednesday.

Full Article – http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10269832-54.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5

As you all know, Microsoft released a beta of its free antivirus and antispyware utility today once code named ‘Morro’. Microsoft Security Essentials is a free product for Windows 7, Vista and XP customers. Back in 2006 Microsoft introduced its security service suite Windows Live OneCare. Microsoft recently decided that they would discontinue Live OneCare in June 2009 and replace it with Security Essentials. Based on Microsoft’s own Forefront 2.2 enterprise security technologies, the aim of Security Essentials is to provide an economically friendly way to encourage protecting your Windows PC. A lot of computer users who buy a new PC often get a free trial period version of popular security utilities. When they expire, the user tends to not purchase a full license but continue using the expired software. There are persons who out right consciously decide they are not going to purchase additional security software. For users like that, Microsoft has an answer, its called Security Essentials.

Full Article – http://adacosta.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!E8E5CC039D51E3DB!25670.entry