Microsoft smooths Windows 7 snafu

[echrada]

Microsoft's Windows 7 public beta is now live, a day after Redmond servers seemed unable to handle traffic from would-be downloaders and the company announced a delay in the code's release.

A company spokeswoman emailed The Reg at around noon Pacific time today to say the beta is available to the web public at large. Redmond also provided notice via the Windows blog.

The public beta was scheduled to go live yesterday. And for a better part of the morning, according to reports from across the web, both the public beta download page and Microsoft.com were intermittently unreachable, as would-be downloaders angled for position.

By the afternoon, Microsoft announced it was "delaying" the public beta, so it could add infrastructure and "ensure customers have the best possible experience when downloading."

In conversations with The Reg yesterday, Redmond claimed it had yet to actually post the public beta. But one Reg reader says he was working his way through the download process when Microsoft's site went "tits up." CNet confirms that download links did indeed go live at some point, and today, Microsoft seemed to indicate that users experienced problems while attempting to download.

"Due to an enormous surge in demand, the download experience was not ideal, so we listened and took the necessary steps to ensure a good experience," reads another post to the Windows blog.

In any event, you can now download the public beta here.

Redmond released beta build 7000 to MSDN and TechNet subscribers on Wednesday. And the same code is available to public beta testers. Microsoft said earlier this week that it would limit the public beta to 2.5 million users, but it has now decided to offer unlimited downloads for the next fortnight. "We have clearly heard that many of you want to check out the Windows 7 Beta," the company burbled. ®

Microsoft smooths Windows 7 snafu • The Register

 

[NormCameron]

Microsoft employee Brandon LeBlanc at the Windows Team Blog has issued a blog post called “Here’s where we stand” which says:

“I know many of you have had issues with the Windows 7 Beta site over the last 24 hours. As you may have noticed the download site has been up and running smoothly since this morning. That said, we apologize for the inconvenience that it caused some of you.

“Due to an enormous surge in demand, the download experience was not ideal so we listened and took the necessary steps to ensure a good experience.

“We have clearly heard that many of you want to check out the Windows 7 Beta and, as a result, we have decided remove the initial 2.5 million limit on the public beta for the next two weeks (thru January 24th).

“During that time you will have access to the beta even if the download number exceeds the 2.5 million unit limit.

“Thank you for your enthusiasm, interest and willingness to beta test. It has been great to see the positive early reviews and feedback.

“As you know, this is a beta product. We are working hard to get Windows 7 ready and right. Your input is a critical part of that process. Thank you!”

Norm