Microsoft is making available a free Windows 7 Enterprise Trial version for IT professionals without access to the release to manufacturing version. The trial must be activated within 10 days of download from the Springboard area of TechNet, and is good for 90 days.
The version was announced Tuesday by Microsoft’s Stephen Rose on the Springboard Series blog. The trial is meant to give IT professionals a way to test their applications, hardware and deployment strategies.
Clean Install Will Be Needed
Rose said only a limited number of licenses are available, so the download is only accessible while licenses remain. After 90 days, the trial version will shut down every hour and IT departments will have to buy and do a clean installation of Windows 7, including drivers and applications. Rose noted that Windows 7 Enterprise will not be available through retail channels.
The trial download is available in English, Spanish, French, German and Japanese, and in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. Microsoft stressed that the enterprise trial is for IT pros, even though almost anyone can download it.
The free trial appears to be an effort to convince users of Windows XP and Vista to upgrade to Windows 7. Vista is generally regarded as a failure, with many enterprises sticking with Windows XP. As a further incentive, Microsoft earlier this year offered significant discounts for upgrades to Windows 7 Home Premium and Professional, and it said Tuesday that it will offer a discount for upgrades to Windows 7 Professional through Feb. 28.
Windows 7 Uses Intel Features
Also on Tuesday, Microsoft and Intel executives told news media that the companies have worked together to improve PCs with Intel chips that will ship with Windows 7. The improvements include faster performance and better energy efficiency, and they showed a PC with an Intel processor that booted in just…