| From the Editor
As our top story declares, the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidates (RCs) are here! This special edition of the Microsoft Hardware Newsletter marks the occasion and provides you with the latest information on downloading and working with these RCs.
Note that the "Improvements to AutoPlay" blog by Arik Cohen that is highlighted in this newsletter provides more information on the AutoPlay changes discussed in the April 24 edition of this newsletter.
Enjoy!
- The WHDC Web Team
Top Story
Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RCs Are Here We are excited to share with you the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RCs. As you know, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 share the same core operating system (OS), which improves upon our investments in Windows Vista to deliver an OS that boots quickly, is fast and reliable, is more secure than ever, gets the most out of new powerful hardware, and connects with the broad world of devices that customers use every day. With the great feedback we've received from customers and partners during beta, we are pleased to make these RCs available as a solid foundation for your product testing and innovation efforts. If you are not registered in the Windows Ecosystem Readiness Program, we hope you will register today. The program will help you: - Get ready for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. In the Windows Ecosystem area of Microsoft Connect (registration required) ( https://connect.microsoft.com/site/sitehome.aspx?SiteID=704), you can download the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RC images, the updated Windows Logo Kit (WLK), the Windows Driver Kit (WDK), the Software Development Kit (SDK), white papers, and checked builds and symbols for debugging. These resources are intended to help you test and verify compatibility and start earning the Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 logo for your products. - Tell the world that you are ready. Once you have verified compatibility, you will be able to promote your products by displaying the Windows 7 logo on your products and by listing them on the Windows 7 Compatibility Center or Windows Server Catalog Web site: ----- Ready for Windows 7. Visit the Windows 7 Compatibility Center product submission form to submit your compatibility status ( https://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-7/partner/submission.aspx). Devices that earn the Windows 7 logo will be displayed automatically in the forthcoming Windows 7 Compatibility Center product page ( http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-7/Default.aspx). ----- Ready for Windows Server 2008 R2. You can qualify devices and systems for Windows Server 2008 R2 starting with the RC build. For hardware, the qualification process is the same as it is for Windows 7. To find out how to begin, visit the Get Listed in the Windows Server Catalog page ( http://www.windowsservercatalog.com/content.aspx?ctf=listscat.htm). Qualified Windows Server 2008 R2 hardware will automatically be listed in the Windows Server Catalog (http://www.windowsservercatalog.com/). - Innovate with new Windows 7 capabilities. Learn how you can provide unique value to customers with the collection of new features introduced in Windows 7 ( http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/hwdesign/HWdesign_Win7.mspx). To learn more, visit the Windows Ecosystem Readiness Program page on the Windows Hardware Developer Central (WHDC) Web site ( http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/win7/default.mspx).
News for Windows Hardware and Driver Developers
Windows 7 Compatibility Progress The Windows 7 Beta phase ends with the release of the Windows 7 RC. To better grasp the success of the Windows 7 Beta release, it is important to understand how Windows 7 builds on our combined prior investments. With Windows Vista, we introduced some fundamental changes in how devices interact with the operating system. These changes were necessary to ensure long term security and reliability, but they had a substantial impact on the platform and on our driver architecture. Because of these necessary improvements, compatibility with Windows Vista suffered at first. Now, thanks to you, Windows Vista has laid a solid compatibility foundation. With the Windows Vista Compatibility Center listing nearly 10,000 devices as compatible, customers can be confident that their devices will work with Windows Vista. With today's strong Windows Vista SP1 device compatibility, the goal for Windows 7 is simple: to ensure a great Windows 7 experience with the devices that people use and love. Windows 7 is building on the investments and on the foundations of Windows Vista and the results are excellent. In fact, our ecosystem readiness efforts through the beta phase have already driven great hardware compatibility results: - More than 99% of the drivers available for Windows Vista SP1 are already available for Windows 7. - Over 94% of PCs running the Windows 7 Beta have all drivers installed or available (also known as "Zero Driver Not Found Errors"). Significantly fewer Windows Vista PCs reported all drivers installed or available when first launched in early 2007, though that number improved markedly to more than 92% by June 2008. Thanks to all our ecosystem partners for contributing to this incredible early success with Windows 7. To continue building on Windows 7 hardware compatibility throughout RC, download the RC build today (registration required) at http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/win7/default.mspx. Windows 7 Compatibility Center Like the Windows Vista Compatibility Center, the Windows 7 Compatibility Center (available in the Windows 7 General Availability timeframe) will give customers easy to understand 32-bit and 64-bit compatibility status for thousands of devices and applications, offer links to compatible device driver and software downloads, and provide customers and partners with a rich feedback system. Take this opportunity to reach millions of customers by getting listed on the Windows 7 Compatibility Center in one of two ways: - Complete the Windows 7 Logo Program requirements and get listed automatically. - Submit Windows 7 product support plans using the Windows 7 Compatibility Center product submission form ( http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-7/partner/submission.aspx). If you have any questions about the Windows 7 Compatibility Center or the product submission process, please visit the Windows 7 Compatibility Center FAQ page ( http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility/windows-7/partner/faq.aspx). Ready. Set. 7. At the recently launched Web site "Ready. Set. 7." ( http://www.readyset7.com/), see who is building with Windows 7 and find out how to get yourself ready for Windows 7. Browse the wall of partners to learn firsthand how partners are getting ready, and check out the "I Build." sections for key next steps. For more information, see http://www.readyset7.com/. Hardware Design for Windows 7 On the Hardware Design for Windows 7 Web page, we have collected in one location the current technical information about Window 7 for hardware engineers and driver developers that is available on WHDC. We will continue to update this page as new technical papers and resources become available. See the Hardware Design for Windows 7 page ( http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/hwdesign/HWdesign_Win7.mspx).
