Microsoft are pleased to announce the availability of Windows Server 2008 Release Candidate 0, and with it...the very first public release of Windows Server virtualization (codenamed Viridian).

You can download the bits today as part of our customer technology preview (CTP)program.

Not only does this milestone indicate that Windows Server 2008 is ready to march down the path to RTM....but it also is the first time WsV will be part of the code base and available to everyone. Now is the time for organizations to start testing with key virtuzliation scenarios...such as server consolidation....as well as getting ready for many of the other key features of Windows Server 2008.

With Windows Server virtualization CTP, customers will now be able leverage the scalability of hypervisor-based platform and features, including multi-processor guests, large memory allocation (more than 32 gigabytes per machine) and integrated virtual switch support that enables IT organizations to virtualize most workloads.

In addition to the RC0 news there are a couple of other things going on today that are of interest:

1. Microsoft and Zend have been working together on a technical collaboration with the PHP community to significantly enhance the reliability and performance of PHP on Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008. As part of this collaboration, the IIS product group has been working on a new component for IIS6 and IIS7 called FastCGI Extension which will enable IIS to much more effectively host PHP applications. You can get the FastCGI extension ( a free download) as part of the Go Live release of Microsoft FastCGI Extension for IIS 5.1/6.0 (FastCGI Extension) from the IIS community site, www.iis.net

2. Windows Vista SP1 - Windows Vista SP1 beta will be released to approximately 12,000+ private beta testers.

The following downloads of Server 2008 RC0 are available at the Microsoft Download Center:

• Windows Web Server 2008 RC0
• Windows Server 2008 RC0 Standard Edition
• Windows Server 2008 RC0 for Itanium-based Systems
• Windows Server 2008 RC0 Enterprise
• Windows Server 2008 RC0 Datacenter
• Windows Server 2008 Release Candidate: System Requirements and Installation Documentation
• Windows Server 2008 Technical Overviews
• Windows Server 2008 Step-by-Step Guides
• Release Notes for this Release of Windows Server Virtualization
• Windows Media Services 2008 for Windows Server 2008 RC0

Note: The download links for the various versions of Server 2008 RC0 contain both the 32-Bit and 64-Bit downloads. The Viridian hypervisor is included in the 64-Bit editions of Server 2008.

Microsoft, Windows Server 2008, 32–Bit, 64–Bit, RC, Release Candidate, Beta, CTP

Source:→ Windows Server Division WebLog