Microsoft have announced that Service Pack 1 (or SP1) for Windows 7 will soon be available. SP1 (which also supports Windows Server 2008 R2) is already in the hands of original equipment manufacturers and is expected to be released for general consumption via Windows Update on February 22.
The pack is reported to include the usual swag of hotfixes, an updated version of Microsoft's remote desktop client, plus dynamic memory support for Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 R2.
Judging by Microsoft's report, it is the addition of dynamic memory support for Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 R2 which has got them most excited. So I doubt there will anything too new or exciting in the pack for Windows 7 users.
However, there are a few bugs in Windows 7 and, although they might be minor, they are still an annoyance. I sincerely hope MS has rectified them in SP1.
Do you guys recommend installing it right away? or should you wait and see if all goes well with it for a few days when it comes out?
Hey Texaco - I would have no problems installing SP1 as soon as it is made available via Windows Update. I will certainly be installing it then.
I would not recommend downloading from anywhere else other than Windows Updates though.
Cheers......Jim
My personal preference is to wait a couple weeks after release. Let other people do the testing.
Speaking as a computer administrator, I do hope that the Remote Desktop changes don't necessitate yet another interface change. The last one took some getting used to. As for Hyper-V...everyone who's tried it has moved on to VMWare at this point, so more power to Microsoft for making it better.
Zig - This from Michael Kleef, who is a senior technical product manager on the server team blog:
[quote:1ga1mplz]Dynamic Memory lets you increase virtual machine density with the resources you already have--without sacrificing performance or scalability. In our lab testing, with Windows 7 SP1 as the guest operating system in a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) scenario, we have seen a 40 percent increase in density from Windows Server 2008 R2 RTM to SP1. We achieved this increase simply by enabling Dynamic Memory.[/quote:1ga1mplz]
I know that will make sense to you Zig.......a lot more sense than it does to me anyway!!
Cheers....Jim
Available on MSDN and TechNet today. Should be available to the general public through Windows Update next week!
~fingers crossed~
I think I'll wait a bit before d/l'ing and installing.....the original version of MS Windows 7 Pro 64-bit is working just fine for me, no reason to (potentially) muck it up for features that (are not apparently improved but) I don't require.
So far as I know; in the history of Windows Service Packs, once the final version of a service pack has been issued via Windows Update, there has never been an updated/revamped (secondary) service pack released. If there [i:2nppv48f]are[/i:2nppv48f] any bugs in the original service pack they will usually be fixed by updates via Windows Update.
So waiting a couple of weeks or so to install does not really achieve anything; users will still need to go through the identical process of installing the original service pack and then any associated updates (if required).
Hi Josey - I do agree with your "if it ain't broke, no need to fix approach" ~ so you haven't come across any niggling little annoyances/bugs in Win7 yet then mate? I am running Win7 Pro (64-bit) and have tripped over a couple of minor issues.....maybe you have been lucky, maybe I have been unlucky.
Anyway, I am hoping they will be fixed with the installation of this Service Pack.
Cheers......Jim
[quote="ozbloke":314w9vio]Hi Josey - I do agree with your "if it ain't broke, no need to fix approach" ~ so you haven't come across any niggling little annoyances/bugs in Win7 yet then mate? I am running Win7 Pro (64-bit) and have tripped over a couple of minor issues.....maybe you have been lucky, maybe I have been unlucky. [/quote:314w9vio]
Hello ozbloke! Well, I've had a few hiccups here and there, but after a PC (such as mine) is cluttered up with various programs, hardware, firmware, software, etc. it's difficult to nail down the ultimate culprit of any problem that arises. The only 'major' issue I've had since installing W7 Pro 64-bit has been the failure of my LAN ports on my mobo. Again, this may or may not have had anything to do with the OS, but ever since I installed a dedicated ethernet card on an available PCI slot I've been golden.
I still will wait until the general public has weighed in on the release of SP 1 before I dip my toe in the water.
Hey Josey - Nice to hear from you again!
I seriously doubt the OS had anything to do with the failure of the LAN ports....
As I said, I've experienced a couple of bugs but they have been minor only and the resulting issues have been a relatively easy fix; file associations have been the main culprit.
I really like Win7...is it the best yet, in your opinion??
Cheers....Jim
[quote="ozbloke":1gn4sos4]I seriously doubt the OS had anything to do with the failure of the LAN ports....[/quote:1gn4sos4]
Agreed, my system, while seemingly not too long ago was cutting edge, is starting to show it's age. Things are going to fail over time, inevitably, and I think that's what happened to me in this case. My EVGA mobo is likely telling me that the ethernet ports have put in for retirement and I'm on my own .
[quote="ozbloke":1gn4sos4]I really like Win7...is it the best yet, in your opinion??[/quote:1gn4sos4]
Again, agreed, Windows 7 appears to be the best MS OS yet. It's what Vista was probably meant to be had it not been rushed to market before it was ready for primetime. It's not without its flaws, but all things considered it's a solid OS.
Cheers....Jim
I agree, Win 7 seems very solid. Using it on my work computer has made me want to upgrade my home computer. Not enough to go buy it, but enough to consider it at least.
It should be fun to try out once it's here (SP1 that is)
Yeah, I'm in the opposite position. My work PC is still running XP (Corporate decision) and my main home PC is Windows 7. I much prefer 7, but props to XP for it's staying power and relevance despite being quite long-in-the-tooth.
The MIS manager at my work did inform me that I will soon be getting a new tower with Windows 7 installed for use at work. He's using me as a test bed of sorts because he knows I'm a computer geek and can (hopefully) provide some decent feedback regarding the integration with our existing work network.
It's...different. The network integration would probably be better if the rest of our network was up to date as well (still running 2003 servers). Overall though, it seems to do just fine on our network.
Good luck with your work migration. It's a shocker for people who have never used it before.
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