What's New in Blogs for Hardware and Driver Developers
"Improvements to AutoPlay" by Arik Cohen in the "E7" Blog As mentioned before on this blog (regarding our UAC changes) and on the IE blog (regarding the SmartScreen® filter for malware), we have an increased focus to enable customers to be in control and feel confident about the software that they choose to run on their computers. Folks on this blog have also commented about the concerns they have specifically in the AutoPlay area. This blog entry addresses some of the changes that we have made to increase customer confidence when using their media and devices with Windows. It is authored by Arik Cohen, a program manager on the Core User Experience team. -Steven More from "Improvements to AutoPlay" blog...
New Things Happening with the WDK
WDK 7.0.0 RC Release The Windows Driver Kit (WDK) for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RCs will be WDK version 7.0.0. The WDK team plans to issue servicing releases of the WDK, which may or may not correspond to any future service pack releases for Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2. The WDK version number will identify each release, in order to avoid confusion. The WDK for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RCs will be available from MSDN subscription download and from the WDK Beta Connect site. For information about the changes between the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Beta and the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 RC releases of the WDK, please see the Release Notes for the RC release ( http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/devtools/wdk/RelNotesW7_rc.mspx). WDK for Windows 7 Beta Satisfaction Survey Have you used the WDK for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Betas? What did you think? Have you tried Windows Auto Code Review (OACR)? What do you think of the new setup experience? Did you post feedback? Did you get a reply? The WDK team wants to know how you rate your experience with the WDK for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Betas. Please go to the WDK Beta Connect site and take the survey (registration required) ( https://connect.microsoft.com/Survey/SurveyList.aspx?SiteID=704). If you need access to the WDK Beta Connect site, please send e-mail to WDKBeta@microsoft.com to request an invitation. We'd like to hear from you!
Windows Logo Program Tools and News
WLK 1.4 Released We are pleased to announce the release of WLK 1.4. This release of the Windows Logo Kit adds support for obtaining logos for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, in addition to the supported previous versions of Windows. We encourage all Microsoft partners to use WLK 1.4 to run tests against your devices and systems in order to obtain logos. Highlights of WLK 1.4 include: - Improved kit quality. The WLK team has fixed many issues filed by our partners and by our test teams. We have received a large number of issues filed by our partners, a majority of which have been resolved or fixed. - Improved participation by partners. We have responded to the request by partners for pre-RTM releases of the kit by releasing two versions to partners. The response has been overwhelming and we are encouraged by the enthusiasm from these partners. - New device categories. There are 49 new eligible device categories added to the kit since WLK 1.2. - New jobs. There are 1,425 jobs in the kit compared with 1,648 jobs in WLK 1.3 and 1,376 jobs in WLK 1.2. For WLK 1.4, 152 new jobs were added to the kit and 375 jobs were removed since WLK 1.3. However, since WLK 1.2, there is a net of 49 jobs that have been added to the kit. - Improved documentation. The new DTM Help documentation has been revamped with new jobs fully documented. All references to the applicable operating system and architecture for each job have been corrected. WLK 1.2 and WLK 1.3 retirement schedule: Effective July 9, 2009, WLK 1.2 and 1.3 will be deprecated and all logo program submissions must use WLK 1.4. Logo submissions using WLK 1.2 and WLK 1.3 will not be accepted by Winqual. Please plan accordingly. To download WLK 1.4, visit the Windows Ecosystem Readiness Program Web page and log in or register ( http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/win7/default.mspx).
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